Karsun Solutions strengthened its relationship with Amazon Web Services (AWS) through its Innovation Center Data Practice this fall. The center hosts the DataOps NoVa Meetup, a professional development group that introduces the Northern Virginia data and IT community to the latest practices, vendors and solutions for DataOps. The Meetup partnered with AWS for two events.
The Zen of DataOps
On October 22nd the Meetup featured a virtual presentation on The Zen of DataOps. The event began with a brief overview of Karsun’s Data and Cloud Practices by Shaunak Ashtaputre. Next, it welcomed AWS expert Stephen Moon. This virtual presentation dove into AWS Lake Formation and the Data Supply Chain Pipeline.
AWS and Dataguise Help Karsun Customers Improve Data Governance
Shaunak Ashtaputre, Director of the Data Practice and Co-Founder of DataOps NoVa, was invited to share a case study at an event co-hosted by AWS and Dataguise in November 2020. This webinar delved into a specific data governance solution, built with Dataguise on AWS, for one of Karsun’s public sector customers. Learn how these offerings can Reduce Sensitive and Personal Data Risk and Enable Compliance here.
AWS Resources Beyond Data
Karsun Solutions is a proud AWS Advanced Consulting Partner. As such it offers complete cloud solutions in addition to modern software development and data solutions. Current cloud solutions include cloud migration, cloud platform buildout and serverless computing.
Cloud Runway
Included in Karsun’s migration solution is the Cloud Runways toolkits. This enables cloud first organizations to systematically migrate legacy systems to the cloud. The Cloud Practice uses a proprietary multi-criteria decision support framework to perform a robust assessment of the solution providers’ key characteristics. Considering characteristics such as interoperability, flexibility, SLAs and security allows the team to make an optimal selection on the providers. Karsun’s cloud experts also focus on balancing private, public, and hybrid cloud options based on economics, functionality, and security.
Through relationships with vendors like Dataguise and AWS Karsun offers high-quality cloud and data solutions. Its Data, Solution and Development practice backs up each of these resources through employee-centered training and enablement. Learn more about Karsun’s AWS offerings here.
Meet Satish Alluri, the Deputy Program Manager for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Grants Management Modernization initiative. He recently graduated from the selective ACT-IAC Voyagers Professional Development fellowship. A longtime Karsun team member, he has held several positions including Senior Business Analyst and Scrum Master serving both our DHS FEMA and GSA programs.
We sat down with Satish Alluri to hear his advice on advancing your product, delivery, and program career. Learn about his tenure at Karsun plus his secrets for growing as an enterprise modernization expert.
Life as Program Manager at Karsun Solutions
How would you describe your role at Karsun?
I am currently serving as the Deputy Program Manager for our FEMA GMM modernization contract and assist in the overall program management. My key responsibilities include employee engagement, motivating the team towards successful and continuous Product Delivery and also provide operational oversight for the Process and Product Management disciplines within our program.
How did you end up at Karsun?
Over the past several years, I had worked in various consultant opportunities and one of those stints gave me a chance to work with some of the now seasoned Karsun employees. This past relationship paved the path for me to join Karsun in 2015. I joined as a Senior Business Analyst and gradually progressed in my career. During my current tenure, I supported the GSA program in different roles as a Senior Business Analyst, Scrum Master, and now supporting the FEMA program.
What is your main goal or focus?
Given my background, I have always been aligned with Product Strategy and Delivery. My career goals have been getting into Program Management, Product Management, seeking an opportunity to lead, collaborate, and oversee a big team and eventually run a successful program.
What gets you excited to come to work here?
Coming to the office gives me the opportunity to talk and collaborate with my peers. That’s pretty much what excites me. The kind of work that we do, the things that we deliver, it’s an evolutionary process. The key aspects are meeting people, talking to people, and helping things get delivered for the federal government.
What do you love most about the culture at Karsun Solutions?
