Jack Hughes, formerly CFO of Alion Science, discusses the future
April 29, 2008 by Lisa Singh
Jack Hughes recently retired as CFO of Alion Science. Well, sort of. While Hughes officially stepped down from his position, he’s still supporting the company he has helped build up over the past five years. In the following Q&A, Hughes talks about what’s next on the horizon, and what other executives can learn from his career trajectory. Hint: Networking is key.
Recently we all learned that you retired as CFO of Alion Science. What are you doing now?
Jack Hughes: I didn’t actually retire from Alion; I’m too young to retire. And, I’m still supporting the company in an advisory role to help with the transition to the new acting CFO, and perform other tasks as assigned by the CEO. This interim role will continue until mid-August. I am hopeful that I can continue to contribute to Alion’s success during this transition period.
Alion has grown significantly since its formation in 2002. What do you want your legacy to be at Alion?
Jack Hughes: Yes, we enjoyed significant growth over the past 5 years. I think I’d like the employee-owners to be able to look back on my tenure there and believe that I contributed to the growth of the company, to its outstanding reputation in the Government Technology Solutions business, and to the company’s increased shareholder value.
What does it take to be a successful CFO in the government contracting space?
Jack Hughes: One part industry knowledge, one part leadership, and three parts being just north of crazy.
You recently read the book HalfTime. What did you learn about yourself after reading the book?
Jack Hughes: I read HalfTime about 10 years ago along with its companion book, GamePlan. These were life-changing books for me. The premise of HalfTime is that you spend the first 40 years or so of your life building success; how do you spend the next 40 years building significance. In other words, what’s your legacy. The book puts you through several exercises to determine how you will focus on signifcance by completing the following statement — you were put here on this earth to serve by BLANK BLANK. My particular passion is to serve by forging relationships. No matter what I’m doing in the business world, as long as I continue to build new relationships and help connect the dots between other people that might not otherwise have crossed paths, I’m creating significance. I’m hopeful that my legacy will be those relationships and the fruit that they bear, long after I’m gone.
Many CFO’s are internally focused at their companies. You have spent the last 30 years of your career being outwardly focused on behalf of the companies you have worked at. Why is this important to you?
Jack Hughes: For me, this was a natural outgrowth of my passion to build relationships. In the business world, most meaningful accomplishments are team efforts. They don’t happen without lots of help from experts outside of your particular company. As a CFO, I always sought to develop as many relationships with other financial experts in the investment banking, commercial banking, financing, accounting and other financial industries, as well as in the government contracting community. I have found these relationships to be invaluable over my 35 year career in the business world.
How did your connection with Joe Kampf help Alion Science complete its acquisition of certain assets of Anteon Corporation’s now General Dynamics?
Jack Hughes: I knew Joe from being around the industry for many years. Joe had a tremendous career in the government contracting business culminating with his leadership in the growth of Anteon. When I got word that a piece of Anteon may have to be divested from the GD acquisition, I called Joe and asked him how Alion could participate in that transaction. Joe was kind enough to connect me with Jerry DeMuro at GD, and Jerry was, in turn, kind enough to give Alion an audience where we could discuss our capabilities to acquire the divested piece of Anteon. The rest, as they say, is history.
What advice would you give CFO’s on the value of networking and getting to know their peers?
Jack Hughes: I am a strong believer in networking, especially with your peers. No one person can know everything about being a CFO. I have had the luxury of having many relationships with other CFOs in the industry, and I have found many with deeper knowledge and broader experiences than mine. When I wasn’t quite sure what next step to take, I would often reach out to other CFOs and ask them for guidance. And you know what, they were always there for me and more than willing to help. So my advice to CFOs is to come out of your closet and build the kind of relationships with your peers that allow you to continually help one another. This was perhaps easier for me than for some others, since I’ve never been know as a wallflower.
You are an avid reader. What is your favorite business book?
Jack Hughes: My favorite book of all time is Noble House by James Clavell. It’s a fictional novel, but chock-full of business information. It taught me that there was usually more than one way to solve a problem, beat the competition, and build a business. It taught me to try to think out of the box and be creative in my approach to business, but always within the rules.
What does the future hold for you?
Jack Hughes: For the immediate future, I’m going to finish up the transition at Alion to ensure it is as successful as possible. Beyond that, I’m going to try to take some time for myself and clear a few things from my bucket list. Then we’ll see what the Good Lord puts in my path next. Whatever it is, you can bet it will involve “serving by forging relationships.”
What is your favorite restaurant?
Jack Hughes: For lunch or a good steak in the evening, you can usually find me most days at the Ritz in Tysons Corner. I also like L’Auberge Chez Francois in Great Falls. Great food and a great wine list.
What is something most people don’t know about you?
Jack Hughes: That I love to shoot pool. I had a table in my basement growing up and played most every day. I’m not as good as I used to be, but I just acquired a brand new two piece cue. Look out world!
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