Neil C. — CEO

Systems that are too hard to change are holding you back. I help you modernize without breaking what works. Every organization has systems they can't afford to lose but also can't afford to keep as they are. I help you modernize by combining the latest proven technology with the enterprise value you worked so hard to create so you maximize the value of your investment. I led architecture and engineering modernization on Online Passport Renewal and helped reduce processing time from months to days with 97% customer satisfaction and 80% increased trust in government. I also helped modernize Recreation.gov into a microservices architecture written in Go and a frontend written in React that tripled park visits and generated massive revenue increases. I optimized HealthCare.gov's performance by migrating it from Java to Scala on AWS. These weren't slide decks. They were production systems serving millions. I deliver modernization through cloud native engineering: containerized event-driven microservices in Java/Kotlin with Spring Boot, Go APIs, React/TypeScript frontends, and AI and analytics platforms on Databricks. I build teams that ship by measuring what matters (DORA and SPACE metrics), slicing work vertically, and establishing clear technical guardrails from automated delivery to Zero Trust. Right now I'm focused on mature AI that actually works and values your privacy and safety: context engineering with Spring AI, Embabel, and knowledge layers to help organizations use their own legacy data and systems to derive insights you never thought possible. I'm the president of Vidya LLC. Here on LinkedIn I write about IT modernization, software architecture, software engineering, mature AI, agile delivery, and what actually works vs. what vendors sell you. I'm always open to partnerships on legacy modernization, cloud native architecture, and AI integration. If your organization is sitting on systems that need to evolve, let's talk.

Stackforce AI infers this person is a cloud-native software architect specializing in government and healthcare modernization.

Experience: 20 yrs 3 mos

Skills

Software Architecture
Artificial Intelligence (ai)

Career Highlights

Reduced passport renewal processing time from months to days.
Tripled park visits through microservices architecture modernization.
Expert in cloud-native engineering and AI integration.

Work Experience

Vidya

President (15 yrs 9 mos)

Sotera Defense Solutions, Inc.

Senior Software Engineer (4 yrs 9 mos)

THE CENTECH GROUP, Inc.

Senior Software Engineer and Project Manager (2 yrs 9 mos)

Fairfax County Public Schools

Instructor (6 yrs 5 mos)

Education

MS at The George Washington University School of Business

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) at University of Maryland

B.S./B.A. at University of Pittsburgh

Neil C.

CEO

United States20 yrs 3 mos experience

Most Likely To SwitchAI Enabled

Key Highlights

Reduced passport renewal processing time from months to days.
Tripled park visits through microservices architecture modernization.
Expert in cloud-native engineering and AI integration.

Stackforce AI infers this person is a cloud-native software architect specializing in government and healthcare modernization.

Contact

Skills

Core Skills

Software ArchitectureArtificial Intelligence (ai)

Other Skills

JavaKotlinSpring BootReactAWSMicroservicesDevOpsData AnalyticsGoScalaPythonHadoopApache SparkMachine LearningDatabricks Products

About

Experience

20 yrs 3 mos

Total Experience

7 yrs 5 mos

Average Tenure

15 yrs 9 mos

Current Experience

Vidya

President

Aug 2010 – Present · 15 yrs 9 mos · Vienna, VA

I build new software and modernize existing software as an architect, engineer, or SME for commercial and government clients. This experience includes the following:
2 years building enterprise AI products using Embabel with Kotlin, Spring AI, graphs, and MCP. Built AI prototype for local government with Spring Integration orchestrating LangChain4j, and LLMs on Ollama to process archives. Using Goose, AGENTS.md, Agent Skills, NotebookLM, Junie, and Warp to optimize Spec-Driven Development.
6 years architecting and engineering SAFe modernization for State Department services to a multi- and hybrid FedRAMP cloud. Reduced passport renewal from months to days with 97% customer satisfaction and 80% increased trust in government. Implemented Zero Trust and containerized, resilient, event-driven Java microservice APIs using Spring Boot, RabbitMQ, and Docker. Built React component library with TypeScript. Presented product roadmaps to customers. Configured CI/CD pipeline for DevSecOps. Architecture for predictive analytics on Azure Databricks with Spark.
6 months modernizing Recreation.gov to microservices architecture that tripled park visits and generated massive revenue increases. Developed Go APIs and React components. Implemented data models in Cassandra on AWS. Leveraged DevOps and SRE for continuous delivery.
3 years migrating HealthCare.gov from Java to Scala on AWS to improve maintainability and performance. Mentored Java developers in Scala and functional programming.
2 years developing threat-detection software deployed to Azure utilizing Scala, Play Framework, MongoDB, and social media APIs. Architected migration to Kafka and Spark.
8 years building a casting tool for a production company using Scala, Play Framework, MongoDB, React, and AWS that enabled this company to land major clients like Google, Nike, and Walgreens.
Vidya is a federal 8(a) business holding a GSA MAS contract. We are also Virginia SWaM and commercially certified.

Software ArchitectureArtificial Intelligence (AI)JavaKotlinSpring BootReact+4

Sotera defense solutions, inc.

Senior Software Engineer

Apr 2009 – Jan 2014 · 4 yrs 9 mos · McLean, VA

2 years as technical lead on DARPA XDATA program doing machine learning for different classes of problems. Programmed in Java, Scala, and Python while working with Hadoop, Apache Spark, Anaconda, and numerous other analytics libraries and platforms.
4 years as site lead for U.S. Army INSCOM Enterprise Platform integrating enhanced visualizations with cloud-scale backend in Hadoop, Cassandra, and others. Built a Java REST API combining Spring Framework and Spring Integration for an enterprise messaging apparatus aggregating data from different sources.

JavaScalaPythonHadoopApache SparkSoftware Architecture

The centech group, inc.

Senior Software Engineer and Project Manager

Jun 2006 – Mar 2009 · 2 yrs 9 mos · Arlington, VA

I managed the full lifecycle development of two integrated E-commerce applications for NIST for order processing all along the supply chain. Before that, I managed the development of a software product built to administer on-board processing for government personnel and recognized by NIST as one of the best of breed HSPD-12 solutions for federal agencies. I also promoted CMMI key process areas to guarantee quality software and wrote and reviewed winning proposals.

Fairfax county public schools

Instructor

Mar 2006 – Aug 2012 · 6 yrs 5 mos · Springfield, VA

I have taught courses in XML, JavaScript, and Scrum. This includes creation of course objectives and lesson plans, rigorous instruction in course material, and challenging exercises to reinforce concepts.