Our Team
We bring different perspectives to the table, but we’re united by a commitment to purposeful work, thoughtful innovation, and building secure, practical solutions for what comes next.
William Cotton II
William Cotton is the Chief Executive Officer of Cottech and a cybersecurity leader with nearly a decade of experience helping organizations strengthen security, reduce technical risk, and modernize enterprise capabilities.
His expertise spans security engineering and architecture, Zero Trust, identity and access management, endpoint and cloud security, vulnerability management, compliance, and enterprise infrastructure. Throughout his career, William has worked across complex technology environments to translate security requirements into practical, scalable solutions that support both organizational resilience and business growth.
His leadership philosophy begins with a simple question: What is the organization trying to accomplish, and how can technology and security help it get there safely? That perspective reflects his broader, forward-thinking approach to leadership—anticipating emerging risks, identifying new opportunities, and building capabilities with the future of the organization in mind.
William is particularly interested in the convergence of cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, automation, and business operations. He believes emerging technologies should be approached with both curiosity and discipline—identifying where they can create meaningful value while developing the governance and security practices necessary to use them responsibly.
William earned his B.S. in Television and Film Production from St. John’s University and a master’s degree in Film and Art from Howard University. His creative and technical backgrounds give him a distinctive approach to problem-solving, combining analytical rigor with imagination, communication, and the ability to see challenges from multiple perspectives.
As CEO, William leads Cottech with a focus on forward-thinking strategy, technical excellence, continuous improvement, and responsible innovation. His goal is to build solutions that address today’s challenges while preparing clients for what comes next.
Chief Executive Officer
Ashley Cotton
Ashley Cotton is the Chief Operating Officer of Cottech, where she helps translate vision into strategy, structure, and sustainable execution. Her experience spans operations, logistics, organizational strategy, workforce development, learning design, and program management, giving her a people-centered and systems-minded approach to growth.
Throughout her career, Ashley has led complex operations, managed grants and programs in highly regulated public-sector environments, improved organizational processes, strengthened team performance, and helped organizations navigate change. Her experience includes developing and modernizing standard operating procedures, supporting new systems through Initial Operating Capability (IOC), and leading first-adopter initiatives for data exchange platforms—bringing together people, process, technology, and change management to support successful implementation.
At Cottech, she focuses on business operations, organizational development, strategic planning, workforce capability, client experience, and scalable growth. Her interests in learning design, artificial intelligence, technology, and the future of work shape a forward-thinking leadership approach grounded in a simple question: What will people and organizations need next, and how do we build for that now?
Ashley graduated cum laude from Howard University, earning a B.A. in Sociology, a minor in French, and an associate degree in Psychology. She is also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), and Certified Agile Leader 1 (CAL 1), with training in Essentials, Teams, and Organizations.
As COO, Ashley combines strategic perspective, practical execution, creativity, and a strong commitment to people to help Cottech grow thoughtfully and operate with purpose.
Diane Cotton
Diane M. Cotton is the Chief Financial Officer of Cottech, bringing decades of experience across financial management, healthcare administration, insurance, compliance, operations, and enterprise risk. She believes financial strength is about more than managing numbers—it is about creating the stability, visibility, and discipline organizations need to make confident decisions and grow responsibly.
At Cottech, Diane provides financial leadership across budgeting, forecasting, financial controls, risk management, and long-term planning. Her approach begins with a simple question: What does the organization need to understand today to make the right decision for tomorrow?
Throughout her career, Diane has led complex, multi-site organizations with budgets exceeding $25 million and workforces of more than 170 employees. As Financial Director of Premier Surgery Center, she held executive responsibility for the finance function and, through process improvement and system standardization, reduced accounts receivable days from 110 to 39.
Diane also brings 38 years of insurance experience across Life & Health and Property & Casualty lines, along with MDRT and LUTC designations, giving her a broad perspective on risk, liability, employee benefits, compliance, and organizational resilience.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Management and a Project Management Certification from Cornell University.
As CFO, Diane brings financial stewardship, operational insight, thoughtful risk management, and a steady long-term perspective to Cottech’s growth—helping create the foundation from which the company can pursue opportunity with confidence.
Marcus Cotton
Marcus B. Cotton is the Chief Information Officer of Cottech, where he leads enterprise technology strategy and helps shape secure, scalable solutions across complex IT environments.
His experience spans digital modernization, enterprise architecture, cybersecurity, telecommunications, cloud adoption, systems integration, and program delivery. Marcus approaches technology with a forward-looking question: What does the organization need its technology to make possible—not only today, but next?
Throughout his career, Marcus has led high-visibility initiatives supporting federal agencies including NASA, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. His work has included major modernization efforts within highly regulated environments, including leadership on NASA’s $2.5 billion AEGIS program and the Mission Next Generation Voice initiative. In 2024, he was named NASA IT Ambassador of the Year.
At Cottech, Marcus focuses on enterprise architecture, technology modernization, cloud strategy, secure systems integration, telecommunications, and IT governance. His leadership emphasizes disciplined execution, operational efficiency, and innovation that delivers measurable mission and business value.
Marcus is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and holds ITIL 4 Foundation, CompTIA CASP+ CE, Security+, and CompTIA A+ certifications. He earned a B.A. in Communications and an M.S. in Business Management and Administration from Goucher College.