Experience and Previous Work

Overview

My experience includes skills I acquired during a career spanning a variety of industries and roles in major US metropolitan areas and those in which I collaborated with global partners, and I look forward to applying these fundamentals towards a rewarding career in computer engineering. In addition to my formal education in computer engineering, my most notable qualities are my people-first leadership and communication styles, results-driven management ethos with a focus on developing high-performing people and efficient systems, and a drive for continuous learning and innovation – applying all of these with an adherence to the highest standards of legal compliance, ethics, and my personal core values – with the ultimate goal of improving the world around me.

My specific areas of interest in engineering are projects involving machine learning and artificial intelligence in the development of automation and edge computing solutions and – being a US Army Veteran – national defense solutions that give the US an advantage over potential threats and increase the effectiveness of US servicemembers and reduce the probability of them incurring injuries or losing their lives.

Design and Development

Brown Institute

I began my career by earning an Associate of Applied Science degree in Visual Communications from the former Brown Institute in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis / St. Paul) of Minnesota. This degree instilled me with the technical skills of graphic design and web development, which I used to build this website and other impactful projects and presentations. This experience translates into engineering in the form of the ability to create intuitive device interfaces, facilitating ease-of-use and delivering clear and impactful feedback and results.

Leadership and Management

Kinko's / FedEx Office

While pursuing my degree, I worked nights at my local Kinko’s print shop, and I accepted a management position there upon graduation. Within a few years, FedEx acquired the company, integrating shipping services and rebranding the company as FedEx Office. During my time here, I worked in several major US markets, including my final position as the Senior Center Manager of one of the top-performing centers in the entire country, located in Los Angeles, CA.

FedEx Office invested me with world-class leadership and management experience, both of which I continue to refine and apply in my professional roles. My leadership philosophy begins with putting my people first, investing in their development, and fostering a culture of individual recognition and team pride. My management style centers around communication, collaboration, providing my team with the resources, training, and systems they need to succeed in achieving organizational goals – with safety, compliance, and the highest ethical standards considered.

Cultural Intelligence, Sales, Marketing, and Planning

U.S. Army Psychological Operations (PSYOP)

During my time at FedEx Office, I enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve as a Psychological Operations (PSYOP) Soldier to serve my country, liberate innocent people from oppression, and segue into another career field as the need for printed products declined due to the increasing utility of the internet. The culmination of my PSYOP career was my Active Duty deployment, serving in The War in Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF).

In addition to my contributions to the safety, security, and quality of life improvements for the Afghan people during my deployment, my PSYOP experience invested me with valuable communications and intelligence skills that translated well into private sector sales and marketing skills. I use these skills to foster relationships, understand personal and professional challenges and needs, and develop campaigns to drive change within organizations – backed by planning, milestones, and analytics. I leveraged this experience to transition from the declining print industry to the growing industry of digital marketing.

Digital Architecture, Data Science, and Technical Consulting

The Search Agency

My first digital marketing role was a Technical Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialist role that led to an Account Manager role at The Search Agency (later acquired by ForwardPMX Group). During my time there, I collaborated with clients and stakeholders across multiple departments, dealt with the complexity of website architecture, and the implemented website optimization and compliance initiatives – including compliance with Google Search ranking algorithms.

Searchmetrics

My passion for technical optimization and data-driven management led me to accept a role at Silicon Valley office of the enterprise-level SEO company, Searchmetrics, based in Berlin, Germany (later acquired by Conductor). Working at Searchmetrics allowed me to collaborate with global clients – sometimes requiring me to fall back on my PSYOP experience of working with professional translators – and gave me access to the largest database of Google ranking data – outside of Google itself – and access to a brilliant team of engineers with the ability to map the insights from these global audiences and vast collection of search data, via machine learning, into actionable reporting and insights for global companies.

