The GBS Leadership Team
We recruit and hire the very best leaders we can. Our leadership team includes some of the very best people from the industries we serve. These are just some of the people at The GBS Group who lead our business in various ways.
Meet some of our team members (click on each to view profiles): Bob founded The GBS Group in November 2005 and serves as Chairman/CEO. His experience includes thirty-five years of executive and leadership experience in the engineering and technical services industries, both in government and private firms. Bob has a diverse background as an entrepreneur and executive in various industries throughout his 30-year career. His expertise is in consulting, systems engineering, project management, and overall business leadership. Bob has been CEO at The GBS Group since he founded the company in 2005. Previously, Bob served successively as CIO, CFO, then COO at SAIC / AMSEC for over ten years, and served 14 years in the Defense / Maritime industry as a field service engineer, marine engineer, and manager. As CEO, Bob has built the company from scratch to become a full-service engineering company supporting clients in the US, Canada, and abroad. Bob has led The GBS team’s growth in the fields of commercial and navy ship and vessel design engineering and field services; passenger rail reliability, wifi, and custom software solutions; navy and marine engineering support services, and into the home/office automation market. Bob holds an MBA from the College of William and Mary and a BS in Marine Engineering from the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, NY. He has served on numerous boards, both profit and non-profit, and within many professional associations. Bob is an avid tennis player, golfer, and father of four. Sarah has 25 years of business and engineering experience in software engineering and expert systems development, website, and E-Commerce website development, and corporate administration. Currently, she serves as Chief Administrative Officer of The GBS Group and leads all corporate support functions within the corporation. Sarah is also former CEO and co-owner of Advanced Internet Marketing, Inc.(AIM Inc.) a website design and marketing company launched by Bob Golden in 1996. During her years as CEO of AIM Inc. Sarah and her staff designed, built and maintained over 100 websites for customers locally and around the world. Previously, Sarah held technical positions within the Department of Defense working as an engineer doing Expert System development for troubleshooting engineering equipment onboard US Navy ships, and for Deloitte & Touche, LLC in Los Angeles where she worked as a consultant on engagements in the area of Computer Assurance services. Sarah currently serves as a member of the Advisory Board of the Batten College of Engineering and Technology, Old Dominion University (ODU) and serves on the Board of Directors for Samaritan House, a Virginia Beach non-profit organization. In addition, Sarah is a member of the Women’s Initiative Network at ODU, a mentor-mentee group focused on helping women students succeed through positive support and reinforcement during their time at ODU and on into their professional careers upon graduation. Sarah holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering from Old Dominion University, graduating Magna Cum Laude. Rick has over 30 years of executive leadership at various levels of responsibility managing financial and operational aspects of large, multi-disciplinary activities conducting complex nuclear and non-nuclear repair and modernization of ships, submarines, and aircraft carriers. An experienced leader, problem solver and team builder, he oversees a technologically dynamic and operationally diverse team of engineers. Before joining GBS, Rick completed over 33 years of service in the Navy, retiring as a Rear Admiral. Rick was commissioned through the NROTC program at Penn State and started his Navy career as a Surface Warfare Officer before transitioning to Engineering Duty. During his naval career, he held various positions at sea including Chief Engineer on USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (CVN 73); various positions in Naval Shipyards to include Shipyard Commander at Norfolk Naval Shipyard; and various positions on TYPCOM, Fleet, OPNAV and NAVSEA staffs. He was promoted to Flag rank in 2009 and was the Fleet Maintenance Officer at U.S. Pacific Fleet in Hawaii before completing his service as the Fleet Maintenance Officer at U.S. Fleet Forces Command in Norfolk. Rick holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Penn State, an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School and is a licensed Professional Engineer in Virginia and California. Peter possesses 20 years of field service in mechanical and electrical engineering and is responsible for management of all Engineering resources, excluding those embedded with our customers at Amtrak and NSWC. This includes TSIMS, Maritime Engineering, Drafting, and Rail HW and integration