GDT Fortifies Leadership to Conquer Booming AI Infrastructure Market

DALLAS, TX – January 21, 2026 – Global IT solutions provider GDT has made two significant additions to its executive team, signaling a strategic pivot to capitalize on the explosive growth in AI-ready infrastructure and cybersecurity. The company announced the appointment of Suzanne Becker Gallagher as its first-ever Chief Strategy Officer and Fachtna Keohane as its new Chief Financial Officer.

These hires are more than a routine C-suite shuffle; they represent a calculated move by the H.I.G. Capital-backed firm to impose greater strategic and financial discipline as it navigates a period of profound technological transformation. The appointments reflect GDT's focus on helping clients manage complex IT modernization in an era where artificial intelligence and security are paramount.

"GDT has built a resilient business by earning customer trust, cultivating strong partnerships, and delivering meaningful value," said Shawn O'Grady, Chair and CEO of GDT. "Suzanne and Fachtna bring the leadership and expertise to help us scale with discipline and purpose and position GDT for sustained growth."

The New Architects of Growth

The creation of the Chief Strategy Officer role, filled by Suzanne Becker Gallagher, is particularly noteworthy. It underscores a shift towards a more deliberate, long-term approach to market positioning and portfolio development. Gallagher is tasked with steering GDT's enterprise infrastructure strategy and identifying key growth initiatives. Her extensive background makes her uniquely suited for the challenge. Before joining GDT, she was the Senior Vice President of Solutions at Insight North America, a Fortune 500 solutions integrator, where she led strategy, marketing, and partnerships. Her career also includes leadership roles at Datalink, where she managed rebranding and channel programs, and consulting work focused on strategic planning and M&A.

"GDT has a 30-year history of innovation and execution excellence, and we bring that experience into a period of extraordinary opportunity," Gallagher stated. "My focus is on sharpening alignment across the company and scaling our business by investing in the right capabilities and partnerships."

Joining her is Fachtna Keohane as Chief Financial Officer. Keohane brings a crucial skill set honed over a decade in senior financial roles at high-growth and private equity-backed organizations. His appointment is a clear signal of GDT's intent to enforce financial rigor and data-driven decision-making—hallmarks of a mature, PE-influenced growth strategy. His reputation for building scalable finance functions and strengthening controls is vital for a company with over $1 billion in annual revenue looking to expand its footprint.

"What stands out about GDT is the strength of the business and the discipline behind how it operates," said Keohane. "My focus is on ensuring financial rigor, scalability, and insight-led decision-making to support sustainable growth and long-term value creation."

The Private Equity Playbook in Action

These executive appointments are a classic move from the private equity playbook. In early 2022, an affiliate of H.I.G. Capital, a global investment firm with billions under management, completed a growth investment in GDT. The stated goal was to shepherd the company into a "new chapter of growth." The hiring of Gallagher and Keohane nearly four years later appears to be the execution of that plan.

Bringing in a CSO is a direct move to refine the company's market strategy, identify lucrative M&A opportunities, and optimize its product and service portfolio for maximum return. Simultaneously, installing a CFO with deep experience in PE-backed environments ensures that this growth is not just rapid, but also disciplined, measurable, and profitable. Keohane's role will be critical in providing the robust financial reporting and controls that private equity owners demand to track performance and prepare for an eventual, profitable exit.

This strategic reinforcement comes as GDT aims to solidify its position as a key partner for enterprises and service providers navigating complex digital transformations. The company’s ability to deliver secure, carrier-grade infrastructure is becoming more critical as businesses re-architect their environments for AI and hybrid cloud realities.

Chasing a Multi-Billion Dollar Market

GDT's leadership enhancement is timed to perfection. The company is positioning itself to capture a significant share of the booming AI infrastructure and cybersecurity markets. Market research forecasts paint a picture of exponential growth. The global AI infrastructure market, valued at just over $47 billion in 2024, is projected by some analysts to skyrocket to over $470 billion by 2033, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 30%. Spending on the compute and storage hardware needed for AI deployments has already surged dramatically.

Simultaneously, the global cybersecurity digital transformation market is also expanding at a breakneck pace, with a projected CAGR of over 29% through 2030. As businesses integrate AI into their core operations, the need for secure, resilient, and scalable infrastructure has never been greater. GDT’s emphasis on providing "AI-ready" solutions is a direct response to this demand, moving beyond generic IT services to offer the specialized infrastructure required to power next-generation applications.

A Competitive Arms Race for Talent

GDT is not the only major IT solutions provider retooling its leadership for this new era. The move mirrors a broader industry trend where top players, many also backed by private equity, are engaged in a strategic arms race for executive talent.

For instance, competitor Trace3, backed by Apollo Funds, appointed a new CEO in late 2025 to scale its impact in AI and cybersecurity. ConvergeOne, another PE-backed rival, has also made a series of C-suite changes over the past year, including promoting a Chief Marketing Officer and a Chief Transformation Officer to drive strategic initiatives. This industry-wide pattern highlights the intense competition to secure leadership capable of navigating the high-stakes, high-growth environment.

By adding Gallagher and Keohane, GDT is not just filling seats but acquiring the specific strategic and financial acumen needed to outmaneuver competitors. The combined expertise of a forward-looking strategist and a fiscally disciplined financial chief strengthens GDT's ability to help customers modernize, scale, and operate with confidence in an increasingly complex and opportunity-rich landscape.