Gian Alvarez

Gian A. Alvarez Blanes is the Director of the Advanced Data Solutions (ADS) department at Northstrat. With over 16 years of professional experience, Gian has served in numerous technical and leadership roles supporting both the Intelligence Community (IC) and the Department of Defense (DoD). As the director of ADS, Gian guides his team of software developers, systems engineers, and data engineers to craft, integrate, and automate software solutions, including data analytics, data management, data visualization, custom software application development, empowering DoD and IC agencies to achieve their data transformation and data management goals in support of their critical mission.

Gian holds a Masters of Science degree in Computer Science from Johns Hopkins University, with a focus in Software Engineering. He also holds a bachelor’s in Computer Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez (Antes, ahora y siempre… Colegio). During his college years, he had the opportunity to intern with the Defense Intelligence Agency, supporting the National Military Command Center (NMCC) as part of the J2 staff. There, he developed a passion for supporting the critical mission of both the IC and the DoD. He was hired by a major defense contractor as part of their Leadership Development Program, where he led software teams and served as a data architect providing software solutions for the DoD for almost 6 years. He joined Northstrat in May 2013, looking to work for an employee and mission focused company that empowered their employees to make a difference in support of the critical DoD and IC missions. For the past 11 years, Gian has supported Northstrat in a variety of projects and roles, as a senior software engineer, program lead, and now as the director of ADS.

As a father of 2 young girls, his time off is usually spent with his family, taking them to after-school activities, sports, or just playing at home with them. Gian is also involved with his local church community and enjoys supporting charity events through his parish. During the weekends, he loves to spend time in the kitchen, barbecuing or cooking some of his favorite Puerto Rican or Asian inspired dishes. He greatly enjoys being outdoors, and riding motorcycles (although that has been put aside for a while).