projects. Pete has worked on a GBS project assisting the Taiwanese Navy in Taiwan where he led a team of GBS Employees in support of NAVSEA PMS 326 FMS. Prior to joining GBS, Pete worked as a division manager, HM&E at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center (MARMC) from 1999-2007, which included overall project management responsibility, participation in command strategic planning initiatives including Command Naval Air Force, Naval Surface Warfare Center, naval shipyards, Supervisors of Shipbuilding, Type Commanders’ organizations, and Regional Maintenance Centers. He worked for both NAVSEACENLANT and Fleet Technical Support Center Atlantic (FTSCLANT) providing onboard technical support to Navy ships. He has experience performing shipboard assessments, installation oversight and troubleshooting hydraulic and deck machinery systems. Pete is a licensed Professional Engineer in Virginia and has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Clarkson University. In his role as Vice President of Maritime, Controls, and Automation, Seth is responsible for the business development, contract execution, customer relations for all ship control and maritime-related efforts at The GBS Group. Seth began his career with Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) now known as Huntington Ingalls Industries spending time on Contracts, Sourcing, and Engineering. Seth worked 6 years with NNS and then accepted another position with Maersk Line Limited (MLL) which is owned by AP Moller Maersk. At MLL Seth was a General Manager in the Government Ship Management group responsible for Contracting, Procurement and Logistics for all Operation and Maintenance Contracts MLL had with Military Sealift Command (MSC). Seth holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from the College of Engineering at Michigan State University in Applied Engineering Sciences. Before joining GBS, Jim served as Director of Operations for ORBIS, Inc in Philadelphia, responsible for technical services business development, proposals, and strategic planning for growth. Prior to ORBIS, Jim completed over 38 years at the Naval Ship Systems Engineering Station (NAVSSES) — now operating as Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division. Jim began his engineering career as an In-Service Engineer for HM&E systems and equipment. He spent 15 years working instrumentation & sensor systems on HM&E equipment, focused on ship modernization, systems alterations and complex maintenance programs. He spent the last 23 years in progressive leadership positions, eventually serving as Aircraft Carrier Division Head where he was responsible for building and oversight of Aircraft Carrier programs and personnel. Jim expanded the customer base and complexity of programs supporting In-Service Engineering, Nuclear Refueling and Complex Overhaul, New Construction and Modernization areas. Jim participated in the Aircraft Carrier In Service Engineering Task Force that made significant changes to improve engineering support and provide early identification of system deficiencies for the Navy. Jim brings an outstanding personal reputation and deep expertise built over decades of success within the complex programs managed by NSWC in Philadelphia. His understanding of this critical customer / agency and the many related US Navy engineering agencies and activities are of great value to GBS. Jim holds a Bachelor Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Widener University. Bio coming soon! Bio coming soon! In his role as Vice President of Procurement, Rick is responsible for developing system improvements for procurement, purchasing and receiving procedures as well as supporting contracts and projects in our Maritime Division. Rick brings over thirty years of Commercial Maritime and Government experience with purchasing, contracting and inventory management with a record of improving bottom-line results through creative solutions using business and industry contracting practices. He has vast procurement experience including parts, services, major acquisitions and management of vessel overhauls and periodic repair availabilities. Rick holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Washington & Lee University and a Master of Business Administration from Old Dominion University.
Bob Golden, CEO
Sarah Boyce Golden, President & CAO
Rick Berkey, COO
Peter Martinez, PE, VP Rail & Transportation
Seth Heinrich, VP Maritime, Controls, and Automation
Jim DiTaranto, VP Federal Services
Jim has over 20 years of experience in directing large-scale engineering and maintenance programs in mission-critical must-win situations in naval programs. Well-regarded for bringing a highly coveted blend of business acumen and systems operations technical expertise to the decision-making process.
Juan Fernandez, VP IT Infrastructure & Support
Michelle DeArmond, Director of Contracts & Project Controls
Rick Hope, VP Procurement
Rail / Transportation
Maritime Services
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