The Warrior-Poet Technologist
I’ve spent a decade building mission-ready technology for the Department of Defense–first as a Marine, now as Director of Innovation. I don’t chase buzzwords. I operationalize innovation where failure isn’t an option.
At a Glance
Director of Innovation, Navaide
July 2024 – Present
8 Years Marine Corps
Cyber Network Operator | 7 startups before 28
Multi-Billion Dollar Programs
12+ Navy commands across Pacific & Atlantic
BBA Finance & Economics
University of Texas at San Antonio
Security+ | CISA | Shipley
Multiple DoD Security Clearances
I translate between technical possibility and mission necessity.
I’ve been the Marine waiting for data when systems failed. That memory shapes everything I build.
The Decision That Changed Everything
At 26, when most people are settling into careers, I did something that made no sense on paper.
I enlisted in the Marine Corps.
Not as an officer. As an enlisted Marine. Older than 95% of the recruits around me. I needed a medical waiver to even get in–six months of rejections before they said yes.
The essay I wrote to get that waiver still defines how I think about myself:
“A true warrior knows that the pen is mightier than the sword, but he sure as hell knows how to use the sword.”
While classmates relied on parental support, I had been working 60+ hours a week since 17–school full-time while supporting my mother and sister. That experience shaped my determination to serve.
With only 0.07% of the U.S. population serving as active or reserve Marines, this was the road I chose. Not the easy path. The necessary one.
Colombia, 2019
BALTOPS 2017: A Defining Moment
Aboard USS Arlington during the multinational naval exercise BALTOPS, I was the only Data Marine from my unit selected to deploy. When I arrived, I discovered I’d be running the Combat Operations Center communications alone–supporting over 1,250 Marines and Sailors with real-time logistics and intelligence data.
No backup. No margin for error. Just the mission and the skills to execute it.
That experience taught me something no classroom could: you don’t rise to the level of your hopes–you fall to the level of your preparation.
Baltic Sea, 2017
Washington D.C., 2020
Service Beyond Duty
The uniform comes off, but the service mindset doesn’t. At the 2020 DNC Holiday Party for Toys for Tots, I had the honor of supporting the Marine Corps Reserve’s flagship community program alongside then-Representative Ruben Gallego–himself a Marine veteran who served with Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines in Iraq.
Whether it’s supporting children through Toys for Tots or mentoring the next generation of technologists, service is a lifestyle, not a job description.
The Marine Corps doesn’t just train you. It transforms you. But here’s what surprised me: it didn’t change who I was. It gave me better tools to be who I already was.
I went in a warrior-poet. I came out a warrior-poet with eight years of operational experience, mission-critical systems expertise, and a resilience forged through conditions designed to break people.
Community Roots
I grew up in Houston, Texas, in a South Asian family with deep roots in the Ismaili Muslim community. Before the Marine Corps, before the government contracts, before any of the “impressive” stuff–I was teaching kids at the Religious Education Center and serving as a youth leader at San Antonio’s Ismaili Jamatkhana.
Those early experiences instilled something that shaped everything that came after: a service orientation that goes deeper than job descriptions.
That commitment continues today. In 2025, I created IPN Startup Resources–a collection of tools, templates, and guidance for founders in the Ismaili Professional Network, including SBIR/STTR resources and AI development workflows.
In the spirit of our 1,400-year tradition of seeking knowledge for the betterment of our communities, we share what we learn.
What Transformation Actually Costs
Here’s the part most professional bios leave out: growth hurts.
I’ve been divorced twice. The first marriage taught me that achievement isn’t intimacy. The second taught me that I was still learning the lesson.
I’ve done years of therapy. I’ve had to confront the gap between who I presented to the world and who I actually was. I’ve had to learn that vulnerability isn’t weakness–it’s the price of connection.
I share this not for sympathy, but because I believe authentic examples are rare. Most leadership content is sanitized success stories. If my path helps someone feel less alone in their own struggles, that’s worth the discomfort of honesty.
