Leadership
Click on the images below to see their professional bios.
Chris Bennethum
Assistant Commissioner, AAS
Chris Bennethum is the Assistant Commissioner for GSA’s Office of Assisted Acquisition Services (AAS) within the Federal Acquisition Service (FAS). In this position, Mr. Bennethum is responsible for overseeing AAS’ delivery of over $9 billion in custom acquisition, project and financial management services, enabling customers’ missions worldwide. AAS specializes in complex, sensitive and mission-critical projects that are offered to federal clients on a fee-for-service basis through twelve nationally-located Client Support Centers (CSCs).
Previously, Mr. Bennethum served as the Deputy Assistant Commissioner for AAS. As Deputy Assistant Commissioner, he oversaw the AAS Portfolio’s business strategy and operations, systems development, acquisition policy, communications, financial management and workforce recruitment, development and engagement.
In his more than 25 years of service with various GSA components, Mr. Bennethum has held roles in several regional, central office and overseas locations. Some of his previous roles include serving as FAS Chief of Staff, Deputy Regional Commissioner for the National Capital Region, Director for GSA’s Travel and Transportation Northeast Zone, and Director for Marketing and Business Development in GSA’s European office.
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Corey Nickens
Deputy Assistant Commissioner, AAS
Corey Nickens is the Deputy Assistant Commissioner for GSA’s Assisted Acquisition Services (AAS) organization in the Federal Acquisition Service. Corey previously served as FEDSIM's Acquisition Quality Director overseeing acquisition lifecycle activities. Corey is a member of various professional organizations seeking to maximize collaboration and success among the public and private sectors, including the American Council for Technology and Industry Advisory Council (ACT-IAC), the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA), and the National Contract Management Association (NCMA). He has participated in and held leadership roles in ACT-IAC’s professional development programs as well as the Executive Leadership Conference (ELC). He was a recipient of the inaugural Federal Computer Week (FCW) Rising Star award.
Corey earned a master’s degree in Library and Information Science from Drexel University and a bachelor’s degree in Information Systems from the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC).
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Chris Hamm
FEDSIM Director
Chris Hamm is the Director for GSA FEDSIM where he oversees information technology and professional service contracts worth $7 billion. Mr. Hamm has over 15 years of experience in managing complex acquisitions and project delivery. He is a frequent speaker at conferences and panels on subjects including performance-based contracting, information technology service level agreements, and agile acquisition. He has been recognized as one of the "FED100" by Federal Computer Week and was Government Chair for the 2013 ACT IAC Partners Program.
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Nathan Cahoon
Region 1 Director
Nathan Cahoon is the AAS Director for Region 1 (New England). As Director, he leads a team of AAS Project Managers who work with Regional Contracting Officers to provide mission-essential acquisition solutions to dozens of client agencies and organisations throughout the Federal Government.
Nathan has over 25 years of Government experience, beginning as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force in 1998. He then served as a DoD contractor, an Air Force Civilian, and ultimately joined GSA in 2011, where he served first as an AAS Project Manager, and later as an AAS Branch Chief. From 2016 - 2017, he served as the Associate Director for Contracts and Compliance with the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF).
Nathan holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology from Brown University, a Master of Science Degree in Bioinformatics from Northeastern University, and Level III FAC-COR certification.
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Lawrence Unger
Region 2 Director
Lawrence Unger is the AAS Director for Region 2 (Northeast and Caribbean). He first joined GSA in 2019 to serve as Deputy Director for Region 2’s Assisted Acquisition Service program and brings in more than 15 years of experience in Contracting, Accounting and Finance.
After a career in finance, he started his federal service in 2010 with the National Institutes of Health in DC, working as a contracts and grants auditor. He then spent 7 years with the Veterans Health Administration as a Contracting Officer and then Contracting Branch Chief working on a wide variety of service and supply contracts for Veteran hospitals in the NYC area.
Mr. Unger holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management for Accounting from CUNY Baruch College, and a Master of Business Administration from University of Rochester. He is Level III FAC-C certified from the Federal Acquisition Institute and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in NY State.
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Jack Wise
Region 3 Acting Director
Jack Wise is the AAS Acting Director for Region 3 (Mid- Atlantic). He has over 35 years in the acquisition career field. He currently works with acquisition workforce professionals to support the needs of DoD and Civilian agency clients. Jack oversees a client portfolio of 109 active orders with an aggregate ceiling of $6.3 Billion and total funded value of $2.16 billion at over 35 client organizations.
Jack is a career 1102 (contracting specialist/contracting officer) having spent time in the Department of Defense (Defense Logistics Agency and Naval Regional Contracting Center) and GSA acquisition organizations. Since joining GSA in 1991, he has held a number of key leadership positions within the GSA Mid-Atlantic Region; never straying too far from his acquisition roots. Jack has advised, guided and led numerous acquisition teams in their management and support of complex acquisitions.
Mr. Wise is a founding member of the Mid-Atlantic Government and Industry Council and he earned a B.A. in Business Administration from Rutgers University.
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Wayne Masters
Region 4 Acting Director
Wayne Masters currently serves as the R4 AAS Acting Director. He is a former Branch Chief and Section Chief for the Assisted Acquisition Services Division in the Southeast Sunbelt Region. Bringing over 23 years of contracting experience to the team, Wayne has most recently served the GSA as a contracting officer. is responsible for three Branches, made up of 96 government bodies and over 20 contracting entities.
