Executive Mosaic is honored to introduce Wayne Lucernoni, president of Harris IT Services, as the newest inductee into the Washington 100, the premier group of leaders who drive innovation and growth at the intersection of the public and private sectors.
Lucernoni has spent close-to-25 years with the Melbourne, Fla.-based government contractor in a variety of financial leadership roles after “being drawn to accounting and finance personally,” he told GovCon Exec.
“People may not always relate accounting to a people-centered culture,” Lucernoni said, “but I do.” He added that “at the end of the day, it is all about people.”
Lucernoni has also held numerous management positions, including the around four months in 2012 he spent directing Harris’ operations in China to lead a project for one of the company’s commercial healthcare IT businesses.
That role “extended my experience in commercial work, added significant international understanding, and fortunately provided a level of visibility that helped prepare me for the next challenge Harris offered – my current role as president, Harris IT Services.”
“It was a great experience and while we eventually decided to narrow our business activities in China, we successfully recovered intellectual property, transitioned numerous in-process contracts, and strengthened our off-shore development practice,” he said.
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To lead the Chinese operations, Lucernoni took time away from his then-role of vice president and general manager of the Harris’ intelligence, civilian and healthcare portfolios, a position that provided him an opportunity to position the company for the future.
“Consolidating these three areas, gave me the opportunity to take a clean-sheet approach to a growth strategy that focused on a small number of customers and capabilities where Harris was well-positioned and credible,” Lucernoni said.
“Over a three-year period, as we focused investment and time on key strategy elements, our team delivered consistent annual growth even as market headwinds were strengthening.”
Lucernoni says “most” federal chief information officers include cybersecurity, mobility, health IT and cloud computing as part of their transformation plans and he expects those areas to grow while there is “significant” consolidation in the GovCon market over the next few years.
“It’s an exciting time for government contracting, particularly the IT services business,” he says. “The next few years will be very challenging because of the budget pressures we are all aware of. Competition is fierce for every contract, and the companies that can increase quality and productivity and reduce costs will come out on top.”
For its part, “Harris has initiated a lot of change in the last two years, starting with a new CEO, Bill Brown,” Lucernoni says. He credited Brown with bringing a “drive to focus Harris’ business portfolio and energize a culture of aggressively continuous improvement.”
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He previously served as vice president in the civil and intelligence program areas and as deputy program manager of Harris’ Patriot contract with the National Reconnaissance Office – the company’s second largest program.
Lucernoni told GovCon Exec that post provided him “the opportunity to dive into a handful of strained relationships and… to rebuild the trust our customers expect when partnering with Harris. It was a matter of refocusing the team to exceed expectations and then consistently engaging with customers.”
“Integrity and ethics are hugely important to me, which means doing what you say and saying clearly what you are going to do. Harris is that kind of a company, and it produces results.”
A certified public accountant in the states of Virginia and Maryland and a graduate of the executive program at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, Lucernoni serves on the board of the Northern Virginia Technology and Professional Services councils and sits on the Homeland Security and Defense Business Council.
