Stephen W. Thomas

About Stephen W. Thomas

I have an extensive 25+ year career in aerospace and defense, marked by my ability to successfully pivot to adjacent areas of the business. My journey started at Dynetics in 1996 after earning two electrical engineering degrees (BSEE Auburn 1995, MSEE Georgia Tech 1996). I spent over a decade developing expertise in foreign integrated air defenses, electronic warfare, and research, development, test & evaluation supporting Intelligence Community and DoD customers. My next 10-year opportunity was highlighted by P&L ownership of this portfolio, where I grew the business over 300% by expanding an engineering services business into custom laboratory and open-air T&E products. Two career-changing opportunities occurred in this role. In 2011, I was one of five selected to close Dynetics\' 100% S-Corp ESOP transition. As a member of the ESOP Advisory Committee for 9 years, I generated 5-year growth forecasts and managed the annual ESOP valuation. In 2018, I earned an MBA from the University of Tennessee, moved to corporate to lead FP & A, and then became VP of Finance during a period of phenomenal growth. The second opportunity came in 2019 when I led Finance through an analysis of strategic alternatives. I created key content in the Confidential Information Package (CIP), ran the Quality of Earnings (QofE), built the contract waterfall and developed and presented pro forma financial forecasts. This process carried four parties through due diligence. In Dec 2019, Dynetics and Leidos signed a stock purchase agreement, and in Jan 2020, Dynetics sold to Leidos for 1.65B. I had a significant role in one of the largest acquisitions in the history of the Huntsville aerospace & defense market. The following year, an opportunity emerged to divest Aviation & Missile Solutions (AMS), one of Dynetics subsidiaries, and take it private. In my 3rd M&A transaction in 10 years, a Dynetics colleague and I, along with a few retired Dynetics executives, bought AMS from Leidos in Jan 2022. I upgraded the business systems (including a SaaS Costpoint migration), negotiated benefits, revamped policies and procedures, and onboarded 120 employees over a weekend. I am leading AMS as CFOO and Board member alongside CEO Keith McCollum during this exciting new phase of AMS history.

Experience

1. Chief Financial & Operating Officer

   Aviation & Missile Solutions

   Jan 2022 — Present · Huntsville, AL, US

   Chief Financial & Operating Officer at Aviation & Missile Solutions (AMS), a Huntsville-based small business defense contractor focused on sensors, weapon systems, and integrated air and missile defense technologies. AMS was founded over 20 years ago as a joint venture and later became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dynetics, Inc. before being divested from Dynetics in 2022.

Education

• Georgia Institute of Technology

  M.S., Electrical Engineering

  1995 — 1996

• Auburn University

  B.S., Electrical Engineering

  1991 — 1995

• University of Tennessee, Knoxville

  Master of Business Administration - MBA, Aerospace and Defense

  2018 — 2018