(HUNTSVILLE, AL)– Dale Moore was unanimously elected by the Davidson Board of Directors to the position of President, effective January 1, 2024.
Moore brings more than 20 years’ senior executive leadership and business development experience, combined with a successful business operations and program management track record across numerous industry organizations and government programs. Dale began his aerospace engineering career as a Systems Engineer at Davidson supporting the initial development, testing and deployment of the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) program. He previously spent the last 14 years as a key member of the Modern Technology Solutions, Inc. (MTSI) leadership team, including the last 5 years as Vice President of Business Development.
Moore previously held the position of Chief Operating Officer, and has a history with the company dating back nearly 2 decades. Davidson CEO, MG John W. Holly (USA, Ret.) was elected to another 3-year term as Chairman of the Board.
Moore recently sat down with Creative Services Director, David Wood, for an interview where he talks the past, present, and architecting Davidson's future success and legacy.
In the bustling corridors of Davidson Technologies' new global headquarters, filled with crews and contractors, there's a palpable sense of momentum – a company on the cusp of a transformative era. Dale Moore, the newly-elected President of Davidson, embodies this spirit of change and continuity. With a history going back more than two decades with the company, Moore's ascension to the presidency marks not just a career milestone, but a pivotal moment in Davidson's evolution.
Reflecting on the Journey
DW: Dale, before we get into the present and the future, I wanted to go back for a second to give people some context about your background with the company. This is one of those proverbial full circle moments for you because you actually have a history with Davidson. You returned as COO and have now been elected President. Tell us what it's meant to move into this role.
Moore: “Yeah, I think it's a great starting point, David. 23 years ago I met Dr. Julian Davidson in his office for the first time, I had never met him, talking about an opportunity at this really small company he had created. He was looking for young engineers to help continue to build on the things that he was focused on. And Julian was a very mission focused individual. He really cared about this country and the national security programs he was supporting at the time. And in particular, his passion was missile defense. We were a part of the initial standup of the Boeing LSI on the GMD contract, in which Davidson played a role. He offered me my first real opportunity in this town to grow as an engineer and become a part of this community.”
"I was new to Huntsville at the time, and I owe everything in my career to the opportunity that Dr. Davidson gave me 20 plus years ago.”
“I spent the first 5 foundational years of my career here at Davidson. That springboarded me to the opportunities that presented themselves in the future. Fast forward 15 years later, and I got the opportunity to come back to Davidson as Chief Operating Officer and now President and it's just an exciting opportunity for me just to see how this company has become what it is now versus where we were more than 20 years ago.”
“From a 30 to 40 person company at the time that I joined it to over 250 employees now, still doing the great work that Dr. Davidson focused on and really imprinted into his legacy and what he wanted to see Davidson become. Not only are we moving in that direction, but there's a lot more to come. I think it's really going to be a great representation of his legacy – Dorothy's legacy. I have a significant opportunity to help make sure that legacy is sustained; the longevity of the name and what it means to both this community and obviously the employees at here at Davidson.”
“It is exciting time to be a part of what Davidson is doing, and again, it really is about the name on the wall behind me and what that means to both the community, our national security programs and the Davidson family.”
A New Era Unfolds
DW: The new global headquarters we’re sitting in represents much more than brand new fixtures and finishes and a nice place for employees to operate. Share with us the ways in which this facility represents a new era for Davidson because of the ways it will facilitate new and expanded capabilities and work scopes.
Moore: “It's a new era for Davidson. It's an exciting time to be a part of the future of Davidson. We have done a number of things over the last 20 years, primarily being a high-quality, performance excellence focused engineering services company. That has been a great pedigree for where Davidson was and who we are today. It’s a foundation for the company and that's not going to change.”
“What we are focused on moving forward is being a mission-driven provider of critical software applications underpinned by artificial intelligence, machine learning and by advancing quantum technology in the national security space; leveraging those capabilities to provide differentiated products and solutions for our customers.”
Moore surveys progress at the Redstone Gateway Headquarters
“This new facility is going to be an enabler for that. We have a lot of capability that we didn't have previously in this facility to support customers and their programs in unique ways. And this is again, just a testament to the legacy of the Davidson name. This evolution from where Dr. Julian Davidson started in 1996 to where we are today is a significant migration and evolution of the company. This new headquarters is indicative of all the hard work our employees and the people associated with Davidson over time have contributed to.”
Evolution of Davidson's Global Headquarters Site at Redstone Gateway, Huntsville, AL
Honoring the Human Capital
DW: I’d like to give you a moment to reflect on the human capital which Davidson considers its greatest asset – some of whom have called Davidson home for 15 to 20 years, or more. Describe what it means to you to be leading the caliber of people that we employ here.
Moore: “Yeah, David, our employees deliver every single time with our customers in the roles they play supporting our national security programs and they deserve all the recognition. We're moving to an employee-owned environment, again, focusing on people and taking care of people is going to continue to be a priority for us. Achieving 100-percent employee ownership is our objective over the next 5 to 8 years.”
“And that again, is just a foundational component of ensuring that the legacy of Dr. Julian Davidson and Dorothy lives on as we make this transition into a one new facility and the new headquarters here, but also a new strategy for the company and a new focus. On a product and solution delivery of capabilities to our customers.”
“It really is an exciting time, and it comes down to having great people in the organization who are focused on the right missions with the right vision and allowing them to just execute at a high level. And that's what Davidson has been about for more than 20 years.”
“Davidson has a diverse set of customers today. We are spread out across the United States, all the way from Fort Greeley, Alaska to Huntsville, Alabama and in between. We've got a significant presence in Colorado Springs, supporting both the Missile Defense Agency and other customers, including the U.S. Army. We've got folks in Vandenberg, California supporting the important Ground-based Midcourse Defense mission. Our presence in Fort Greeley is very much focused on the legacy GMD program that Davidson has been a part of for more than 20 years, and we are supporting multiple roles across the program in multiple locations. We have a presence with our teams in Louisiana; also Ogden, Utah, where we are providing a critical support to the Sentinel program as a part of the development of the Minuteman 3 replacement.”
“No matter where they work, it's about the missions they support and taking care of them in every location as a critical priority for the company and we're going to continue to do that as a part of the legacy for Davidson.”
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