Balutis named Veridyne president

Consultant Alan Balutis has been hired as president and chief operating officer at Veridyne Inc., a consulting firm focused on federal information technology.

Balutis will report to Samuel Patterson, Veridyne founder and chief executive officer. Patterson said he hired Balutis for his federal background.

"He has a very strong information technology background. He's very, very solid in his understanding of the federal government, what they procure, how they procure," Patterson said. "Those were the strengths we were looking for to shoot this company to the next level."

Balutis resigned as executive director of the Federation of Government Information Processing Councils in January after a dispute about his outside consulting work. Balutis wanted to continue the outside work, arguing that the terms of the FGIPC position allowed him to do that. The FGIPC board, however, said he could not.

The federation is a collection of professional groups that fosters communication among federal IT managers, users and vendors.

Previously, Balutis served 25 years in government, ending in 2001 when he left his position as director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Advanced Technology Program to go to FGIPC.

Balutis will work from Veridyne's Arlington, Va., office. The company, with headquarters in Broomall, Pa., has about 150 employees in 10 offices.