“Always Remain Flexible to the Hand You Are Dealt.”
Sean A. Papso is a national security executive, growth strategist, and operating leader whose career has been defined by building organizations, scaling complex businesses, and creating durable enterprise value in some of the most demanding environments in government and industry. As President and Chief Growth Officer of Invictus, a Red River Company, he brings together full profit-and-loss leadership, strategic growth execution, operational discipline, and deep experience across defense, intelligence, aerospace, cyber, and emerging technology. Over more than 15 years in national security markets—and roughly two decades of professional experience overall—Sean has developed a reputation for translating mission complexity into business clarity while maintaining a strong focus on customer trust, disciplined execution, and long-term value creation.
His professional foundation was shaped at the United States Naval Academy, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering with a concentration in astronautical engineering and graduated with Merit Honors. His early exposure to aerospace and mission systems was reinforced through an internship with NASA’s Johnson Space Center, where he worked within the Extravehicular Activities Branch and analyzed mission timing and procedural performance related to Space Shuttle and International Space Station operations. He later began his career as an active-duty officer in the United States Navy’s Naval Aviation community, gaining first-hand experience with military aviation doctrine, operational rigor, and leadership under pressure. Those formative experiences established a leadership philosophy centered on preparation, adaptability, accountability, and mission focus—principles that have remained consistent throughout his executive career.
After transitioning from military service to industry, Sean joined Computer Sciences Corporation, formerly Centauri Solutions, where he quickly advanced through engineering, project management, operations, and business development roles. His work supporting Defense Intelligence Agency programs provided him with deep familiarity with the operational demands of the Intelligence Community and Department of Defense contracting environments. As a program leader on the Reconnaissance Operations Management Enterprise initiative, he earned the 2013 CSC Award for Excellence for innovative client solutions. He later moved into increasingly strategic roles, ultimately serving as Director of Intelligence Community Business Development and Operations, where he helped expand CSC’s Intelligence Community presence by more than 200 percent and broadened the company’s customer portfolio.
Sean’s next chapter at Lockheed Martin Information Systems & Global Solutions and later Leidos further accelerated his development as a strategic growth executive. Serving in senior business development and marketing leadership roles, he led major pursuits across the Defense Intelligence Agency, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, National Reconnaissance Office, and adjacent Department of Defense markets. His capture leadership contributed to more than $2 billion in contract awards, including a $988 million single-award contract at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency that became one of Leidos’ most significant wins of the period. His performance earned multiple recognitions, including the Leidos Annual Achievement Award for Excellence in Business Development, a Business Development MVP award, a President’s Award, and a Special Recognition Award. As Co-Chair of the Leidos Space Working Group, he also helped shape corporate strategy for government space markets and participated in early-stage merger and acquisition diligence for prospective targets.
In 2018, Sean joined Invictus International Consulting and became one of the central architects of the company’s growth from a small business into a nationally significant prime contractor. Over the following seven years, he held progressively broader leadership responsibilities across business development, operations, corporate strategy, growth, and enterprise management. As Vice President of Business Development and Operations, he built and professionalized the company’s capture and program management infrastructure, helping secure billions of dollars in contract value across programs supporting DIA, the Air Force Research Laboratory, and other national security customers. His leadership contributed to more than 200 percent revenue growth in key periods and helped transform Invictus from a founder-led entrepreneurial organization into an increasingly institutional platform with scalable processes and disciplined growth systems.
As Executive Vice President for Corporate Strategy and Growth, Sean expanded his focus from winning business to building the infrastructure required for long-term enterprise value creation. He established a centralized Corporate Strategy Office that integrated capture, proposal development, pricing, strategy, and executive planning, replacing fragmented processes with a unified growth model. He also helped re-architect financial planning and analysis from compliance-oriented reporting into board-grade decision support, incorporating metrics such as backlog quality, bookings-to-revenue conversion, contract-level margin performance, and cash-generation visibility. These improvements strengthened executive decision-making and contributed to the company’s readiness for institutional ownership and eventual transaction execution.
Sean was subsequently promoted to Chief Operating Officer with full P&L responsibility and a mandate to prepare Invictus for sale. In that role, he served as the principal management-side interlocutor through letter of intent, due diligence, negotiation, and closing, while strengthening operational and financial reporting to support valuation and accelerate the transaction process. In December 2025, Invictus completed its successful sale to Red River Technology at an approximately 11x trailing-twelve-month EBITDA multiple. The transaction marked the culmination of a remarkable growth story in which the company scaled annual revenue from approximately $50 million to more than $250 million without institutional capital. Sean’s contribution to that journey reflects a rare combination of founder-style entrepreneurial execution and private-equity-grade operational discipline.
