January 15, 2025 – AMERICAN SYSTEMS, a leading provider of mission essential and information engineering services to federal customers and one of the top 100 employee-owned companies in the U.S., is marking the 50th anniversary of its founding this year. The company plans to celebrate the occasion with a company-wide hybrid celebration on Wednesday, March 5, in honor of company founder H. Thomas "Tom" Curran’s birthday. Curran, who passed away in 2014, founded AMERICAN SYSTEMS (formerly American Communications Corporation) in 1975 with a focus on providing technicians to telecommunications firms. In 1976, Curran joined forces with Forrest “Woody” Ramsey, and the company's initial focus was expanded to include systems engineering for U.S. submarines.
Today, AMERICAN SYSTEMS, under the leadership of President and CEO John Steckel, is a 100% employee-owned leading provider of mission essential and information engineering services to federal customers in support of national priorities and has grown to include approximately 1,600 employee-owners.
From its early years supporting the U.S. Navy, the company has expanded its strategic business areas to include virtually every federal agency in the areas of Defense, Intelligence, Federal Law Enforcement, U.S. Outreach, and Healthcare. The company now supports several hundred programs globally, with a diverse workforce at 30 locations in the U.S. and overseas.
“For a half century, AMERICAN SYSTEMS has focused on delivering services and solutions that exceed our customers’ expectations in a cost-efficient manner while building a culture of employee ownership that rewards accountability and promotes growth in our workforce,” said John Steckel, President and CEO. “As we move forward, we expect to build on that legacy with our customers and employees. And build on fifty years strong.”
Later this year, AMERICAN SYSTEMS will celebrate another important milestone. In 1990, AMERICAN SYSTEMS established an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). AMERICAN SYSTEMS is now one of the largest 100% employee-owned ESOP companies in the U.S. and will be celebrating its 35th anniversary as an employee-owned company during National Employee Ownership Month in October of this year.
Twice named a Government Contractor of the year, AMERICAN SYSTEMS is recognized as an employer of choice and a top veteran-friendly company and has earned numerous accolades that validate this. The company has been named a Top Workplace USA by Energage for the past four years, with similar regional honors throughout the country. Our veteran-related honors are all-encompassing, from the prestigious HIRE Vets Gold Medallion from the Department of Labor to numerous top honors from Military publications.