My time at Searchmetrics allowed me to develop global strategies and spearhead projects that required me to lead departments with different disciplines, dispersed throughout the world. I also gained the experience of working with software engineers to expand the capabilities of our SaaS platform and create custom reporting for my clients. In addition to working with clients and my product and development teams, I worked as an evangelist for our services, speaking at conferences and conducting webinars to promote our services and attract new clients.

MarketMuse

After my time at Searchmetrics, I transitioned to a role at the Content Marketing SaaS company, MarketMuse, in Boston Massachusetts, working remotely from Los Angeles. My role involved developing and leading a team of content strategists to support our top-tier enterprise clients within content planning and development, and providing technical SEO support, as needed – in addition to collaborating with clients and their partners. My team’s success relied upon MarketMuse’s industry-leading machine learning software, focused on creating comprehensive content topic models, built upon data-driven insights about the intent of users searching online.

At that time, MarketMuse was in its startup phase, allowing me a lot of freedom to work directly with the product and engineering teams to provide insights into our clients’ needs and work with these teams to create impactful deliverables to improve their content, increase their search rankings, and outperform their competitors. I also worked as a sales engineer to perform SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analyses for potential clients and provide them with strategies to support these insights and grow their business.

Unfortunately, MarketMuse decided upon an organizational shift to focus on their platform instead of their consulting and I was laid off shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic. Being unable to find gainful employment, I decided to exercise the educational benefits I acquired from my time in the Army and pursue a new career.

Computer Engineering

After some self-reflection and reading the seminal career planning workbook What Color is Your Parachute?, I chose the field of computer engineering as the most suitable and rewarding option for a new career, reinforced by the creative and technical experience I received from my previous experience.

Los Angeles Mission College

I started this journey at Los Angeles Mission College (LAMC) in Sylmar, CA, where I earned my Associate in Science for Transfer (AS-T) degree in Mathematics. In addition to building a strong foundation of math, science, programming, and general knowledge to support my upper division courses, I enjoyed the opportunity to work with a younger generation of future STEM professionals and learn how to collaborate with my peers in an effective manner.

University of California Irvine

After completing my degree from LACCD, I relocated to Orange County, California, and accepted an offer to finish my education by earning my Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering at the University of California Irvine (UCI) Henry Samueli School of Engineering – which I anticipate completing by the Summer of 2026. The areas of study I enjoy the most, so far, are digital logic and software engineering. I plan to take future courses that build upon my current understanding of machine learning and artificial intelligence.

Extracurricular Studies

In addition to my UCI curriculum, I immerse myself in independent study of industry concepts and apply this knowledge by building my own projects. I also increase my knowledge by reading books about the industry trends and potential career opportunities, like Chip War by Chris Miller and The Kill Chain by Christian Brose – both of which are especially appealing due to my military experience and interests in national defense and politics.

Charity and Non-Profit Affiliations

U.S. Military Veteran Community

I’m a proud member of both American Legion Post 43 and Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 3834, where I foster relationships with my fellow Combat Veterans and provide support however I can. I had the honor of representing the Veteran community when I received the invitation to speak at a LACCD event for Veterans Day, and when my former Congressional Representative Tony Cárdenas selected me to assist him in the selection of high school graduates applying to military academies by serving in a panel of Veterans to interview these upstanding students and future military leaders.

Freemasonry

2025 marks my 20th year in Freemasonry. Currently I’m member of the Masons of California and the Scottish Rite Valley of Pasadena. During my time in this organization, I served eight years as a Lodge Officer, actively involvement in the management of operations in my local Lodge. Outside of formal leadership roles, I continue contributing to Lodge initiatives and charities – including youth programs focusing on literacy and helping children with learning disabilities – and providing mentorship for new Brothers in the fraternity.

Next Steps

My next career goal is to find an internship over the summer of 2025 and transition into a full-time computer engineering career by the summer of 2026. I look forward to leveraging my experience to collaborate with talented engineers in the development of innovative technology that improves the lives of others. As of writing this, my main areas of interest are automation, edge computing, and other areas of computer engineering with an emphasis on machine learning and artificial intelligence – with a particular interest in national defense.