DBJ: Dayton defense company announces seven new executives

Originally published by the Dayton Business Journal

A defense company headquartered in the Dayton region has hired seven new executives to its leadership team. The move comes as the company has experienced significant growth.

Beavercreek-based Frontier Technology Inc. is welcoming in a new chief operations officer, vice president of air and space operations, vice president of information advantage, vice president of Navy operations, director of business development, director of naval operations and a strategic account executive. The appointment of new leadership further strengthens the company’s technology and service offerings across its Space, Navy and Cyber Security Operating Groups.

“FTI’s mission is to provide tailored technology and expertise that enhance the ability of the Department of Defense and Intelligence Community to integrate and fully exploit their data to make the best decisions possible,” said Jose Hidalgo, president of FTI. “Our seven newest executives have deep skill sets and broad experience that will enable FTI to bring greater information advantage to our customers.”

Lincoln Hudson will serve as chief operations officer, bringing over 25 years of experience supporting the DoD. Hudson has a proven track record of applying technologies to create sustainable and affordable solutions that benefit customers on all levels. Previously, he held the position of senior vice president at Booz Allen Hamilton, guiding a team of 850 employees, and managing the growth and transition of a $300 million business. Hudson also spent 15 years at Northrop Grumman in roles from chief engineer to strategy director, and several years at General Dynamics early in his career. Hudson has a master's degree in system engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

Jennifer Nix will serve as vice president of air and space operations. She brings more than 25 years of experience in the defense and space industries, most recently as senior director of space systems at L3Harris and member of the operational leadership team at DigitalGlobe (now Maxar). Nix has an MBA degree from Colorado State University, and a bachelor's degree in geography from Wright State University.

Jonathan Avooske will serve as vice president of information advantage. Previously, Avooske completed 20 years of active duty in the U.S. Navy Submarine Force followed by 20 years of civilian experience in cyber, advanced analytics, intelligence, and electronic warfare. He holds a doctoral degree in business administration from Northcentral University; a master's degree in strategic management from Indiana University; and a bachelor's degree in integrated supply chain management from the University of Phoenix.

Rudy Fernandez joins as vice president of Navy operations and brings more than 35 years of experience with the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Navy. Fernandez previously served as senior director in the Maritime Systems and Integration Operating Unit, and as Charlottesville site lead at Northrop Grumman. He also held various management positions over 10 years at Advanced Acoustic Concepts (AAC), a Joint Venture between DRS and Thales, and served as a submarine officer in the Navy for 22 years. Fernandez has an MBA from Chaminade University and a bachelor's degree in applied mathematics from Jacksonville University.

Pamela Way joins as director of business development, focusing on tech-enabled solutions for the Navy and USMC. Her 32-year career within the aerospace and defense sectors spans senior leadership roles in business intel, government relations, program management, strategy, and business development at Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, and Lone Star Analysis. Way has an MBA rom the M.J. Neeley School of Business at Texas Christian University, and a bachelor's degree in international relations from The Johns Hopkins University.

Ronald Merritt will serve as director of naval operations. Previously, Merritt served as director of information operations for KBR, where he led diverse teams delivering technical solutions to government and commercial customers in intelligence, military space technology, C4ISR, and systems integration. Prior to KBR, he served as the chief of force management for the Initiatives Group under the U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence. Before joining the private sector, he served as a surface warfare officer on multiple warships during his 21-year career in the U.S. Navy. Merritt has a bachelor's degree in computer science from The Citadel and a master’s degree in national security and strategic studies from the U.S. Naval War College.

Jason Wentz joins as strategic account executive. Wentz previously served as vice president with Scientific Research Corporation, managing contracts with the U.S. Space Force, Navy, and Marines. Before that, he was senior program manager at Omitron, Inc. where he managed all aspects of contractual support to NAVWAR, led a team of highly technical SMEs in support of classified programs for the Navy and Air Force, and operationally administered SSA for human space flight safety, providing collision avoidance data to NASA and other DoD customers. Wentz has an MBA from La Verne University.

Based in Beavercreek, FTI is a provider of mission-tailored technology, deep data expertise and services for the U.S. Department of Defense, Intelligence Community and other agencies of the Federal Government. The company brought in $509.88 million in prime contract awards in 2022, making it one of the 25 largest defense firms in the Dayton region, according to DBJ research.

FTI currently operates in 34 states and offers seven facilities of varying clearance levels nationwide. In total, the company employs 500 people.

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