The 18-Year Evolution
Most people take personality assessments once and forget them. I’ve taken three across 18 years–creating a documented record of transformation.
| Year | Age | Assessment | Key Insight |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 18 | ENTP | 98th percentile drive, low structure tolerance, early burnout signs |
| 2023 | 34 | INFP-T | Deep transformation–values emerging, self-examination |
| 2025 | 36 | CliftonStrengths | Top 10: Executing 4 | Strategic Thinking 4 | Relationship Building 1 | Influencing 1 |
What Stayed Constant (18 Years)
- Intuitive pattern recognition
- Low structure tolerance (flexibility is non-negotiable)
- Voracious learning orientation
- Problem-solving as core identity
What Evolved
- Energy: Extraverted → Crisis → Integrated ambiversion
- Decisions: Pure logic → Values integration → Both/And synthesis
- Confidence: Achievement-based → Questioned → Values-grounded
The insight: I didn’t become a different person. I became more fully myself.
The CliftonStrengths assessment that shaped my 2025 transformation inspired something practical: PeakPath–a personal AI coaching project that helps me apply strengths-based development in my own life. When you understand your own patterns across 18 years of data, you start building tools to deepen that understanding.
The Warrior-Poet Identity
I describe myself as embodying the “warrior-poet” archetype. It’s not just branding—it’s how I understand myself.
The Warrior
Discipline. Execution. Mission-orientation. The ability to function under pressure and make decisions when the stakes are real.
The Poet
Philosophical reflection. Meaning-making. The belief that how we do things matters as much as what we achieve.
The Scholar
Continuous learning. Intellectual rigor. The humility to know that information only becomes knowledge through experience.
In Islamic history, this is the Ali ibn Abi Talib archetype: warrior, scholar, and everything in between. Trained in both force and philosophy. Educated mind with capable hands.
Six Core Values
Truth
Clarity, honesty, and intellectual integrity—even when uncomfortable. I’d rather face consequences for truth than rewards for performance.
Meritocracy
Success earned through competence and contribution, not connections or credentials. I build environments where contribution matters more than pedigree.
Creativity
The constant work of imagining new possibilities and bringing them to life. Innovation isn’t a department–it’s a disposition.
Mastery
Deep expertise over shallow competence. Understanding systems at their foundations. There’s always room for improvement–I’d rather get a kick in my ass than a pat on the back.
Service
Using capability to contribute to something larger than personal gain. Work should matter beyond the paycheck. Every system I build serves a mission larger than myself.
Authenticity
The courage to be genuine—to say what I mean and mean what I say. What you see is what you get.
The Professional Arc
Early Ventures
- Founded Daedalus Consulting Group
- CTO & Co-founder at Securranty (mobile hardware management)
- Financial services at Northwestern Mutual and AP Financial
Marine Corps
- Cyber Network Operator / Data Systems Administrator
- Served with 1/23, 2nd Civil Affairs Group, 4th Medical Battalion
- Only Data Marine from unit in BALTOPS 2017
- Single-handedly ran Command Operations Center aboard USS Arlington
Government Consulting
- VIP support for Pentagon officials (HQMC)
- Marine Corps SABRS testing and financial systems
- Navy ERP modernization across multiple commands
- Led data transformation for Navy FIAR initiatives
Director of Innovation at Navaide
- AI/ML integration and GPT initiatives
- FedRAMP-compliant DevOps frameworks
- Navy ERP transformation
- Building high-performance technology teams
The Credentials
BBA, Finance & Economics
University of Texas at San Antonio
CISA
Certified Information Systems Auditor
Shipley Certified
Business Winning Certification
CompTIA Security+
Cybersecurity Certification
Security Clearances
Multiple DoD Clearances (Active)
Languages
English, Hindi (Native) | Spanish (Elementary)
“In 2007, I was too scared and too lost to be present. In 2025, I’ve become someone who glides.”
The word that keeps coming back to me is integration. Not becoming someone different, but becoming more fully myself. The warrior, the poet, and the scholar aren’t roles I play–they’re aspects I’ve learned to bring together.
The journey isn’t over. I’m still learning, still growing, still figuring out how to carry the weight of experience without being crushed by it.
But for the first time in my life, I’m not running. I’m gliding.
Let’s Talk
I’m always open to meaningful conversations about technology, leadership, or the intersection of both.
“I build mission-ready technology that lasts.”
