As President and Chief Executive Officer of Aquilent, Mr. Fout brings 20 years of government and technology expertise as well as a talent for customer-oriented service delivery that drives profitability and growth for professional technical services companies. He is a champion for innovative solutions that solve meaningful problems for the Federal Government.

Mr. Fout has assembled a team of highly talented experts who have helped Aquilent and its customers achieve numerous accolades, including, most recently, Aquilent’s recognition as one of the Top 50 Best Places to Work in Greater Washington by Washington Business Journal in both 2010 and 2009, the 2010 Gazette P&B Exceptional 53 - One of the Top Companies in Maryland, and the 2008 Government Contracting Firm of the Year by the Tech Council of Maryland. Under his leadership Aquilent’s Federal customers have also received many notable accolades and recognition from Excellence.gov, President’s Quality Award, Time Magazine: 25 Sites We Can't Live Without, CIO Magazine, Information Week, Brookings Institution, Brown University, Blogged.com, WebAwards, Best of the Web – Government, INFOWORLD, Webby Award, Hammer Award and the Grace Hopper Award among others.

As a highly respected leader with a clear, focused direction, he has seen notable results throughout his career. Prior to joining Aquilent, Mr. Fout served as Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Commerce One's E-Government Solutions division, Vice President of AppNet's E-Business and Technology Division, and Director of Century Computing's NASA Programs. In 2002, through a successful management-led buyout, Mr. Fout co-founded Aquilent. Additionally, in 2007, he co-founded Epic Acquisition Solutions (EAS), a product company delivering the leading acquisition solution in the Federal Government.

Mr. Fout is actively involved in his community and evangelizes social responsibility within Aquilent. He has spearheaded a number of volunteer initiatives, including AquilentCares which is a platform for employees to give back to the community in a variety of ways He is also active in a number of professional organizations, including the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO), Tech Council of Maryland, and Vistage, as well as being a Leadership Montgomery graduate.

He holds an M.S. in Information Systems and Technology from Johns Hopkins University and a B.S. in Information Systems Management from the University of Maryland. Mr. Fout is an avid fan of mixed martial arts and actively trains in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

As Aquilent’s Chief Operating Officer, Danielle Cogar is responsible for all sales and service delivery, project planning, project execution, and operations, as well as overseeing Aquilent’s efforts to ensure a partnered approach that helps drive customer success. Ms. Cogar has significant experience in delivering complex projects on time and within budget in numerous industries, including government, telecommunications, technology, and retail.

Prior to her appointment as COO, she oversaw the largest and fastest growing business unit in the company and was instrumental in the development of Aquilent’s business strategy and solution offerings. Ms. Cogar also oversaw multiple implementations of the Epic™ E-Procurement solution as well as sales and account growth for key clients such as the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Department of Labor. Prior to joining Aquilent in 2002, she served as COO, General Manager, and VP of Consulting Services for customers such as MCI, Verizon, GE, Network Solutions, and Lowe’s. Her leadership at a number of start-up companies produced some of the fastest growing companies in the Washington, DC, Metropolitan Area.

Ms. Cogar holds an M.B.A. and a B.B.A. in Management Information Systems from Loyola College. Her hobbies include coaching lacrosse; she is the current Commissioner for the Falls Church Youth Girls’ Lacrosse Club. She also enjoys traveling and frequently can be seen at her local health club.

As Aquilent’s Chief Financial Officer, Melissa Hook draws on more than 20 years of experience as a financial consultant and executive in the manufacturing, staffing, consulting, and technology industries. Ms. Hook plays a pivotal role in Aquilent’s continued strategic and focused growth, overseeing the company’s accounting functions that include financial reporting, project risk assessment, monthly dashboarding, and employee utilization.

Ms. Hook has extensive experience working with start-up firms, facilitating the rollout of new divisions within organizations and implementing new, enterprise-wide financial systems. In the past, she served as Aquilent’s Controller and Director of Finance. Prior to joining Aquilent in 2002, Ms. Hook served as Controller for Commerce One’s Go-To-Market Division and Acting-Controller of the Government Division. She also previously served as Director of Research for Columbia Consulting Group, and provided a wide range of research services as the principal of Avalon Consulting. Ms. Hook’s prior career experience also spans nearly a decade in printing and publishing, including her role as Vice President of Operations for a successful mid-Atlantic book manufacturer.

Ms. Hook graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and holds an M.B.A. in General Management from the University of Baltimore. She is also a licensed C.P.A. and is a member of the Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants and Financial Executives International. In her free time, she enjoys playing and watching tennis, traveling, and gardening.

Mark Pietrasanta brings to Aquilent more than 20 years of experience as a proven technology industry leader. His passion for technology, and all of its possibilities, has successfully guided Aquilent’s cutting-edge solutions strategy, allowing customers to realize the full benefits of innovative technology effectively and efficiently.

Mr. Pietrasanta is a 2010 recipient of the Federal Computer Week Federal 100 Award, which annually acknowledges “individuals in government and industry who have played pivotal roles in the federal information technology community.” This prestigious award was given to Mr. Pietrasanta for his work in Cloud Computing. He has led Aquilent’s involvement in developing its Technology Strategy Solution, which incorporates how Aquilent can assist federal agencies with their Cloud Computing strategies. He also took the lead in Aquilent’s role with GSA’s Office of Citizen Services (OCS) and USA.gov, establishing the OCS Cloud Computing vision very early on, and then building a roadmap to achieve that vision.

As the lead technical strategist at Aquilent, Mr. Pietrasanta is responsible for identifying and nurturing novel technologies and executing them into viable solutions. He works as a strategic partner with customers, helping them identify, plan, and achieve their technology strategy, while fulfilling the goals of a transparent and participatory democracy. Mr. Pietrasanta currently directs the ongoing development of cloud computing and virtualization and is focused on implementing this increasingly important solution strategy in the federal government that will ultimately save billions of dollars.

With a broad base of experience in a variety of platforms, environments, and Internet-based technologies, Mr. Pietrasanta has provided extensive solution, development, and integration services to a diverse mix of businesses. Prior to joining Aquilent in 2003, Mr. Pietrasanta was the Regional CTO for Commerce One where he also served as the product manager for the company’s suite of products that provided real-time transactional integration with the Uniform Code Council’s (now GS1 US) electronic exchange via XML and Web Services. As Vice President of Technology for AppNet, Mr. Pietrasanta directed the technology strategy and execution of the nonprofit division, which included such clients as the World Wildlife Fund, CARE, and UNICEF. In addition, he oversaw various business and IT systems for Discovery Communications, including its cable affiliates and global programming. He also held a five-year tenure as a senior technologist at Fannie Mae, where he was responsible for development, training, and project management, including the development of Fannie Mae’s full web-based architecture for high-volume transaction processing. His background also includes development work for Morgan Stanley & Co.

Mr. Pietrasanta holds a B.A. in Computer Science and a B.A. in Philosophy from New York University. His hobbies include computers, electronics, woodworking, travel, movies, and spending time with his wife and daughter.