This post is based on an interview with Nitin Pradhan. It is part of our series of interviews of OODA Network members. Our objective with these interviews is to provide actionable information of interest to the community, including insights that can help with your own career progression. We also really like highlighting some of the great people that make our continued research and reporting possible.  For the full series see: OODA Expert Network Bio Series.

Career Progression:   Nitin grew up in India, obtaining an undergraduate degree in Engineering and a Master’s in Business Administration.  He predicted that India would become a powerhouse of software development. He took a job exporting CAD-CAM engineering products and systems and was quite successful.  On the side, he and his wife developed an expertise helping local engineers from India attain higher education in the United States.  He decided to give it a try for himself.  He was accepted to American University to pick up his second Master’s degree in Accounting.

While living in D.C., he observed the early days of the internet and quickly realized the value of using it for things “long distance”.  He created one of the first Home Pages in the United States, forming an “internet company” called Online Services.  No one knew what would become of it, but he quickly saw the value in moving from paper and pencil to online.  Upon graduation, he took a job at the Center for Innovative Technology where he helped commercialize this new connected capability.   Nitin attracted some Venture Capital Companies and signed up some resell centers.  He helped thousands of companies in Northern Virginia go from analog to digital.

Nitin was knee deep in many projects, including his creation of a wireless accelerator company, when the Dotcom bubble burst.  He retreated to Academia, taking a position as Chief Technology Officer for the Fairfax County Public Schools.  For the next seven years, Nitin worked towards delivering education digitally, through innovations such as Blackboard and Blogs.  He tested many new products to learn what would be most useful in an educational setting.  He loved working with the teachers and the students and contributing to the local economy.   “How you set the right culture, expectations and infrastructure is really important.” Nitin says.

In 2009, the Obama administration reached out to him and he was selected to become the Chief Information Officer for the Department of Transportation.  This was a major increase in staff, budget and responsibility!  The first thing he did complete an analysis of the entire DOT portfolio of major systems so he could understand what he had, and WHY they needed these systems.  From this he obtained good visibility into what was working.  This helped steer him in the direction he needed to move.

First, he updated their archaic website.  Second, he secured a reasonable cyber security budget so he could make their networks more secure.  Third, he performed detailed portfolio management, measuring successes and failures and fixing problems faster when they occurred.  Lastly, he hired top notch people.  “If you can attract the right people, you will be much more successful!” Nitin says.  He set up internship programs to attract young Master’s level students.  If they worked out, they were offered a position upon graduation.

Four years of long hours and miserable commuting was enough!  He started Launch Dream, a Digital Growth Accelerator, so he could work on projects that he was interested in!  He’s still passionate about delivering education, creating ScaleUP USA to create a microlearning technology platform.  GoVonomy is his “transformation as a service” presence connecting technology hubs to solve government problems and challenges.

Nitin is passionate about giving back: he’s happiest when he can work with Federal career civil servants and corporate Federal teams to help them develop the skills needed to be successful.  “If you get good people that can work well with the government, your business will be taken care of.” Nitin says. “My goal is to train thousands of people to work well – within and for the U. S. Government.”

Surprises:  Nitin was surprised by how helpful the American people and government were to him when he first arrived.  “I came to the U. S. on a full fellowship with a few hundred dollars.  With the help of others and a lot of hard work, I have managed to have a successful life.” Nitin says.  “I know India, and I know how poorly a government can be run.  Ours is an order of magnitude better.  Our systems and processes are better. That’s why I devote my time to giving back now. I want the U. S. to continue to attract the best people into the Government.”

Advice for Decision Makers: “Really train your younger employees (under ten years of experience).” Nitin says.   “Make them aware of their part in the organization, even the short-term contractors.  They will work much harder and better if everyone knows what their impact is!”.

Views on Thought Leaders:  Nitin was mentored by Bob Templin, President of Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA). He learned a lot from him.

Quick Hits:

• Book Recommendation: Nitin’s not a book reader; he’s a doer!  He talks to people.  He takes online courses.  He watches YouTube segments to learn new things.  He likes to connect at the human level with everyone he meets to learn something new.
• Favorite piece of content on OODAloop: Nitin uses the analysis and overview articles to stay up on new technologies.
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitinpradhan/