STATE OF ILLINOIS SELECTS AHEAD TO ACCELERATE IT MODERNIZATION, INCREASE EFFICIENCY
CHICAGO – June 23, 2025 – AHEAD, a leading provider of cloud solutions and a Dell Technologies Titanium Black Partner, announced that it has been awarded a Dell Server and Storage products and services Joint Purchase Master Contract (JPMC) with the State of Illinois. The JPMC Dell Server and Storage Contract is available to all government units and qualified not-for-profit entities.
Through this new partnership, AHEAD will deliver modern infrastructure, cloud and cybersecurity services to Illinois state agencies, municipalities and qualified not-for-profit entities, enabling cost reduction, performance enhancement and strengthened cybersecurity postures.
AHEAD is already collaborating with the Illinois Housing Development Authority to drive cost efficiency, improve performance and increase availability in their core storage infrastructure.
Founded and headquartered in Illinois, AHEAD employs more than 500 people across the Chicagoland area.
“Our partnership with the State of Illinois will drive impact through technology and strengthen public trust through improved service delivery and long-term operational efficiency,” said Sean Dailey, senior client director at AHEAD. “Our Illinois-based team is honored to support the state in advancing its technology vision to better serve our communities.”
As one of Dell Technologies’ leading global partners for data center and cloud modernization, AHEAD offers extensive expertise across the entire Dell ecosystem, including storage, compute and cyber recovery. From creating hypervisor-agnostic environments to facilitating cloud-native adoption, AHEAD specializes in seamless, scalable infrastructure transformation with minimal disruption. This proven expertise and strategic execution led Dell Technologies to recognize AHEAD as its 2025 North America Server Partner of the Year.
AHEAD’s public sector capabilities combine Dell’s robust infrastructure with AHEAD’s delivery expertise. These Dell-powered public sector solutions encompass:
- Cloud Optimization – Strategic workload placement and storage cost efficiencies across hybrid environments.
- Infrastructure Services – Proven success in complex deployments, including large-scale rack integrations across global sites.
- Cyber Recovery & Data Protection – Leveraging Dell PowerProtect for secure, immutable backups, threat detection and support for deploying Isolated Recovery Environments.
- AI & Edge – Expertise within Dell’s PowerEdge AI infrastructure inclusive of NativeEdge orchestration and Dell’s AI Factory from core to edge.
- Unstructured Data Management – Dell PowerScale for data governance, tiering and analytics readiness.
AHEAD also offers expertise in optimizing and expanding public sector digital transformation, including:
- Custom Infrastructure – End-to-end design and integration of turnkey, pre-configured solutions accelerate time to value.
- Day Two Operations & Support – Comprehensive lifecycle services from deployment to ongoing management and optimization, including managed services.
Non-cloud purchases will remain available for the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology via the existing Contract P-5839.
Learn more about AHEAD’s public sector capabilities at ahead.com/public-sector/.
About AHEAD
We engineer integrated platforms, digital backbones that power the most successful organizations in the world. Our consultative approach, technical expertise and innovative solutions combine to accelerate the impact of technology in every client we serve.