REI Systems: Digitizing Government to Make an Impact

Agencies across the Government are tasked with carrying out unique missions to improve almost every aspect of civilian life. As the Government’s missions evolve, so should the technology that enables them. REI Systems, located in Sterling, Virginia, is one technology solutions provider that has been digitizing government for nearly 30 years to ensure that Government agencies can continue to carry out their duties in the most efficient and effective manner.

The REI Way

It all started in 1989 when REI won its first contract with NASA to provide the agency with technical and programmaticsupport services; today, NASA is one of the several government agencies that continue to maintain decades-long relationships with the company. REI sits at the forefront of harnessing new technologies and methodologies, specializing in application modernization, cloud- and platform-based solutions, grants management, and data analytics and visualization. But what makes REI stand out in the Washington, D.C. metro area is its dedication to delivering solutions that are directly involved in enabling the Government to make a positive impact.

REI’s impact is evident in its results: in the nearly 30 years since REI was founded, it has built the infrastructure for NASA to fund small businesses and next generation technology supporting the U.S. mission in space. With REI’s grants management solutions, REI has enabled timely and accurate delivery of HHS funding to hundreds of medical clinics across the nation to improve the health and well-being of millions of underserved citizens. For the victims of both manmade and natural disasters, REI has built the backbone of FEMA’s grants systems, which gets aid into the hands of those who need it most, when they need it most. Finally, REI has created numerous public-facing websites that expose Government spending and performance data to make the Government more transparent and more accountable.

Achieving Excellence Together

At the heart of REI is its workforce of passionate individuals who thrive on exceeding their customers’ expectations and knowing that their work makes a difference. REI cultivates its unique company community—known as the REI Family—by encouraging its employees’ development on multiple levels. REI has a full-time Personal and Professional Development Coach who is available to all employees in need of guidance, at work or otherwise. In addition, the development coach runs an eight-week mentorship and leadership-building coursecalled SOAR. REI fosters talent furthermore by providing its employees with guaranteed training hours per year and hosts in-house trainings weekly. By providing various avenues for employee growth, REI fosters employees’ commitment to delivering meaningful solutions as well as commitment to themselves.

REI for the Future

Over the past several years, REI has continued to grow its solutions so that they can support a wider variety of agencies and missions. One of REI’s most notable inventions is GovGrants®, a cloud-based grants management solution built on the Salesforce platform. GovGrants has expanded REI’s reach by providing both large and small grant making enterprises—notably state and local governments—with a cost-efficient and easily-configurable grants management product.Using GovGrants, grant-making and grant-receiving agencies have seen grant performance in a matter of months rather than years. Customers who have seen improved workflows and higher ROI on their grants include the Louisiana Community and Technical College System, the City of San Diego’s Economic Development Department, and the DC Department of Health. REI looks forward to expanding the implementation of GovGrantsto assist agencies in achieving mission success across the globe.

As the Government continues to pursue modern technologies to improve their ability to provide valuable services for its citizens, REI looks forward to supporting its existing and new customers in producing results that matter.

Meet the Forerunner

Shyam Salona is the Co-founder and current CEO of REI Systems. He spends his days focused on building a culture of empowered teams and promoting the agility of the company. Salona received an M.S. in operations research at St. Stephen’s College in Delhi, India in 1977. He then earned a diploma in computer science at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi in 1978. In 1980, he moved to the U.S. to earn his M.S. in computer science from the Center for Advanced Computer Studies at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (Lafayette) in 1982. After completing his education, he worked as a consultant, manager, and an engineer, with a focus each time on databases. It was after his job as a principal engineer that Salona met Veer Bhartiya, with whom he partnered to start REI Systems.

Starting with Shyam’s background in databases, REI’s expanded list of specialties today include agile software development, application modernization for cloud- and platform-based solutions, grants management, and data analytics and visualization. One of Shyam’s and REI’s proudest accomplishments is that REI continues to deliver solutions to NASA, the company’s first customer nearly 30 years ago. Salona has helped deliver multiple solutions to public sector customers. He is happiest when providing support to Government agencies, their customers’ lives, and the lives of his employees.