Following the acquisition, Sean continued as Chief Operating Officer of Invictus before being elevated in June 2026 to President and Chief Growth Officer. In his current capacity, he owns the Invictus P&L, reports directly to the Red River chief executive officer, and leads government services growth strategy across the combined enterprise. He has been responsible for integrating legacy Red River government services programs into a unified operating structure while preserving continuity across every program of record. He has also delivered defined first-year deal synergies across cost optimization, procurement, financial practices, and new business development, while creating integration processes designed to serve as a model for future acquisitions. His work reflects a leadership style that sees integration not simply as a financial exercise, but as an opportunity to create stronger systems, clearer accountability, and more scalable organizational capability.
Beyond operations, Sean is a recognized strategist and thought leader in national security, space, cyber, artificial intelligence, and the defense industrial base. He has authored and contributed to published work examining U.S. resilience, critical infrastructure, space competition, and cybersecurity, including “Securing the Golden Dome: America’s Next Test of Resilience.” He has spoken publicly on topics ranging from layered defense and space power competition to artificial intelligence adoption and public-private cyber collaboration, and he has participated in industry forums hosted by organizations such as CyberSat and the Institute for Critical Infrastructure Technology. His industry contributions have been recognized with the 2025 AFCEA International 40 Under 40 Award, reflecting both his business leadership and his influence within the broader national security technology community.
Sean’s expertise is reinforced by a distinctive blend of operational, financial, contractual, and strategic credentials. He holds an MBA from Drexel University’s LeBow College of Business, where he earned Beta Gamma Sigma honors, and completed the Advanced Finance Program at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with coursework spanning private equity, venture capital, mergers and acquisitions, valuation, corporate governance, and distressed asset investing. He is also a Certified Professional Contract Manager and Project Management Professional and maintains an active TS/SCI security clearance. His mastery of federal acquisition, FAR, DFARS, program execution, and capital strategy allows him to communicate effectively across government customers, corporate boards, private equity sponsors, and management teams.
Board and advisory service have become an increasingly important extension of Sean’s leadership. He currently serves on the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Corporation Board of Governors and the Colorado Space Coalition Board of Directors, and he contributes to several advisory and industry councils focused on management education, intelligence, acquisition, critical infrastructure, and defense and aerospace policy. His prior board service includes nearly a decade with the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association’s Greater Washington, D.C. Chapter, where he served as both an At-Large Director and Treasurer. Through these roles, he has developed experience not only in governance and strategic oversight, but also in coalition-building, mentorship, and long-term organizational stewardship.
Outside of formal executive responsibilities, Sean remains deeply connected to service, mentorship, and the space community. He has mentored transitioning veterans through the Naval Academy Alumni Mentoring Program, volunteered in youth leadership and education initiatives, and remained active in professional organizations spanning national security, aerospace, corporate governance, intelligence, and finance. His passion for space is both professional and personal, reflecting a lifelong interest that began with aerospace engineering, continued through NASA and naval aviation, and later evolved into leadership roles shaping government space strategy and industry growth.
Sean’s personal motto, “always remain flexible to the hand you are dealt,” captures the practical adaptability that has shaped his career. He has moved successfully across engineering, military service, program management, business development, operations, finance, mergers and acquisitions, and enterprise leadership, consistently using each experience to expand his perspective and capacity for impact. He is now at a stage in his career where he is particularly motivated to contribute at the board level, helping organizations navigate growth, risk, capital allocation, transformation, and strategic positioning. He brings the perspective of an operator who has built and scaled a business, the discipline of an executive who has led through transaction and integration, and the judgment of a leader who understands that sustainable success requires balancing mission, people, performance, and long-term value.
Character:
Sean demonstrates character through a leadership approach rooted in service, accountability, adaptability, and a strong sense of responsibility to both mission and people. His military background, mentoring commitments, community involvement, and long-standing emphasis on flexibility under changing circumstances reflect a leader who remains composed and principled while navigating complexity.
Knowledge:
He possesses deep knowledge across national security, defense, intelligence, aerospace, cyber, government contracting, finance, operations, and enterprise growth. His experience is reinforced by formal education in engineering, business, and advanced finance, as well as industry credentials and years of direct responsibility for complex government programs, corporate strategy, and P&L performance.
Strategic:
Sean is a highly strategic leader who has repeatedly translated long-term vision into measurable enterprise value, from scaling Invictus fivefold to helping position and execute its successful sale. His ability to integrate capture strategy, operational performance, financial analytics, M&A thinking, and market positioning enables him to approach growth and governance with a comprehensive, enterprise-wide perspective.
Communication:
An experienced communicator who is comfortable engaging government officials, boards, investors, customers, employees, and industry audiences. His extensive speaking, publishing, executive briefing, and stakeholder-management experience allows him to simplify complex issues, build alignment, and communicate strategic priorities with clarity and credibility.
