Nick Wakeman | A strong example

If my mom had been in the government contracting industry, she might have made the cut as a Channel Leader.I'm biased, of course, but after working for her in the family restaurant, and having watched others who worked for her, I have little doubt that she is a true leader.I've only heard my mom espouse one leadership axiom: "Never ask someone to do something you aren't willing to do yourself."That meant that even when she was in her 50s and should have known better, she didn't hesitate to crawl under a steam table or tear down a fryer to show someone how to clean it properly.But there were other axioms she demonstrated even if she didn't speak about them. Many, if not all, of the Channel Leaders whom we recognize in this issue would identify with them. These maxims include understanding and communicating with your customers, watching the competition, collecting data on your performance and treating employees with respect.We salute 17 contractors who have mastered those concepts and more. They've helped their companies succeed by first helping their customers succeed.This issue also has an analysis of the new Alliant contract and how various players are positioning themselves. In addition, we have stories on government agencies' marketing tactics, efforts to decrease friendly fire and an update on GTSI Corp.'s attempt to remake itself.As for the Channel Leaders stories, we hope that you take as much away from them in terms of inspiration as we did.