Today, I’m happy to announce that five former Presidential Innovation Fellows (PIFs) and 18F co-founders have joined Skylight — Chris Cairns, Robert Read, Geoff Mulligan, John Teeter, and Kin Lane.

As a certified HUBZone contractor, Skylight’s mission is to make government work in a digital world using design, technology, and procurement.

Chris, Robert, Geoff, John, and Kin each bring a rare combination of institutional knowledge, technical expertise, and leadership experience to the Skylight team that will advance our mission in new and exciting ways. Just as importantly, each one embodies the spirit of the digital government movement that’s led to the creation of organizations such as 18F and the U.S. Digital Service.

Chris served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow in 2013, and co-founded 18F and Technology Transformation Services (TTS), both housed within the General Services Administration. He specializes in digital leadership and transformation, digital procurement, and product development and management.

Robert served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow in 2013 and co-founded 18F. He holds a PhD in computer science and specializes in software engineering, data science and engineering, engineering management, and agile practices.

Both Chris and Robert started and built 18F’s acquisition arm (now within TTS), including its core services such as Agile Acquisition Consulting, Agile Delivery Services Marketplace, RFP Ghostwriting, Micro-purchase Marketplace, and Digital Acquisition Accelerator.

Geoff served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow in 2013 and has developed standards that power the internet, including IPv6. He specializes in Internet of Things, distributed and embedded systems engineering, networking technologies, and security.

John served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow in 2013 and has held various senior technology executive positions over his career. He’s an expert in software engineering, distributed and embedded systems engineering, data science and engineering, cloud computing, and engineering management.

Last, but not least, Kin served as a Presidential Innovation Fellow in 2013 and is a world-recognized expert in Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). He specializes in API architecture and design, software engineering, data science and engineering, cloud computing, and enterprise software.

I couldn’t be more excited about having these five people onboard and working with them to enable government success in the digital age.