I think there’s a certain openness within the company. I can openly collaborate with my peers on different ideas at Karsun. Whether it is my supervisor, colleagues, or the CEO, I can walk around and find somebody to share that idea. Even if it doesn’t get implemented, the conversation that happens is engaging enough for me to go back and think through it and come back with more food for thought. The openness of these conversations and the support structure around us employees is personally the favorite part of the culture here.
Do you have any unique traditions that you feel embody Karsun’s culture?
When I was supporting our GSA program, we used to follow the national day program and that pretty much set the mood for that day. Another of my favorite traditions are the Plank challenges in our FEMA program and also the potlucks at the office. Our last Thanksgiving Potluck was very successful and gave us an opportunity to be relaxed and work in a casual environment. Although the recent situation has disrupted some of these traditions, I am looking forward to getting back into the office and engaging more in-person fun activities with my colleagues.
Envisioning a Future at Karsun
What are you most excited about for the future of the company?
When I joined Karsun, it was a small business and while I was supporting the GSA program, we were awarded the FAA contract and now the FEMA contract. As we are turning towards becoming a large organization, the prospects that I see for myself within this growth is what excites me the most.
What is your experience with professional development at Karsun?
For myself, when I approached my supervisor regarding certain certifications, it was welcomed. Actually, after joining Karsun, I went through a couple of certifications: Certified Scrum Product Owner, Certified Agile Leadership, Certified Scrum Professional, and the Voyagers Program. This states what the company gives its employees. If an employee can speak up, there are always opportunities here.
What is your relationship like with your manager?
It is a great relationship. Some of the things I have done at Karsun would not be possible without his cooperation. His openness and upfront attitude towards giving timely feedback helped me improve certain things. When there were aspects I did not do what had to be done, he was quick and upfront about it. He gave constructive feedback and gave me guidance on how I could fix it.
What can you tell us about Mentorship with Karsun?
It’s the relationship that you have with your supervisor. It’s your career. Tell them what you want to further enhance your career. There was a dialogue with all my supervisors across the different programs. They tell me what I could do, and I ask them questions. I think it comes back to employee openness and finding a way to connect with your supervisor and senior colleagues.
Advice to Future Team Members: Be Open, Be Honest
What is one quality people need to be successful at Karsun?
At a company like Karsun, you have to be open, communicative, and responsive. If you are somebody who just sits at your cubicle, you might find it tough to be successful at this company. You need to open up and say this is what I can do and how I can contribute towards company success. The reason I say that is because it is a growing company and as we are growing from a small to a large organization every employee will have a way they can contribute to that growth.
What advice would you have for a candidate coming to interview?
The one piece of advice I would give is to be honest. As I said, Karsun is a growing company. It is important that the people we are hiring are as they present themselves in the interview. There’s a decent opportunity for growth based on the skillset you present in the interview. Being honest in the interview, saying what you have done in the past and what you can do is very critical. Just keep it straight.
Solving difficult problems drives the work at Karsun Solutions. One of those difficult problems included transitioning Karsun’s internship program, formerly based out of its Herndon, Virginia Headquarters, to a fully remote program. In this new virtual internship format, interns join a mentorship centered program designed to keep them connected and innovating even as they work remotely.
At Karsun Solutions the Internship Program is affiliated with the Karsun Innovation Center or KIC. As part of their virtual internship, each participant pairs up with a mentor from the KIC. Beyond introducing them to an innovative IT modernization culture, mentors provide continuous feedback so that interns may further develop and improve their skills.
Building a Digital Workplace with Karsun Konnect
As members of the Innovation Center, interns will envision the future of remote work. They will work directly with Karsun’s new digital workplace initiative, Karsun Konnect. This is a real-world application, designed for Karsun employees, which is created and maintained by the KIC. Upon completion, Konnect will include both an InnerSource library and provide workflow enhancements to the corporate functions serving Karsun teams.
