Kevin Jans

President & Podcast Co-host

Former USAF and USSOCOM Contracting Officer

Kevin Jans started Skyway Acquisition after 16 years as a Department of Defense contracting officer. He founded the company with the vision of sharing his experience from the Government side to help people thrive in GovCon.

Starting with his experience as an Air Force and SOCOM Contracting Officer, since 2011 he continues to build a diverse team of Contracting Officers to expand that vision. He now leads a team that provides a robust combination of pre-award, post award and strategic consulting as well as training from the Contracting Officers perspective. In his free time he also hosts the Contracting Officer Podcast with Paul Schauer.

Shelley Hall

VP of Client Services

Former USAF Contracting Officer, Post-Award Specialist

I have the greatest job in the world! I get to help clients decode the mystery of Government contracting every day. I work with all size business to help them thrive in the government market. I retired with over 32 years of government contracting experience. For most of that time I held an unlimited contracting officer’s warrant.

I’ve pretty much done it all in contracting – small purchases to large dollar, technically complex acquisitions; supplies and services; commercial and non-commercial; systems and operational; and foreign military sales.

Skyway really does help you understand all the things you need to know to win government contracts. My superpower is post-award consulting. My specialty is challenging CPARS ratings!

Amber VanBuhler

VP of Operations

Amber is an enthusiastic and driven professional with an inherent variety of skills used to help businesses succeed. With a background in digital marketing, Amber has become highly competent in executing various initiatives. She currently applies this knowledge in an consorted effort to contribute to the continued growth and success of the Contacting Officer Podcast and Skyway Acquisition on multiple fronts.

Amber thrives on communication with others and her execution of strong customer service which ensures advancement in a positive direction. Mostly she enjoys having a role in a company that truly makes a difference.

Troy Small

VP of Sales, DoD & Program Management

Former US Marine Corps Contracting Officer

Troy Small is a retired United States Marine who served fifteen of his 20 years of active-duty service as a Contingency Contracting Officer. Troy has 28 years’ experience in the Acquisition Career Field and served in several roles during his tenure with the Department of Defense to include Purchasing Agent, Contract Specialist, Contracting Officer, Simplified Acquisition Branch Supervisor, Procurement Chief, Chief of Contracting for Regional Contracting Center- Fallujah, and Assistant Program Manager for Contracting-Program Executive Office-C4I.

Troy holds an MBA from National University and is DAWIA Level-III certified in Contracting and Level-II certified in Program Management. Troy’s passion is using his military mindset, contracting expertise, and business acumen to help businesses execute and move their needle.

Vicky Strycharske

Targeting and Pre-award Specialist, Lead Proposal Consultant

Former US Army and USSOCOM Contracting Officer

Vicky has nearly 20 years of Contracting Officer experience for the Department of Defense (DOD). Since leaving the DOD, she has worked as a proposal manager/writer in the federal, state, and local government market. She has developed winning proposals worth billions in government contracts in her career.

Former Contracting Officer, Technical Industrial Liaison Officer, and Procurement Analyst for DoD. Agency experience in Government contracting positions: US Army and Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). Experience in successful federal agency proposals: DoD (including US Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Special Operations Command; VA, NASA, GSA, DLA, BLM, DOT, DHS, FEMA, DOJ, EPA, IRS, FAA, DOS, USAID, United Nations, and many more.

Angela Jacobs

Services and Commodities Contracting Consultant

Former US Army Contracting Officer

Angela Jacobs worked for the Department of the Army for 34 years of which 31 years were spend in the Acquisition Career Field. During her tenure in the Acquisition Career Field she served as a Purchasing Agent, Contract Specialist, Contracting Officer, Division Chief of numerous divisions, and Deputy Director/Director. Angela spend time both CONUS and OCONUS acquisitioning for a variety of supplies, services, and construction in support of base operations. She has extensive experience in both pre and post award functions.

She also held an unlimited Contracting Officer’s warrant for over 16 years. She is Level III certified and hold both CFCM and CPCM certifications. She enjoys reading and interpreting federal acquisition regulations, policies, and procedures. Angela retired in March 2020 and is dedicated to helping businesses better understand the federal acquisition process so they can become successful government contractors who ultimately provide quality products/services to the government. Angela holds an MBA from University of Phoenix and an MHS from Liberty University.

Steve Lucianetti

J&A / FMS Specialist, Contract Management Consultant

Former DoD and US Navy Contracting Officer

Steve worked for DoD for 32 years as a contracting officer. Steve started out buying the nuts and bolts for DoD systems and at the end of his career was buying the whole system. He retired in 2014 after serving as the Procuring Contracting Officer at Naval Air System Command for major weapon systems procured by Naval aviation for 7 years.

His brings experience in R&D, service, performance-based logistics, and hardware acquisitions.

Raymond Kahre

Industry and Business Development Consultant

Government Contracting Expert

An accomplished sales and marketing leader, program builder, and serial entrepreneur, Raymond Kahre is passionate about helping his clients and partners create value. With over a decade of experience helping clients navigate the complexities of federal procurement through finance and go-to-market strategy to capture, proposal and program management, Raymond has led business development and capture programs to over $1B in federal sales. Raymond holds a BA in Economic Geography from the University of Tennessee and an MBA with concentrations in finance and marketing from the Debusk School of Business at Lincoln Memorial University.

