Threat Tech
The private company Threat Tech, LLC is a veteran-owned small business founded in 2012, located in Hampton, VA. The CEO is Jim Crawford. It has 60 total employees, the large majority of which are veterans or ex-military personnel. The estimated annual revenue is $1.24 million (Dun & Bradstreet, n.d.a). It is unclear on how many clients the company serves; however, it is contracted by the U.S. Department of Defense, including the U.S. Army. It also works with state and local law enforcement and some commercial clients such as security firms. The firm works on a contractual basis, taking upon multiple projects and deliverables throughout the year. Each project is unique, so the firm approaches it individually and also hires employees on a part-time and seasonal basis in accordance to specific projects.
Threat Tec operates in the defense and aerospace sector, focusing primarily on training environments, solutions, and subject-matter expertise. It specializes in the creation of what is known as Operational Environment (OE) replication as well as threat emulation and wargaming capabilities. In combination with subject matter expertise, the company provides virtual simulations and live training experiences to deliver high impact training that model the complexity of real-world rapidly changing military environments within the clients operate (Threat Tec, n.d.b).
The ThreatWerx division builds systems which bring realism to the operational environment. The OPEX software, teams develop digitized environments in 2D, 3D, and virtual reality immersion. Meanwhile, the OEFLEX teams build flexible physical environments with degrease of realism. Overall teams work together to provide a comprehensive understanding and replication of potential security threats and strategic initiatives on how to address them. The company also works to create functional replicas of weapon systems and unmanned aircraft which can be used in training exercises and simulate accurate military encounters to assess institutional strengths and vulnerabilities (Threat Tec, 2017).
The mission for Threat Tec is to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and safety of U.S. military and other relevant operations around the world that operate in unknown, challenging, or dangerous environments. The goal is to provide services and solutions which can prepare those deployed for services for realities of enemy combatants, socio-political composition of the battlefield, and achieving mission-specific clarity and objectives. By doing so, the simulations can provide vital experience, allow for trial and error, and avoid the financial and personal costs that can occur due to a lack of preparation in high-stake environments. Threat Tec has established a credo for itself, emphasizing aspects of professionalism, honesty, innovation, responsibility, dedication, and a can-do attitude (Threat Tec, n.d.a).
Yorktown Systems Group
Yorktown Systems Group, Inc. was founded in 2008 and is located in Huntsville, Alabama. The company’s CEO is Bryan Dyer, and it is a veteran-owned and focused business, with 375 employees, the majority of whom are veterans of active duty or the defense industry. Estimated annual revenue is $9.78 million. The company operates in multiple sectors including defense, government services, business/management services, and consulting (Dun & Bradstreet, n.d.b). The company’s mission is to delivery high quality services and solutions for clients to achieve victory and objectives, with the dedication and high standard of a veteran-led business.
Yorktown Systems Group consists of professionals providing a variety of services to government agencies and private entities. There is a wide range of services offered including training and education, finacnial services, program management and administrative support, integrated logistics and systems engineering and IT support. The company also provides language and cultural training, operational and intelligence mission support, and modeling and simulation opportunities.
YSG offers this wide variety of support and preparation services in a comprehensive package, ensuring that any projects that they may take on has the capability to meet the client’s needs and also fulfill all standards both in terms of quality and security (Yorktown Systems Group, n.d.).
The company operates largely on a contractual basis from the government and military. It works with agencies such as the Army Service Component Commands (ASCC), Army Corps, and Direct Report Units. In 2018, it was one of seven companies to be chosen for an almost $1 billion dollar contract for Mission Training Complex Capabilities Support (MTCCS) – focusing on improving training and support for military personnel in various ways (Yorktown Systems Group, 2018).
Similar Companies
To consider other companies for comparison, Alelo, Inc. which is located in Los Angeles, CA is a professional services and training provider. Founded in 2002, the company has 33 employees with a revenue of $1.76 million. The company was founded for the purposes of language and cultural training specifically for U.S. military in the middle east. With funding from DARPA and other government programs, first interactive and virtual simulations. To this day, Alelo focuses on creating tailored training systems which are aimed at communication and cultural solutions for government, educational, business, and military environments (Alelo, n.d.).
Meanwhile, Digimation was founded in 1992 and is known for creating complex 3D models for training and education purposes. For several years, the company was named as a leading provider of virtual simulation and training material for the military. It is a small business company located in Lake Mary, Fl. The company has a subset of Digimation Defense which exclusively makes 3D models for training and simulation projects for the military (Dun & Bradstreet, n.d.c).
Neither of these companies are veteran-owned nor seem to have high levels of employment by veterans or military-associated personnel unlike Threat Tec and Yorktown Systems group. However, they are all similarly involved in the defense contractor industry, particularly in the aspect of simulation and training for active-duty personnel in hostile environments. They are all small-sized businesses, operating largely on a contractual project basis with similar revenue streams. Since these are small private companies, there is very little public data available, so a quantitative difference is hard to establish.
However, a qualitative observation identifies some differences between veteran and non-veteran owned organizations despite all four companies being in the industry of technology, training, and services. For example, Threat Tec and Yorktown Systems Group which were founded by veterans and employ mostly a veteran workforce, lean heavily into the military mindset and experience.
This includes advertising the experience to drive the effectiveness of their services as well as reflecting some of key values of the military in their core company values and mission. There can also be seen a difference in approach. Non-veteran companies are focused on innovation, direct approach, and arguably a slim, focused strategy. Meanwhile, veteran-driven companies are evidently more comprehensive, strategic, and value-oriented. In conclusion, it warrants an examination of the approach that the military mindset ultimately contributes to these companies.
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References
Alelo. (n.d.). Our story and our team. Web.
Dun & Bradstreet. (n.d.a.). Threat Tec, LLC. Web.
Dun & Bradstreet. (n.d.b.). Yorktown Systems Group, Inc. Web.
Dun & Bradstreet. (n.d.c.). Digimation Inc.. Web.
Threat Tec. (n.d.a). About us. Web.
Threat Tec. (n.d.b). Capabilities. Web.
Threat Tec. (2017). In support of joint modernization command, Threat Tec develops threat UAS capability. Web.
Yorktown Systems Group. (n.d.). Capabilities. Web.
Yorktown Systems Group. (2018). Yorktown awarded Mission Training Complex Capabilities Support (MTCCS) Contract. Web.