Their work will involve collaborating with various stakeholders within the Operations, Talent, Human Resources, and Business Development teams, to identify areas of digital transformation. As part of this experience, interns will identify business requirements. Then they will learn to implement low-cost and efficient solutions within the identified constraints. Based on the business needs and feasibility, they next select appropriate software solutions. These solutions might include chatbots and other applications developed on no-code/low-code frameworks available under the Konnect platform.
An Immersive Innovation Center Experience
Interns will also participate in daily remote stand-ups and demo their projects weekly to Innovation Center leadership. Although remote these interns will also have the opportunity to present and engage with Karsun’s monthly virtual Innovation Town Halls. They may also participate in virtual training through monthly dojos and brown bags hosted by the KIC.
Some may continue their projects after completing their program. Graduates of three previous intern classes now continue their projects in the Karsun Innovation Center as full-time employees. Several of these former internship participants plan to participate as mentors or advisors for this year’s class. The KIC internship program is one of several outreach events designed to engage future IT professionals. In addition to engaging in other college hiring programs the organization previously sponsored a senior capstone project at George Mason University and hackathons at the University of Oklahoma and University of Southampton. Karsun accepts internship applications in the spring.
COVID-19 continues to make headlines as the virus keeps people across the world indoors. For many of us, this new normal includes working from home. Meanwhile, growing companies like Karsun Solutions still need to hire IT, development, and other technology professionals to fill their teams. As a result, phone and video interviews are becoming a widespread solution. To protect the health and safety of our candidates Karsun is among those companies hiring virtually. To help you prepare, we created this list of virtual interview tips and tricks.
Remember, a virtual interview is simply an interview that takes place remotely, sometimes over the phone, but often using technology like video conferencing and other online communication platforms. Like any other interview presenting yourself professionally is of the utmost importance. Below we review our top tips for virtual interviewing.
- Position yourself in a well-lit, quiet, clean space. It is essential to limit distractions by choosing a quiet, well-lit, neutral, and clean space to conduct your interview.
- Check and test your technology several times before the interview to ensure a successful session. Make sure you understand how both the camera and the microphone work on your device.
- Don’t sit to close or too far from the computer. Sitting up straight also naturally gives you a bit more energy and helps you communicate your excitement about the company. If you rely on body language to communicate and engage interviewers, make sure your hands and upper body are visible on camera.
- Visit the company’s careers page before the interview. Research the company and write down a few notes. It is best if you have only a few quick notes in front of you and glance at them sparingly. You should be ready to speak in-depth about why you want to join the company, how its mission resonates with you, and the value you will bring to the specific role.
- Setup a mock video interview with someone, like a friend. Practice common questions. Ask your mock interviewer for feedback. This will help you feel prepared for your interview.
- Be on time, be prepared, and dress professionally. Treat this as an in-office interview. Match your look to that of the organization’s office-based colleagues. Browse the company’s website and social feeds for clues to its dress code.
- Be personable! Be yourself! Be prepared and practice but do not memorize. You don’t want to sound robotic throughout your interview.
- Within 24 hours of the interview, send an individual thank you email to everyone you met. Not only will it show you value their time, but it provides you the opportunity to sell yourself. Use this opportunity to express the unique strengths you bring to the role or share any talking points you forgot to address.
Virtual interviewing is similar to interviewing in person. Practicing both answering questions and the interview technology will set you on the path for success. More importantly, using these tips may just land you your next IT job. If you are Full Stack Developer, DevSecOps Engineer, SDET, or other IT modernization expert that dream position might be at Karsun Solutions. Visit KarsunCareers.com apply today!
Through our Karsun Innovation Center (KIC) Internship Program each of our interns has a voice in the future of our company. These interns support the Research and Development teams rolling out new tools and processes across our organization. In the fall of 2019, we launched an Innovation Town Hall series. And once again our interns led the way. Presenting their projects to Karsun employees at these monthly meetings, they not only demoed new innovations currently in production they also explained customer pain points and opportunities for future enhancements. From SQL proxies to artificial intelligence, each of our interns had new innovative projects to share.