Joseph Luetke

Former USAF Contracting Officer

Joseph “Joe” is retired from the US Air Force, where he spent 16 years, of his 22 years of service at different levels in Air Force Contracting. He has been a contract specialist, contracting officer, and has transformed organization’s function and flow. He has worked procurements state-side and overseas. He is DAWIA III-certified in Contracting. He brings a positive attitude and “can do” spirit to any project. He likes to create order out of chaos.

caity Hart

Former USAF Contracting Officer

Caity is a former US Air Force Contracting Officer with 12 years of experience in cradle-to-grave contracting including three successful tours overseas as a Contingency Contracting Officer. She has administered commercial contracts for commodities, construction, and both personal services and non-personal services. She has occupied a role within the Air Force as both the Services Team Lead and the Office Training Manager; and has both her DAWIA Level 2 certification and her CFCM.

 

As a CO, she spent her career honing her skills as a business advisor to Government customers and contractors alike. She is innovation focused and an avid problem solver who is motivated to leave things better than she found them. She is a creative thinker with a knack for troubleshooting unique or uncommon situations while also ensuring proactive and effective communication. Caity is passionate about customer education and has spent her career taking the time to help her customers, contractors, and peers understand the why while also finding the way to “Yes”.

 

Joe Eversole

Former NASA and USAF Contracts Manager

Joe Eversole worked in government contracting for over 30 years. His agency experience includes USAF and NASA, and he has worked in private industry. Contracts administered and managed include major weapons systems, services and construction for the USAF and space flight hardware and engineering services for NASA.

He has pre-award experience as a voting member of two large source evaluations at NASA, including defending a GAO protest. His post-award experience includes management of large dollar aircraft, satellite, and rocket propulsion contracts. Post award experience also includes adjudication of construction claims and negotiating large dollar modifications.

He has managed contracts covering the full spectrum from Firm Fixed Price, Cost Plus Incentive Fee, Cost Plus Award Fee and Time and Materials. He has also developed and taught acquisition certification classes. He is a retired USAF officer and a retired NASA civil servant.

Katie Bass

Former US ARMY Deputy chief & Contracting officer

Katie is a seasoned leader in the acquisition world, bringing 14 years of diverse experience to the table. Her journey spans the entire spectrum of government acquisition, from planning and administering multimillion-dollar contracts to translating program budgets into real-world capabilities. With 8 years as a Contracting Officer and previous roles in Budget, Logistics, and Program Management, Katie has a comprehensive understanding of the government acquisition process from multiple perspectives.

Throughout her career, she’s been the go-to advisor for programmatic, contractual, and business compliance matters. Katie knows the ins and outs of government regulations and is dedicated setting the bar high for technical excellence, fostering leadership growth, and driving team success.

Tanis Brainerd

Former USAF Contracting Officer

Tanis Brainerd is a seasoned Contracting and Procurement leader with a proven ability to implement acquisition strategies and drive program performance while reducing time and cost. To do this, she has engaged as a Contracting and Pricing SME for 17 years in both military and civilian roles, and when coupled with her creative and innovative approach, she is able to create win-win solutions.
 
As an influencer, she coordinates and manages various elements of the procurement life cycle from pre- to post-award contract administration. Additionally, she possesses experience in commercial and non-commercial acquisitions. She has handled a variety of procurements to include both small and multiple $B, complex requirements.
 

*I am prohibited to provide my services to support any related DHS/USCIS matter.

David Geary

Market Intelligence and Contract Management Consultant

Former VA Contracting Officer

David Geary has over 10 years of contract management experience, including health care IOT&A related activities, including the purchase of medical equipment, furniture, and support services; quality control of contract- and purchasing-related activities, interfacing with military and government personnel at multiple levels, and communicating effectively. David has held a Level III limited $50 Million Warrant for over seven years, and a secret security clearance for ten years. Mr. Geary has a working knowledge of project management theory and processes within the VHA environment.

Paul Schauer

Podcast Co-host and Lead Industry Consultant

Former USAF Contracting Officer

Paul Schauer is the co-founder and co-host of the Contracting Officer Podcast. The Contracting Officer Podcast was created to help both government and industry acquisition professionals understand how the other side thinks and operates by providing context on the similarities and differences between the roles.

Paul’s 25 years of federal acquisition experience include service as a civilian contracting officer supporting the United States Air Force (USAF), director of contracts and business operations for a small-to-mid size defense contractor, and vice president for a major defense contractor in both contracts and operations (P&L responsible) roles.

He is well versed in all facets of the government acquisition process from both a government and contractor perspective; including acquisition strategy, source selection, bid strategy, proposal pricing, acquisition policy, negotiation, and cradle-to-grave management of complex contracts.

“Being a member of the Skyway Community is a competitive advantage.”

SteveGoldsby • CEO, Integrated Computer Solutions Inc