Kash Badami — Founder, Bridgehead Advisory
Meet the Founder

I've been on both sides of the table.

I'm Kash Badami. I spent a decade inside federal health technology — first as Chief Architect of the National Health Information Network at HHS, where I designed the data exchange infrastructure connecting health systems across the country. Then eight years at MarkLogic, where I sold the database that powered Healthcare.gov.

In 2014, my team closed $80M in software and services to CMS — on a $10M quota. I've navigated GWACs, IDIQs, task orders, FedRAMP, ATOs, and the kind of multi-stakeholder politics that kill deals before they ever reach procurement. I didn't learn government sales from a playbook. I learned it by being inside the agencies and then selling back into them for a decade.

Today I help AI companies stop guessing and start winning federal deals — through Bridgehead Advisory.

Full career history on LinkedIn →
The Arc

From architecting national health systems to closing $80M to building AI companies from scratch.

1996 — 2008

Built the Technology

Co-founded iPlicity (acquired). Two CTO roles. Deep in databases, content management, and federal systems engineering at Versant, IceWEB, and Kapow/Kofax. Learned what technology actually does under pressure.

2008 — 2009

Went Inside Government

Chief Architect of the National Health Information Network at HHS. Designed the national data exchange infrastructure from inside the agency. Saw firsthand how government evaluates, procures, and deploys technology.

2009 — 2017

Sold at Massive Scale

Eight years at MarkLogic. Rose from consultant to Director of Public Sector Healthcare. Closed $80M in one year including Healthcare.gov infrastructure. Sold into CMS, HHS, VA, DoD. Built the playbook.

2017 — Now

Built Companies with AI

AWS (Wickr Healthcare), Confluent, Code Dx. Founded ERT Credit ($10M ARR in 12 months), LowMedBill, PayStreet. Now building production AI systems on Claude API and n8n daily.

The Reality

Your AI works. Your commercial pipeline is growing. But government is a completely different machine — and most AI companies break against it.

I've watched brilliant teams with world-class models lose to mediocre competitors who simply understood how the machine works. Here's where AI companies get stuck:

Procurement

You don't speak their language

Federal procurement isn't a sales cycle. It's a compliance gauntlet. GWACs, IDIQs, BPAs, task orders, GSA Schedules — each has different rules, different timelines, and different decision-makers. One wrong vehicle choice and your deal dies before it starts.

FedRAMP & ATOs

You're not authorized to operate

Government can't buy your AI if it isn't authorized. FedRAMP takes 12-18 months and costs seven figures if you do it wrong. Agency-level ATOs are faster but require knowing which agencies will accept what. Most AI companies don't even know where to start.

Partners

You're trying to go direct

The biggest federal deals don't go to the technology vendor. They go through Systems Integrators — Booz Allen, Deloitte, Leidos, SAIC — who hold the prime contracts. If you don't have an SI strategy, you're invisible to 80% of government spend.

Decision Makers

You're pitching the wrong people

The CTO doesn't buy. The program manager has the budget but needs the CIO's sign-off. The contracting officer has veto power. And FITARA means every tech purchase gets reviewed at the top. Miss one stakeholder and the deal stalls for a year.

Trust

You haven't earned the right

Government buyers have been burned by vendors who overpromised and disappeared. AI makes them even more cautious. They don't buy technology — they buy confidence in outcomes. Building that trust takes time, specificity, and a track record you can't fake.

Timing

You don't understand the clock

Federal budget cycles, continuing resolutions, fiscal year-end spending surges, election transitions — each one changes what's possible and when. A deal that's perfectly positioned in Q3 can evaporate in Q4 if you don't understand the rhythm.

The Advantage

I don't advise from the outside.

Most government sales consultants are former contracting officers or retired agency officials. They know policy. They don't know how to close a $27M software deal through a multi-stakeholder evaluation committee while coordinating with three Systems Integrators and two cloud partners.

I've done that. Repeatedly. At MarkLogic, I didn't just sell to CMS — I built the entire public sector healthcare business into the company's largest line of revenue. I navigated the same procurement vehicles, FedRAMP-equivalent authorizations, and SI partnerships that your AI company needs to figure out right now.

And because I've also built AI companies from the ground up — shipping production systems on Claude API, building automation workflows, scaling a company to $10M ARR in a year — I understand your technology well enough to translate it into what government buyers actually need to hear.

That intersection — builder, seller, insider — doesn't exist anywhere else in the market.

$80M
Federal sales in one year CMS, HHS, VA, DoD — on a $10M quota. 800% attainment.
$27M
Largest single deal The data infrastructure behind Healthcare.gov. Multi-year, multi-stakeholder.
8 yrs
Inside the accounts CMS, HHS, VA, DoD. Deep institutional relationships at every level.
$10M
ARR from zero in 12 months Built and scaled ERT Credit. Not theory — execution.
HHS
Chief Architect, NHIN Inside the agency, designing national health data infrastructure.
How I Work

Every engagement starts with a strategy call. No pitch decks. No generic frameworks. I learn your technology, your current pipeline, and where you're stuck — and I tell you exactly what it will take to win.

Ready to stop guessing
about government?

One conversation. I'll tell you exactly where you stand and what it takes to win your first federal deal.

Book a Strategy Call

Typically responds within 24 hours