Interns learn and grow during their time with us. Shadowing team members in our Innovation Center and customer delivery teams, they participate in cross-functional projects, sharing their insights with teams across the company. They also sit down with senior executives, learn about their background, and dig a little deeper into their leadership experience as they share advice on things that helped them along the way.
The SQL Proxy Approach to Data Encryption with Anuraadha Kandadai
Anuraadhaa Kandadai is a recent graduate from Duke University with an MS in Economics and Computation. Over the past summer, she worked as an Intern at KIC. During her time at Karsun Anuraadha presented at both Karsun’s internal Innovation Town Hall and at DataOps NoVa, a local Meetup hosted by Karsun Solution’s Data Practice.
Anuraadhaa presented on the SQL Proxy Approach to Data Encryption. Her demo was a behind the scenes look at the SQL Proxy components followed by use cases for encryption. She also highlighted the challenges with complete encryption.
Apart from her work in the Karsun Innovation Center, she enjoys doing DIY art and craftwork. On her time in the Innovation Center, she said,
“For someone with a mixed background (economics and CS), I came in with an open mind and with a primary goal to learn as much as possible. After 3 months of the internship, I can confidently say that learning as an intern at KIC was immense. The range of work from working on Robotic Process Automation to building a “dead code” analyzer was exciting. I must also add that the team at KIC has been extremely helpful and always encouraging and patient with all the interns.”
JAM Stack Development with Sheetal Ramamoorthy
Sheetal Ramamoorthy presented at the Innovation Town Hall in January on using the JAM Stack for software development. JAM stands for Javascript-APIs-Markup, or as her talk described it in an employee town hall announcement, “the way to build high-performance serverless web-apps in no time.” In addition to the application built with JAM, her Karsun Innovation Center team hosted several “dojos” or employee-led training workshops. Sheetal and her team shared technical knowledge and introduced this development practice with the other teams serving Karsun’s customers.
Sheetal is a recent graduate with a Master’s Degree in Engineering Management with a focus on Analytics from the University of South Florida, Tampa. During her free time, she paints with friends and participates in 5k runs during the marathon season. On her time working with the Karsun Innovation Center and Development Practice she added,
“I had many different things on my mind during the internship. I wanted to learn what it is like to work in an office environment, have more experience in coding, and work with new programming languages and learned them too. As an intern I worked as a part of the KIC team doing data analysis for the CMMI audit and scripting in R language for regression equation and I hope to contribute more on the development of Innovation at Karsun.”
Compliance Masonry with Akhil Ramaswamy
During his Innovation Town Hall Akhil Ramaswamy demonstrated his work with the compliance masonry team. This is a capture and management framework (CMF) for documenting System Security Plans (SSPs.) Using compliance masonry, teams collaborate on documentation as structured data. Then they automatically format it in multiple ways useful to their teammates and compliance reviewers. This is both more secure and more efficient than the traditional approach which involves many team members manually managing large static Word and Excel documents.
During his time at Karsun Innovation Center, Akhil extended the compliance masonry to add two additional features. First, Control Check verifies if an application’s source code has the security control implemented and confirms the required documentation is available. Second, Extract inserts control documentation from the code and updates the open control YAML.
The KIC Internship Program is just one of several ways Karsun leverages its innovation resources to support employees and the local IT community. Previously seniors at George Mason University completed a rapid scaffolding prototype with a KIC mentor as part of their capstone project.
The KIC also includes five employee-centric Practice Areas. Led by a subject matter expert, these Practice Areas host innovation center days, training workshops, and connect employees to an expanding pool of resources. This program cultivates team members into Enterprise Modernization Experts while enabling new opportunities to serve our customers. Through KIC the Data Practices also reach back to the IT community. Many practice leads speak at industry events. Meanwhile teams in the Data Practice host a monthly DataOps NoVa Meetup at the Karsun Solutions Headquarters in Herndon, Virginia.
