In this episode of Former Fed Friday, host Shelley McGuire sits down with Richard Klemmer, President of Black Box Strategies and Partner at Catapult Growth Partners. Richard’s career path is anything but ordinary. He started as a wage grade 4 in a warehouse and rose all the way to Acting CIO at the Department of Commerce’s NTIA. With over 25 years of leadership spanning technology, cybersecurity, finance, and mission support, Richard shares how he built his career step by step, from self-taught programming to overseeing major federal IT portfolios. He also reflects on the leap from public service to industry, the lessons learned in navigating uncertainty, and why perseverance and collaboration are the keys to thriving in today’s federal contracting landscape. To connect with Richard, visit his LinkedIn profile here.Learn more about Black Box Strategies by visiting their website here.Learn more about Catapult Growth Partners by visiting their website here. If you liked listening to this episode, view our Former Fed Perspectives page here. To view all of our podcast series, visit our podcast page. Thank you to our sponsor vTech Solution. Don't know vTech yet? You should as vTech Solution is a trailblazer in the IT services domain with key offerings that include Digital Modernization, including Application Modernization; Managed Cloud infrastructure; and Cybersecurity.