The Value of Experience: Margarita Howard on HX5’s Approach to Mission-Critical Support Services

Since its founding in 2004, HX5 has developed a reputation for delivering specialized support services to federal government agencies. With operations spanning 34 states and 90 government locations, the company employs over 1,000 professionals focused on research and development, engineering, and technical service support for NASA and Department of Defense missions.

Margarita Howard, sole owner and CEO/president of HX5, has built the company on a foundation of expertise and mission understanding. Her approach emphasizes hiring experienced professionals familiar with the specific requirements of government agencies.

Prioritizing Specialized Government Experience

Howard attributes much of HX5’s success to prioritizing candidates with direct federal agency experience, which helps streamline operations and meet exacting standards.

“We prefer to hire experienced individuals, so we look for people that have worked with, or supported, NASA or the Department of Defense, as this experience is always very helpful,” Howard explains. “Experience in their respective fields, while supporting these agencies’ respective programs and missions, is very different than experience gained from working in the commercial world.”

This focus on specialized knowledge extends across multiple business functions. “In all of our respective fields, contracting, accounting, finance, HR, even business development, we look for people that have experience because it’s not easy to learn, and the more experience they have, the more helpful they’re going to be to us in what we do,” Howard notes.

The complexity of government requirements creates unique challenges that benefit from prior exposure to federal systems and processes. “When we talk to business entrepreneurs or new staff we remind them: We know that what we do is not easy to do, and it’s very expensive to ensure it’s done right. A phrase we use often is, ‘If it were easy, everyone would do it,'” Howard states.

Building Teams for Technical Excellence

HX5’s workforce specializes in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, areas that frequently require advanced education and specialized certifications.

“Our focus is supporting R&D and specialty area programs all with a heavy emphasis on education, skill sets and experience in STEM science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines,” Howard explains. “So across DOD and NASA, those are the specialties that are our primary workforce. And as such, many highly specialized jobs require advanced education.”

Finding candidates with the precise combination of technical expertise, security clearances, and experience presents significant recruiting challenges. Howard refers to particularly demanding positions as “purple unicorns,” highlighting the difficulty of securing talent with rare combinations of qualifications.

Despite these challenges, the company’s commitment to securing experienced professionals has yielded notable results, including successful competition for major federal contracts.

Creating Stability Through Leadership Continuity

Howard’s approach to building experienced teams extends to leadership roles, where she has prioritized stability and selective recruitment.

“I’m very proud to say that that’s an area that we always stayed very involved in. It wasn’t until we got larger that we actually turned it over where we didn’t, not the people on contract, because we have program managers that hire those people, and interview them face to face, and make sure that they meet all the qualifications,” Howard shares. “With our corporate staff especially for management positions, to this day, company leadership remains involved in the hiring process.”

This hands-on approach to leadership selection has created remarkable consistency within the organization. “Many of them have been with us 10 years or so, and we just have a highly dedicated, experienced management team. We could not do what we do without them,” Howard says. “So I want to give a lot of credit to our employees.”

HX5’s focus on professionals with agency-specific experience has shaped a company culture aligned with governmental mission requirements. Howard emphasizes that delivering exceptional service depends on understanding the unique demands of federal work: “Working side-by-side with civil servants and the military, supporting their respective missions is a privilege. I love this business and the work that we do. I’m extremely proud of it.”

The company continues to apply this experience-focused approach across its operations, supporting critical missions through specialized professional services while navigating the complex requirements of government contracting.