About Karsun Solutions
Karsun Solutions is a fast-growing, innovative, enterprise modernization firm. The Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Washington Business Journal, and Inc. all recognize Karsun Solutions among the fastest-growing companies in the Washington, D.C. region. Karsun teams deliver software development, cloud, and advanced analytics solutions to customers at government agencies including the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Aviation Administration, and General Services Administration. It is an established firm, with a DCAA Approved Accounting System, CMMI Level 5 – DEV appraisal, and AWS Government Competency as well as ISO 9001, ISO 20000 and ISO 27001 certifications. Information on employment opportunities is available at karsun-llc.com/careers.
Like most organizations, in early March our teams moved to remote work. As we transitioned online we continued scaling up resources across our programs. While we are no longer together in person, we are working hard to integrate our newest team members while maintaining connections within our established teams. Below we share some of the steps our teams are taking to come together and Be Greater throughout this uncertain time.
Scaling Together
In September 2019 we moved into our new corporate headquarters in Herndon, Virginia. Even as we settled into this new space, our rapid growth required the build-out of an additional office at our Worldgate campus. Our Operations crew’s commitment to preparing this space ensures we will be able to move in as soon as our offices are safe to occupy. While we cannot see each other in person, we hope to celebrate our office expansion alongside you later this year.
Many new team members will also join us remotely. We continue hiring for our teams in both Oklahoma and Virginia as our rapid growth continues. To protect our team members during our ongoing recruiting surge, all talent operations are now virtual. Candidates should still apply through our jobs portal. They can also connect directly with the team by emailing talent@karsun-llc.com. Once they are in the system a member of our team will contact them with further details.
Connecting with Leadership
Just as our Talent Team presses onward with recruiting, our orientation process continues for new hires. Even as we transitioned online a dozen new team members joined us in March. These represent groups from our Innovation Center and Contracts groups to teams serving agencies including FEMA, FAA, and GSA.
The highlight for many employees joining Karsun is the opportunities available to connect with our leadership team. As part of our remote operations, Karsun’s Coffee with Leadership program also moved to a virtual format. In this popular program 10-12 employees each month are invited to grab a bagel, a cup of coffee, and then share their experience with the Karsun executive team. Every employee has the opportunity to participate in these intimate listening sessions. In its new format team members join the discussion from the comfort of their home. At the same time, they maintain the connection with senior leadership that is Karun’s hallmark.
While the path ahead is uncertain, Karsun is dedicated to embracing the innovative principles necessary to adapt to a changing world. Our corporate teams bring the same level of creativity to these challenges that they bring to difficult problems facing our teams and customers. Join us as we discover new solutions for today’s uncertain times while charting a better path forward.
As we adapt to government recommendations regarding COVID-19, maintaining the safety of prospective candidates and Karsun staff is our top priority. As a result, our Talent Team and hiring managers have moved to remote work. In addition to protecting our team members, we also want to ensure public safety. As of this week, we are either postponing or moving Karsun hosted events online until further notice.
Subsequently, our job interviews are also moving to a virtual format. Our Talent Acquisition Specialists will provide instructions when scheduling upcoming interviews. Candidates may also connect directly with our team on LinkedIn. Simply click the pictures in the upper right-hand corner for the LinkedIn information for each of our Talent Acquisition Specialists or email talent@karsun-llc.com.
Hiring in Oklahoma and Virginia
We are still hiring for both our Oklahoma and Virginia locations! Even in this uncertain time, we are filling roles across our organization. Our teams are growing to serve customers at agencies like FEMA, FAA, and GSA. Outlined below are some of our most recent hot jobs. Each week we share these top openings here on our website. We will continue sharing those opportunities here as they are available.
