Margarita Howard runs HX5 as its sole owner, CEO and president, leading a service-disabled veteran and women-owned defense contractor through one of the tightest STEM labor markets in recent memory. The Florida-based company supports NASA and Department of Defense missions across 34 states and 90 government sites. Howard says leading a company with that ownership status carries added visibility, since federal agencies actively track participation from women-owned and veteran-owned contractors on major programs.
With more than 1,000 employees, HX5 sits squarely inside a talent shortage that National Defense Magazine says affects 82% of defense industrial base companies searching for qualified STEM workers. Margarita Howard says the shortage forces contractors like hers to compete harder for a shrinking applicant pool nationwide. She says HX5 has responded by widening its outreach to universities and technical programs earlier in students’ academic careers, rather than waiting until graduation to begin recruiting.
Women in Leadership
Howard notes that much of HX5‘s management team is composed of women, many holding advanced degrees in their respective fields. She sees that leadership makeup as part of what distinguishes the company from competitors chasing the same limited group of cleared, technically trained candidates each year.
Most HX5 employees hold college degrees, reinforcing the company’s emphasis on formal technical training alongside hands-on federal experience. Margarita Howard says she looks specifically for candidates who have supported NASA or Department of Defense programs before joining the company in any capacity.
A Long Track Record
HX5 celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2024, and Howard points to employees who have stayed 15 years or longer as proof that the company’s mission-driven culture holds appeal even as younger workers weigh new employers more critically than generations before them ever did.
Howard says HX5’s status as a women-owned, service-disabled veteran-owned business also shapes how it recruits, giving the company a distinct identity in a defense sector still dominated by larger, less specialized firms competing for the same shrinking supply of cleared STEM professionals. Read this article for more information.
Find more information about Howard on https://www.f6s.com/member/margarita-howard
