Potomac Tech Wire - Aug. 30

Amazon CEO Tells Employees to Return to Office - Or Consider Leaving Company

o Amazon CEO Tells Employees to Return to Office
o Align Capital Invests in McLean-based Global Guardian
o Centreville-Based Parsons Acquires Columbia-Based SealingTech
o Fulton-based Fianu Labs Raises $2 Million from DataTribe
o Report: Washington Post Laying Off Staff at Arc XP Division
o Arlington-Based AeroVironment to Acquire Tomahawk Robotics
o Herndon-Based Deltek Completes Acquisition of Replicon
o Emily Zhen Joins DC-based Zeal Capital to Focus on Healthcare
o Briefly Noted: Deltek - Dean Tilsley, Expel - Yonni Shelmerdine, Common Securitization Solutions - Farhad Fariba

Design for Amazon’s HQ2 in Arlington. (Image credit: Amazon)

Amazon CEO Tells Employees to Return to Office - Or Consider Leaving Company

Arlington, Va. – In a move being closely watched at Amazon’s HQ2 in Crystal City, Andy Jassy, the CEO of Amazon, told employees that they need to accept the company’s new return-to-office plan, or consider leaving the company. The remarks, first reported by Insider and confirmed by CNN, were made at an internal event. Amazon has adopted a policy requiring employees to come into the office at least three times per week. According to CNN, Jassy strongly suggested that employees who opposed Amazon’s new return-to-office policy would not last long at the company. CNN reported:

As part of his remarks, which Amazon shared with CNN, Jassy said during the event this month that while employees are entitled to disagree with the company’s decision to bring workers back into the office and to criticize it, they are not entitled to disregard the policy.

He also predicted that for those who could not accept the policy, their prospects for remaining at Amazon appeared grim.

Some people posting to message boards on sites like Reddit and Blind in recent weeks discuss legal rights for employees who say they were hired 12 months earlier as a virtual employee and whether they can be forced to work in an office.

Align Capital Makes Investment in McLean-based Global Guardian

McLean, Va. – Private equity firm Align Capital Partners has made a significant growth investment in McLean-based Global Guardian, a provider of travel-related medical and security services to clients whose employees operate globally. The amount of the investment was not disclosed; Align said it was broadly within its investment criteria of $20 million to $60 million. Global Guardian runs a 24-hour operations center to respond to medical, security and other issues facing employees operating internationally. The company can facilitate evacuations, medical responses or transportation services in emergency situations globally.

“Global Guardian’s differentiated model has led to strong client adoption and driven tremendous growth over the past decade,” said Dale Buckner, co-founder and CEO. “As we planned for future expansion, it was the right time in our company’s evolution to find a strategic growth investor. Our partnership with ACP will allow for ongoing investment in the resources and technology needed to support our clients with the highest degree of care to safeguard their assets from continually evolving global threats.”

Centreville-Based Parsons Acquires Columbia-Based SealingTech

Centreville, Va. – Parsons, a Centreville-based technology provider to the national security and global infrastructure markets, said it has acquired Columbia-based cyber and technology company Sealing Technologies in a deal valued at up to $200 million. Founded in 2012, SealingTech delivers cybersecurity tools across defensive cyber operations, critical infrastructure network protection, and secure data management. Parsons said the move will expand its work within the Department of Defense and intelligence community and bolster its technical capabilities in several areas.

Fulton-based Fianu Labs Raises $2 Million in Seed Funds from DataTribe

Fulton, Md. – Fianu Labs, a Maryland-based developer of governance software for developers, announced that it has raised $2 million in seed funds from Fulton, Md.-based DataTribe, an investor and incubator of cybersecurity firms. Fianu Labs helps software developers – often working in highly regulated industries – comply with regulations and requirements for their software releases and updates. In a news release about the funding, the company explained its offering:

“Over the last three years, the federal government has signaled increased scrutiny of software release patterns foreboding an era of crippling red tape and higher costs that could create significant challenges for companies across the regulatory landscape. Additionally, recent rulings have expanded the liability of software vendors and their executives. The message is clear: Companies that develop software will be held accountable for the security of their products. Fianu aims to reduce the weight of regulation for established companies while helping smaller and traditionally less-regulated companies transition to the new era of software development.”

Report: Washington Post Laying Off Staff at Arc XP Division

Washington, DC – News outlet Semafor reports that The Washington Post has “quietly” laid off staff at its Arc XP arm, the developer of a software offering to other media companies based on the Post’s in-house content management platform. A Washington Post story said seven people were laid off from the Arc unit. Semafor reported:

“Last year, the Post declined offers to sell Arc XP, the company’s in-house publishing tool and software business, saying it would instead invest $50 million in the business in 2023. But on August 22, the paper told several top marketing staffers, program managers, and product designers at Arc XP that the Post would eliminate their roles in the coming weeks.

The move displeased staff, who have been furious with recurring layoffs at the paper over the past year. In a statement, the company’s union said it was frustrated with the cuts, saying the paper did not give staffers an explanation for why their roles were being eliminated.

Arlington-Based AeroVironment to Acquire Tomahawk Robotics

Arlington, Va. – AeroVironment, an Arlington-based developer of robotic systems used by defense, government and commercial clients, said it will pay $120 million to acquire Florida-based Tomahawk Robotics, a creator of AI-enabled robotic control systems. AeroVironment, which will acquire the company for a mix of cash and stock, said the move will allow it to offer enhanced interoperability and interconnectivity of unmanned systems through a singular platform. Founded in 2018, Tomahawk is the developer of the Kinesis Ecosystem, a control system used by soldiers that integrates unmanned expeditionary vehicles, sensors and third-party software onto a single pane of glass.

Herndon-Based Deltek Completes Acquisition of Replicon

Herndon, Va. – Deltek, the Herndon-based software provider for project-based businesses, said it has completed its acquisition of Canada-based Replicon, the developer of a time-tracking platform that unifies project delivery, finance and HR. Financial terms of the deal, first announced in May, were not disclosed. Replicon, which has over 2,500 customers, has developed software for project time tracking, billing, attendance and other purposes. Deltek said the move supports its product and customer expansion into additional project-based industries.

Emily Zhen Joins DC-based Zeal Capital to Focus on Healthcare Investments

Washington, DC – Zeal Capital Partners, a DC-based venture capital firm that focuses its investments toward diverse management teams, has hired Emily Zhen as a principal to focus on the firm’s new health equity mandate. Zhen formerly worked at New Enterprise Associates. "We are motivated by the entrepreneurial opportunity to disrupt systems and remediate the systemic disparities in healthcare,” said Nasir Qadree, founder and managing partner at Zeal Capital Partners. “Emily will be an invaluable contributor on our team as we spearhead the launch of our new health equity vertical. She brings multi-stage investing, operating, and research experience in healthcare.”

Briefly Noted:

(Herndon, Va.) Deltek, the Herndon-based project-based software firm, has named Dean Tilsley as its CFO. Tilsley has previously served as CFO at Renaissance Learning. He has also worked at Cox Automotive, NASDAQ, Reuters and Associated Press Television.

(Herndon, Va.) Herndon-based Expel, the developer of a security operations platform, has named Yonni Shelmerdine as its chief product officer. Shelmerdine most recently served as the vice president of product management at SentinelOne, and earlier was the director of product management at Cybereason.

(Bethesda, Md.) Bethesda-based Common Securitization Solutions (CSS), developer of a cloud-based platform used by the financial services industry for mortgage securitization administration, has named Farhad Fariba as its executive vice president and CTO. Fariba most recently served as the senior vice president of IT platforms and services at Travel & Leisure Co.