Ryan Howard
Abingdon,MD
Summary
Accomplished Systems Engineer with expertise from Leidos, driving DevSecOps automation and cloud modernization. Proven track record in enhancing compliance workflows and reducing provisioning times by 65%. Skilled in Terraform and team mentorship, fostering collaboration and innovation in high-security environments. Committed to delivering scalable, secure solutions that meet stringent regulatory standards.
Overview
18
18
years of professional experience
Work History
Systems Engineer Expert
Leidos
2023.07 - Current
- Lead DevSecOps automation and modernization across high-security federal cloud systems, improving deployment and compliance workflows supporting 10,000+ users with 99.95% uptime SLA
- Automate RMF validation by embedding NIST 800-53 controls, IAM policies, and encryption key management into CI/CD pipelines, reducing authorization cycles by 20% with patterns applicable to SOC II and ISO 27001 environments
- Developed reusable Terraform and Helm modules, reducing environment drift and cutting setup times across enterprise by 40%
- Built and mentored 12-person DevSecOps team, establishing training programs and streamlining Agile sprint cycles to enhance throughput by 25%
- Collaborated with compliance teams to automate evidence collection, expediting ATO renewals across programs
- Embed SonarQube and Snyk scanning into all development stages to detect issues early and strengthen production reliability
- Integrate GitOps workflows with Jenkins and Git to ensure secure, consistent releases and faster delivery
Systems Expert
General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT)
2021.11 - 2023.07
- Designed and delivered hybrid AWS-Azure architectures for classified and commercial workloads, enhancing scalability and reducing infrastructure costs by 30%
- Standardize Kubernetes and Helm deployments with automated image scanning and runtime policies, reducing provisioning time by 50%
- Led threat-modeling workshops, integrating vulnerability scanning and incident-response playbooks into DevSecOps pipelines to bolster production resilience
Chief Architect
ManTech International
2020.05 - 2021.11
- Architect secure cloud environments for 50,000+ users, ensuring full compliance with regulatory standards across government and enterprise environments in AWS GovCloud and Azure
- Advised executive leadership on migration roadmaps and DevSecOps adoption for high-stakes programs exceeding $10M
- Achieved $200K+ in annual savings by developing and implementing reusable DevSecOps modules through automation and cloud optimization strategies across sectors
- Direct modernization of DevSecOps pipelines across six defense programs, reducing provisioning times by 65%
- Replace legacy CI/CD systems with GitOps-based frameworks that enhance resilience and rollback control
- Created Grafana dashboards integrated with Jira and AWS monitoring to visualize MTTR, deployment lead time, and change-failure rates
Lead Software Systems Architect
Booz Allen Hamilton
2011.10 - 2020.05
- Spearhead DevOps transformation for multiple federal clients, introducing Agile workflows and automation that enhance delivery speed and reliability
- Design and support AWS GovCloud infrastructure compliant with NIST 800-53 and FedRAMP High, expediting ATO approvals
- Establish infrastructure as Code standards and configuration management practices adopted organization-wide, cutting manual provisioning by 70%
- Migrated legacy monoliths to microservices using Docker and Kubernetes, enhancing scalability and fault tolerance
- Establish infrastructure as Code standards and configuration management practices adopted organization-wide, cutting manual provisioning by 70%
- Developed Python and PowerShell automation scripts for provisioning, patching, and compliance validation, minimizing manual intervention across environments
- Mentor engineers into DevOps leadership and architecture roles
Systems Engineer III
Lockheed Martin
2008.06 - 2011.10
- Pioneered automation and DevOps practices within secure DoD environments before industry-wide adoption, establishing patterns now standard across federal and commercial sectors
- Develop Python and PowerShell scripts with early configuration tools to automate provisioning, deployments, patch compliance, and configuration-drift detection, reducing manual setup time by 40%
- Integrate Nagios monitoring with custom scripts to reduce Mean Time to Recovery by 30%
- Maintained compliance with NIST 800-53 and RMF standards, facilitating seamless ATO renewals
- Collaborated with cross-functional teams to introduce early CI/CD concepts, contributing to foundational DevOps practices
Education
Master of Science - Computer Science
Johns Hopkins University
Laurel, MD01.2023
Dual Bachelor of Science - Computer Information Systems, Business Administration
Towson University
01.2008
Skills
- Cloud Platforms
- Container Orchestration
- Infrastructure as Code
- Security & Compliance
- Observability
- CI/CD & Automation
- Policy & Governance
- Storage & Data Protection
- AWS
- Azure
- EC2
- EKS
- AKS
- S3
- EBS
- FSx
- CloudWatch
- Kubernetes
- Docker
- ArgoCD
- Flux
- Helm
- Terraform
- Terragrunt
- Ansible
- CloudFormation
- FedRAMP High
- NIST 800-53
- RMF
- STIG
- SOC 2
- OPA
- Kyverno
- Snyk
- SonarQube
- Prometheus
- Grafana
- ELK Stack
- Datadog
- New Relic
- Nagios
- Jenkins
- GitOps
- Git
- GitHub
- GitLab
- CI/CD Pipeline Design
- IAM Policies
- Cloud Governance Frameworks
- NetApp
- Pure Storage
- Commvault
- Rubrik
- AWS Backup
Education Credentials
- Master of Science in Computer Science, Johns Hopkins University, 2023
- Dual Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems / Business Administration, Towson University, 2008
Technical Skillsets
AWS, Azure, EC2, EKS, AKS, S3, EBS, FSx, CloudWatch, Kubernetes (EKS, AKS), Docker, ArgoCD, Flux, Helm, Terraform (Reusable Modules), Terragrunt, Ansible, CloudFormation, FedRAMP High, NIST 800-53, RMF, STIG, SOC 2, OPA, Kyverno, Snyk, SonarQube, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK Stack, CloudWatch, Datadog, New Relic, Nagios, Jenkins, GitOps, Git, GitHub, GitLab, CI/CD Pipeline Design, OPA (Open Policy Agent), Kyverno, IAM Policies, Cloud Governance Frameworks, NetApp, Pure Storage, Commvault, Rubrik, AWS Backup
Timeline
Systems Engineer Expert
Leidos
2023.07 - Current
Systems Expert
General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT)
2021.11 - 2023.07
Chief Architect
ManTech International
2020.05 - 2021.11
Lead Software Systems Architect
Booz Allen Hamilton
2011.10 - 2020.05
Systems Engineer III
Lockheed Martin
2008.06 - 2011.10
Master of Science - Computer Science
Johns Hopkins University
Dual Bachelor of Science - Computer Information Systems, Business Administration
Towson University