- Java Full Stack Developer – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- Data Architect – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- Service Delivery Lead – Herndon, Virginia
- Integration Lead- Herndon, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
- API Developer – Herndon, Virginia
About Karsun Solutions
Karsun Solutions is a fast-growing, innovative enterprise modernization firm. Recently awarded Best Company Culture by Comparably.com, its teams deliver modern software development, cloud, and data solutions to customers at government agencies including the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Aviation Administration and General Services Administration. Leveraging GoLean, Karsun teams drive digital transformation and help its government customers Do Extraordinary. Learn more at Karsun-LLC.com.
The DataOps NoVa Meetup wrapped up its first 101 series at Karsun Solutions in Herndon, Virginia. Launched in October 2019, this group introduces modern data practices to the Northern Virginia tech community. The first series included discussions and demonstrations from DataOps vendors StreamSets and Dataguise. Wrapping up this series was the introduction to data encryption using middleware components as a viable option to the rapidly emerging issue of sensitive data management in legacy platforms. That session was led by a member of the Karsun Innovation Center (KIC).
Those that attend monthly Meetup events are also invited to attend training workshops at Karsun Solutions. The 101 series culminated with a three day data engineering workshop from StreamSets. Around thirty participants enhanced their data pipelines skills with a combination of vendor-led presentations and hands-on challenges using the StreamSets DataOps platform. At the conclusion of the workshop, most participants had the opportunity to be fully certified as an Expert StreamSets Developer.
The next training series will also include several Meetups featuring vendor discussions and demonstrations, ending with a multi-day workshop. DataOps NoVa March will feature speakers from DataKitchen. This presentation on DataOps Workbenches will be held Thursday, March 19th at 6:00 pm at Karsun Solutions in Herndon. Interested participants may RSVP on the Meetup website.
Shaunak Ashtaputre and the Karsun Data Practice
DataOps NoVa is organized by the Karsun Solutions Data Practice and hosted at the training center at Karsun Solutions in Herndon, Virginia. The practice area formed within the Karsun Innovation Center in 2018. This employee-centric unit melds DevSecOps practices with data integration resources into training and prototyping initiatives.
Shaunak Ashtaputre, an industry expert with more than 20 years of experience, leads the Data Practice and co-organizes the DataOps NoVa Meetup. His extensive background includes experience in business intelligence, data platforms, and data warehousing. In addition to the topic introductions at the monthly Meetups he also speaks at industry events. He will present “Data Pipelines and Delivery in Multi-Tenanted Cloud-Based Data and Analytics Platforms” on March 11th at the rvatech/DataSummit in Richmond, Virginia.
About Karsun Solutions
Karsun Solutions is a fast-growing, innovative, enterprise modernization firm serving the U.S. government. Our teams deliver software development, cloud, and advanced analytics solutions to customers at agencies like the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Aviation Administration, and General Services Administration. The Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Washington Business Journal, and Inc. all recognize Karsun Solutions among the fastest growing companies in the Washington, DC region. We are an established firm, with a DCAA Approved Accounting System, CMMI Level 5 – DEV appraisal, and AWS Government Competency as well as ISO 9001, ISO 20000 and ISO 27001 certifications
Continuing the momentum from the celebration of its first ten years in operation, Karsun Solutions’ leadership laid out its 2020 vision at a recent employee All Hands event. Employees gathered at the company’s new 75,000 square foot headquarters in Herndon, Virginia. Speaking to groups gathered in the new training rooms Co-Founder Kartik Mecheri and Sundar Vaidyanathan, along with the Karsun executive team, detailed an ambitious plan for 2020.
In their introduction the Mecheri and Vaidyanathan praised Karsun teams, observing they were responsible for the company’s rapid growth. They revealed organization-wide headcount grew by over 2400% and just over 1600% by revenue since its founding ten years ago. In preparation for the next decade, they discussed the company’s expanding senior leadership, strengthening of infrastructure, and planned roadmap.
