Following the news that Ardent had added Coast Guard’s Lynda Horton as Vice President, Programs & Procurement, we caught up with Lynda to learn more about the move and several key trends she sees shaping GovCon.
Cradle to Grave Procurement Innovation
I bring over 18 years of experience in federal procurement and contracting across multiple agency components, including components within the Department of Defense, the Department of Justice, the Department of Commerce, and the Department of Homeland Security. Throughout my career, I’ve managed complex, multi-million-dollar contract portfolios, led acquisition teams, and driven measurable improvements in efficiency, compliance, and cost savings. My experience spans cradle-to-grave contract management, strategic sourcing, training and development, and acquisition innovation.
Transitioning into private industry, I’m leveraging this deep federal expertise to strengthen procurement strategy, program integration, and client delivery within the GovCon ecosystem.
Bridging Communication Between Agencies and Industry
I was drawn to Ardent because of its innovative culture and commitment to advancing mission success through technology, an innovative viewpoint, agility, and data-driven decision-making. Ardent represents the modern evolution of a GovCon partner, one that understands the intersection between a mission-first mentality and modernization. What is so impressive to me about Ardent is not only their long-term success across Federal agencies but that the company has evolved to truly being an innovator with their technology research and innovation labs (TRI Labs) where their Ph.D. level technologist are constantly researching and developing new technologies for the mission. Their custom-developed, trusted AI toolkit of patent-pending solutions is truly innovative and what the government needs in order to safely and ethically adopt AI. These offerings, in addition to their highly skilled workforce, are a huge value add to the government, and this was the type of company that I wanted to move into in the private sector.
Finally, I’m excited at the opportunity to apply my government acquisition experience to bridge communication between agencies and industry. Having been on the federal side, I understand the challenges, priorities, and compliance considerations that agencies face. That insight allows me to align Ardent’s procurement and program strategies with client expectations, ensuring we deliver not only compliant but forward-thinking solutions that drive real outcomes.
Strategic Partnerships and Thought Leadership
My focus is on collaboration with Ardent’s executive team, contracting team, and program management teams to streamline and enhance procurement governance, optimize proposal strategies, scalability, growth, and the establishment and maintenance of strategic partnerships. As the company grows, maintaining agility while enhancing structure will be key.
Additionally, I’m working with team members to position Ardent as a thought leader in acquisition excellence, creating repeatable, compliant, and efficient frameworks that improve time-to-award, contract performance, and increased government contract presence. My goal is to ensure that procurement becomes a competitive advantage for Ardent and a differentiator for our clients as well bridging the communication gap between industry government primary points of contacts.
Key Trends Shaping GovCon
Several key trends are shaping the GovCon landscape:
- Digital transformation and AI integration: Procurement is shifting toward automation and data-driven decisions, areas where both government and industry can collaborate to improve transparency, efficiency, safety, security, and trustworthiness.
- Acquisition workforce evolution: Develop strategies to better respond to solicitations, creating innovative, data-informed strategies that align with the agency priorities. We’re also taking a more analytical approach to solicitations to position ourselves competitively and increase our likelihood of winning while delivering real mission value in the homeland.
- One of the biggest challenges remains the disconnect between government and industry expectations. I plan to focus on fostering greater communication and collaboration to ensure that both sides are working toward shared mission outcomes.
Pairing Agility and Small Business Innovation
Absolutely! At Ardent, partnerships are critical to growth and innovation. I’m always eager to connect with both small and large businesses that bring innovative capabilities, especially in areas like GIS, digital transformation, cybersecurity, and AI-driven tools and solutions.
At Ardent, history demonstrates that federal clients benefit tremendously when we pair the agility and fresh ideas of a small business with the resources and scalability of a large business. Those collaborations allow us to deliver more comprehensive, flexible, and forward-thinking solutions that align with mission goals, accelerate delivery, and drive real value across programs. We want to talk to those small businesses that are hungry for growth and that bring strong past performance in the areas of geospatial, DevSecOps, Cloud, AppDev, RPA, and AI/ML solutions. As well as the large systems integrators that can help enhance our value proposition to the government with Ardent’s long-standing customers at DHS, CBP, USCIS, U.S. Secret, Service, FEMA, Coast Guard, FBI, HHS, Dep’t of War, Army, and Air Force.
Building Bridges to Improve Government Outcomes
Transitioning from a career federal contracting professional to a private-sector leader has been both exciting and rewarding. It reaffirmed my belief that the best solutions emerge when government and industry work collaboratively, transparently, and with mutual respect for the mission.
At Ardent, I’m focused on building that bridge, combining the structure and accountability of federal acquisition with the innovation and speed of industry. It’s an exciting time to be in this space, and I’m honored to be part of a team driving meaningful impact across the federal landscape.
For those interested in partnership and teaming opportunities, please reach out to me directly or Ardent’s Chief Ventures Officer, Ryan Jennings.