Previously, Wayne was a Flight Chief and Contracting Officer with the DoD at Robins AFB. While there, he managed the Pentagon-sponsored Saudi Arabia F-15 Wing Stand Up $80M contract. He was also responsible for the Local Area Maintenance Shelters (LAMS) contract for the US Army, a $20M temporary hanger, warehouse, shelter repair, and construction contract. He earned a Bachelor’s degree from the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), and achieved a Master’s Degree in Education and Instruction at Georgia College and State University. He is also an active member of the National Contract Management Association (NCMA).
Wayne lives with his wife, Michelle, and together they have two grown sons, Jake and Ben.
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Martin Hamlin
Region 5 Director
Martin Hamlin is the AAS Director for Region 5 (Great Lakes). His career in the federal acquisition system spans three decades and includes positions in government, military, industry, and academia. He has held a number of positions including contracting officer, price/cost analyst, contracting and compliance team leader, program manager, and professor of contract management. Martin earned BSBA and MBA degrees from the University of Central Florida and a MS in Contract Management from the Air Force Institute of Technology. He holds CPCM and CFCM certifications from the National Contact Management Association and was named an NCMA Fellow.
Martin is FAC-C Level III and FAC-COR Level III certified and is a certified Six Sigma Green Belt. Since joining GSA, he has served in several roles including contracting officer, project manager, and branch chief.
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Mark Johnson
Region 6 Director
Mark Johnson is the AAS Director for Region 6 (Heartland). He has over 20 years of experience as an acquisition professional. Prior to taking on the Director role, he served as a Supply Acquisition Branch Chief for GSA and Supply Branch Chief for the Veterans Administration. He has extensive experience supporting the needs of military clients, including from time in the United States Army. In addition to his professional accomplishments, he holds a master’s degree in Procurement and Acquisition Management.
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Alan Searsy
Region 7 Director
Alan Searsy is the Director for GSA AAS Region 7 (Greater Southwest). He has worked with acquisition services and contracting in GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service for over 32 years. He has been involved with assisted acquisition for more than 20 years and takes pride in providing effective and creative assisted acquisition solutions to our customers. Mr. Searsy was awarded a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1993 and has more than 20 years of experience serving as adjunct business administration faculty.
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Eric Loveridge
Region 8 Director
Eric Loveridge is the Director for GSA AAS Region 8 (Rocky Mountain). Mr. Loveridge comes to GSA AAS from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, where he served as Director for the Western Field Contracting Operations office. He began his Federal career as an intern with the United States Navy, where he rotated through multiple naval R&D programs working primarily on cost type contracts. Later, he was an initial member of the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Selective Acquisition, where he supported the National Cyber Security Division. In 2012, Eric joined the Department of the Interior’s Acquisition Service Directorate as a Division Chief. He has also worked in the private sector at MITRE Corporation, a Federally Funded Research and Development Corporation, where he supported the DHS Intelligence & Analysis office and the FBI. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Management and a Master of Business Administration from Virginia Tech.
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Joel Fada
Region 9 Director
Joel Fada serves as the Director for GSA AAS Region 9 (Pacific Rim). Mr. Fada has over 20 years of federal service with multiple DoD and Civilian Agencies. His acquisition experience began serving as a Contracting Officer for the United States Air Force at the Air Force Flight Test Center and Space and Missile System Center, before transitioning to serve as a Contracting Officer for the United States Navy at SPAWAR Systems Center Pacific. Mr. Fada then moved to the Department of Veterans Affairs and served as a Branch Chief performing strategic sourcing and construction contracting prior to transitioning to GSA. In addition to his professional accomplishments, he holds a Bachelor of Science in Management and a Master of Business Administration. He also attended Airman Leadership School and Squadron Officer’s School while serving 8 years on active duty in the United States Air Force.
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Kimberly McFall
Region 10 Director
Kimberly McFall is the AAS Director for Region 10 (Northwest Arctic). She has more than 27 years of contracting experience starting as a Contract Specialist with the Department of Defense and continuing to numerous contracting officer and supervisory contracting officer positions at GSA. Her wide-ranging expertise includes serving as a subject matter expert on professional services for federal agencies and experience leading complex negotiations. Ms. McFall received a FAS Excellence in Performance Award, a Coalition for Government Procurement Special Achievement Award and a Seattle Federal Executive Board Public Service Recognition Award for her work in consolidating eight Professional Services Schedules into a single Schedule. She holds a degree in Business Management and Marketing from St. Martins College and lives in Puyallup, Washington, with her husband, two kids, dog and cat.
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Tonya Butler
Region 11 Director
Tonya Butler serves as the Director for GSA AAS Region 11 (National Capital), enabling client agencies to meet their mission with IT and professional services acquisition support. Prior to her appointment, Ms. Butler served as the Director of Customer and Stakeholder Engagement for Region 11. She also served as the Federal Acquisition Service Deputy Director of the GSA Presidential Transition Support and Inaugural Support Teams. In this role, she managed an integrated team of logistics and contracting professionals the 2016-17 Presidential election season. Her team also provided onboarding and IT support for candidate teams and the President-Elect’s staff. Tonya earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Towson University and a Master of Arts in Administration from Bowie State University. She earned FAC-P/PM Senior Level and FAC-COR Level II certifications and holds membership in the National Contract Management Association and Project Management Institute.
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