Ben Marglin, Vice President Client Solutions, emphasized Karsun’s continued commitment to its customers across the U.S. government. Current customers include the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Transportation, and General Service Administration. Marglin praised delivery wins in all of the organization’s portfolios. He highlighted continuing growth among the delivery teams and the strength of Karsun’s staffing pipeline. He concluded with a commitment to support these core programs through the expansion of the Innovation Center and PMO resources.
Terry Miller, Chief Operating Officer, outlined plans for investment in Karsun’s next growth phase. The company continues to lead with a competency-based approach. This places capabilities in modern software development, cloud solutions, and advanced analytics at the forefront of the firm’s strategic vision. To grow these areas the organization plans to nurture proposal, capture, and solutions units including ramping up staffing and training initiatives.
Included in this competency-based plan is a continued commitment to the Karsun Innovation Center (KIC). Badri Sriraman, Vice President Innovation Center, concluded the session by delving into new campaigns from each of the center’s five practice areas. As of 2019, Karsun announced publicly two practice areas, Data and DevSecOps. Under the new plan, KIC will establish an additional three practice areas Lean, Solution, and Development. Each of these is employee-centered, offering Work from KIC days, monthly Innovation Town Halls, and employee-led training. In order to connect all employees to the wealth of resources available through the KIC, participants were invited to take a quiz, pairing them with their ideal practice area.
As it cements its place among the contracting community, Karsun Solutions continues a commitment to enterprise modernization expertise. Beyond its founders’ broad vision it has a dedicated commitment to quality and innovation. In 2019 it was appraised at CMMI Level 5- DEV, a feat achieved by just over 50 teams at the time of its appraisal. It was also recognized by the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Washington Business Journal, and Inc. for continuous year over year growth. As an emerging player, it was named to the Northern Virginia Technical Council Tech 100 and in early 2020 G2xchange’s NXT UP 2020 list. With continuing confidence in its key practice areas, Karsun Solutions is poised to Do Extraordinary in 2020 and beyond.
Karsun Solutions concluded 2019 celebrating its ten year anniversary. In addition to early enterprise modernization leadership, it cemented a decade-long commitment to innovation through the Karsun Innovation Center (KIC). By combining industry leadership with ingenuity Karsun won multiple $100+ million prime contracts with IT modernization work at agencies including DHS, FAA, and GSA.
Today, the Innovation Center leads teams in researching emerging technologies, forming industry relationships, and developing customer prototypes. Karsun wraps up 2019 celebrating the innovative spirit driving these first ten years. From automation to zombie code the Innovation Center and Karsun leadership teams are IT leaders, lending expert counsel and educating the community on best practices in emerging technology.
ACT-IAC
Karsun Solutions Chief Operating Officer Terry Miller kicked off 2019 as the Industry Chair for the American Council for Technology and Industry Advisory Council’s (ACT-IAC) Partners Program. One of three professional development programs offered by ACT-IAC, the Partners Program pairs senior industry and government leaders together for a series of in-depth sessions throughout the year. This year’s program concluded with a series of panel presentations at the organization’s annual Imagine Nation ELC conference. In addition to the Partners Program, Senior Director of Business Development Juan Robles is an Industry Vice Chair for the Voyagers Program. Participants graduating from both the programs become ACT-IAC Fellows. In total two Karsun leaders became Fellows in 2019, Sudhir Duggineni and Shaunak Ashtaputre. Satish Alluri was selected for the 2020 Voyagers class. The addition of Satish will bring Karsun’s total number of ACT-IAC Fellows to ten.
AI/ML and RPA
In addition to ACT-IAC fellowships, Karsun experts also join the organization’s working groups. Manish Bhatia from Karsun’s Cloud Solutions practice is a member of both ACT-IAC’s Intelligent Automation Working Group and Igniting Innovation Selection Committee. This fall the working group released its Robotic Process Automation (RPA) playbook. The playbook is designed for government organizations considering RPA pilots or accelerated development.
