Mark Muhlenbeck

Mark Muhlenbeck
Chief Operating Officer
Mr. Mark Muhlenbeck is a founding member of VSD, LLC (VSD). Mark currently serves as the chief operating officer where he plans, organizes, schedules, and directs all aspects of operations. He has nearly 30 years of technical, engineering, program management, and business management experience. Mark has been associated with VSD since before its inception as a consultant and adviser to the two founding members, and has performed in all managerial roles since his arrival at the company. He designed VSD’s general ledger, job pricing methodology, and account tracking methods to meet Defense Contract Auditing Agency (DCAA) requirements for cost contracts. Mark was instrumental in setting up and executing VSD’s bidding and proposal process. In corporate development, he successfully negotiated for the acquisition of its Satellite Communications Group, and has managed this business unit to profitability and sustainable growth. Mark has touched and influenced every aspect of VSD operations from the Information Technology department to the Human Resources department, and is known for bringing a highly structured, corporate-grade perspective to strategic growth and organizational development issues. Mark has continuously strived for efficiency in all aspects of operations, from initiating the development of new tools for efficient product development to the management of bottom-line financial results.

Mark started his professional career in 1981 with Harris Corporation and its satellite communications division. He was rapidly promoted several times, ultimately reaching the level of lead engineer for the Vendor Quality Control Department. At age 24, Mark was responsible for designing and executing test and evaluation criteria for all incoming radio frequency components, managing vendor relations with 52 firms, and participating in the oversight of $5 million in annual purchasing spending.

Following Harris Corporation, Mark spent 11 years in progressively more responsible management roles for corporations including RCA, General Electric, Martin Marietta, and Lockheed Martin. At Lockheed Martin, he ran a core team of 15 advanced technical experts to execute classified operations. Following the loss of Lockheed Martin’s contract with the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), he precipitated the move of his team and customer base to Allied Technology Group (ATG). At ATG, he quickly became one of the top program managers, obtaining more than $6 million in contracts in his first two years. The opportunity at ATG allowed Mark to operate at the commercial heart of this high-growth U.S. Government contracting business. His senior operating scope touched business development, process development, budget development, talent management, proposal writing, and operational execution at all levels. It was over this 15-year period that Mark learned and then excelled in management growth in a high-tech, government contracting, and professional service firm setting.

In 1999, he started his own venture, Advanced Concepts Engineering and Technology, Inc., which he grew to nearly $2 million in annual revenue within 24 months. While there, he designed and deployed an “end-to-end” satellite communications network for dedicated use by deployed United States troops, providing Internet and video teleconferencing connectivity under contract to SPAWAR. In 2001, Mark sold his firm but stayed at the company, spending the next two years as general manager (GM) on the behalf of the new owners. In his two years as GM, he grew his workforce from 15 to more than 150 employees and $15 million in annual revenues. As GM, Mark had full profit and loss responsibility, in addition to being a technical program leader for the oversight and execution of a vast array of industrial services, communications system developments, and high-tech research and development/new product development work.

At VSD, Mark has excelled in the areas of standardization, corporatization, and budgetary planning. Together with the chief financial officer, he has designed and implemented all practices necessary to pass U.S. Government cost, purchasing, and subcontractor management audits. His intimate knowledge of costs, production operations, commercial operating standards, government regulations, and operating norms has made him an invaluable member of the executive team. He is a studied and keen advocate of “lean” thinking, total quality management, and reality-based budgeting. During recent due diligence to support the DTM Global acquisition, Mark headed the financial, business, market, and product line performance analysis efforts. It is a direct result of his thoroughness that a rapid integration of all operating aspects of DTM Global and its global market footprint are being integrated into VSD.