CMMI Level 5 DEV
In February 2019, Karsun Solutions announced its software development unit was appraised at CMMI Level 5 DEV. At this level, an organization continually improves its processes based on a quantitative understanding of its business objectives and performance needs. At the time of the appraisal, fewer than 50 organizations in the United States were rated CMMI Level 5 DEV.
COMET BPA
The General Services Administration (GSA) announced in November 2019 Karsun Solutions was one of twelve vendors selected for a spot on the CIO Modernization and Enterprise Transformation (COMET) BPA. The vehicle is intended to create a multiple award BPA on GSA’s IT 70 Schedule. It is the successor to 2014’s CAMEO contract. Karsun’s GSA DMS program also celebrated its first anniversary this year.
DevOps Innovation Practice
The KIC spun off its new DevOps practice led by Samir Bham. It is the second of several practice areas launching from the Innovation Center. An employee-focused research and development unit, it enables the adoption of DevSecOps practices. This practice, along with the Data Practice launched in 2018, hosts weekly Work from KIC workshops held in the new Herndon Headquarters.
Employee Development
Karsun Solutions invested in employee development early in 2019. The firm took the opportunity to train the more than 150 team members impacted by the partial government shutdown. These team members returned to work in February with new skillsets in microservices, domain driven design, web application security and cloud solutions.
FEMA Grants Management Modernization
This year Karsun began work on the FEMA Grants Management Modernization (GMM) program. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) awarded Karsun Solutions the Agile development contract. The program will streamline grants management across the agency’s 40+ grant programs through a user-centered, business-driven approach. This five-year single award Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) with a ceiling value of $80 million was awarded under Full and Open Competition. It was Karsun’s first Full and Open contract win.
Government Competency
Karsun Solutions received its AWS Government Competency in 2019. This designation recognizes that Karsun Solutions has deep experience developing solutions for government customers delivering mission-critical workloads and applications on Amazon Web Services. Leading up to the competency announcement the cloud solutions and DevSecOps practices shared some of their favorite AWS case studies.
Office Opening
In September Karsun Solutions moved into its new 75,000 square foot headquarters in Herndon, Virginia. The new facility supports teams servicing Karsun’s DHS, FAA, and GSA portfolios. It is also home to the Karsun Innovation Center and training facilities.
Records Digitization
Karsun Solutions Co-Founder and Chief Architect Kartik Mecheri appeared on Government Matters TV in April. On the program, he broke down NARA 2022 and the future of records digitization. Tune in to learn more about Karsun’s modernization approach.
SEC One IT
In March, Karsun Solutions announced the Securities and Exchange Commission awarded KHS Solutions, LLC a spot on the SEC One IT contract. SEC One IT is an indefinite delivery-indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract with a ceiling value of $2.5 billion. KHS Solutions, LLC is an SBA approved 8(a) Mentor Protégé Joint Venture between Karsun Solutions (Mentor) and Mindcubed (Protégé).
Test Automation
Automation Test Lead Aditi Mulay spoke at several industry events throughout 2019 including Agile Testing Days and SeleniumConf London. Fellow automation test lead Ricardo Mediavilla joined her for Agile 2019. A trainer and mentor to QA teams Aditi speaks on Object Oriented Programming approaches to automation frameworks. She advocates for automating in the right manner and ensuring tests are reusable and maintainable.
Zombie Code
In October Karsun Solutions as part of its mentor-protégé JV KHS Solutions shared “Zombie Code,” a look at the importance of dead code analysis. This practice is already part of Karsun’s development methodology. It is also one of many ways the Innovation Center proactively prototypes solutions to common modernization problems while building a roadmap for adoption among Karsun’s delivery teams. The Zombie Code video was a special Halloween release on LinkedIn. Follow Karsun there for the latest on enterprise modernization, corporate growth and award wins.