Samer Najia
Verified Expert in Project Management
Project Manager
Alexandria, VA, United States
Toptal member since March 25, 2025
Samer is an ex-BCG consultant and engineer with deep technical expertise in software, hardware, networking, and security. He has led initiatives at various large clients involving DevSecOps, QA, and IT strategy. Prior to BCG, Samer also architected and led the development of multiple systems for various Federal agency clients, including the US Senate Appropriations Committee, the US Capitol Police (USCP), and the General Services Administration (GSA).
Project Highlights
Expertise
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Azure
- IT
- IT Operations Management (ITOM)
- IT Strategy
- Python
- SQL
- Software QA
Work Experience
Manager and Lead Engineer
BCG
- Managed the technical strategy for Inmar Intelligence's future of work initiative, including consolidating on-premises, SaaS platforms, and cloud-based systems.
- Drove the BCG X AI incubator program, leading a high-performing team of 30 engineers to deliver rapid prototypes leveraging cutting-edge AI technologies, dramatically reducing turnaround time by 80%.
- Oversaw a cross-functional team to execute enterprise-wide DevSecOps and QA strategies for multiple clients, including UBS/Yorktown, Ascension, InterMountain Health, and Ford. Teams were as large as 100+ individuals with C-suite stakeholders.
- Led Endpoint's effort to leverage multi-cloud technologies to enhance document processing capabilities using OCR and Azure Cognitive Services. Trained the model to increase processing capacity from 10 to 1,000 documents per hour.
- Spearheaded the implementation of a mobile application offering investment service for Yorktown/UBS as the technical PM and QA lead.
- Guided the QA of an industrial assembly line application at Cargill and developed a QA application to assess an internally developed ML model to ensure it does not deviate from thresholds proactively.
- Directed the testing efforts at JBT to ensure an MVP correctly reports factory readiness. This required leveraging multidisciplinary domains, including mechanical and electrical engineering, IT, and business intelligence.
Founder
NSL
- Operated a consultancy specializing in software, IT security, and networking services to federal clients for over 13 years. Grew the company from scratch to 10 employees/contractors and approximately $1 million in revenue.
- Conducted extensive security audits of FAA financial systems and led the team certifying and accrediting these systems annually.
- Built and supported an application for the Veterans Health Administration that tracked human clinical trials of various drug treatments.
- Designed, developed, and supported a federal agency's intranet. Developed the integration between the intranet and multiple peripheral systems, including HR, finance, and badging.
- Developed the migration strategy for a federal agency porting data and content out of Lotus Notes and into SharePoint on a secure platform.
- Expanded the footprint of a previously developed budget reporting system to two new federal agencies.
- Architected and led the development of a ground-up CRM for a commercial certification entity.
- Led and maintained the development of proposals for the successful award of Schedule 70 (GSA) and eFAST(FAA) contract vehicles.
VP and CTO
MergeGlobal, Inc.
- Modernized entire corporate IT infrastructure to support the development of forecasting products based on ML. Supported and maintained this infrastructure that spanned desktops, networking, servers, and security.
- Led the development of a forecasting model for air freight logistics as part of a deliverable to multiple large international freight forwarders and carriers.
- Managed and mentored a team of two to three employees and contractors, administering company infrastructure.
Senior Manager
McDonald Bradley, Inc.
- Recovered customer confidence with corporate quality assurance within a state government agency through the implementation of procedures and processes to ensure product excellence.
- Conducted multiple successful security audits of high visibility systems at various federal agencies.
- Developed customer-based QA and COOP processes for implementation across multiple projects and customers.
Director
Acton Burnell (later acquired by CACI)
- Led the knowledge management division with profit and loss responsibility for a portfolio of $5 to $7 million in business. Managed multiple IT programs for diverse government and commercial entities.
- Established and dramatically grew the security assurance business from an initial contract to an ongoing business.
- Guided the technology strategy of the company including internal technical support services. Established corporate software development and quality control standards.
- Architected and led the development of an analysis and reporting system for a federal agency that subsequently followed me across employers.
Project History
Appropriations Analysis and Reporting System
Developed a system for the Senate and House Appropriations Committees, the GSA Office of Inspector General, and the USCP, which tracks budget requests that subsequently become bills for appropriations for various agencies.
Pilot SIT Program for Ford Motor Company
Implemented an AI-driven system integration testing (SIT) program for two model vehicles at Ford, showcasing a new way to conduct human-in-the-loop testing.
Enterprise-wide Intranet at a Federal Agency
Deployed a collaboration and intranet platform at the USCP.
Corporate Infrastructure Modernization
Developed and modernized IT infrastructure and implemented new standards and processes to provide new services.
DevSecOps Strategy
Developed a DevSecOps strategy to improve go-to-market delivery.
Corporate Technology Strategy
Developed a technology strategy for a large marketing firm that has grown through acquisition.
Education
Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Operations Analysis and Management Information Systems
American University - Washington, DC, USA
Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering
Duke University - Durham, NC, USA
Certifications
Integrate Vertex AI Search and Conversation into Voice and Chat Apps Skill Badge
Google Cloud
Text Prompt Engineering Techniques Skill Badge
Google Cloud
Skills
Tools
SQL, Jira, Confluence, Trello, MATLAB, Dialogflow
Paradigms
DevOps, Agile, Agile Project Management, Azure DevOps, Database Design
Platforms
SharePoint, Azure, AWS IoT
Industry Expertise
Software, Automotive, Logistics
Other
IT Operations Management (ITOM), T-SQL (Transact-SQL), IT, Web, QA Leadership, Software QA, QA Testing, Security, Management Information Systems (MIS), Business Administration, IT Management, Leadership, Quality Assurance (QA), Project Planning, Technical Project Management, IT Security, Software Design, Web Applications, Data Migration, Startups, Software Development, Software Development Management, Technical Product Management, Project Tracking, Databases, IT Strategy, Technology Strategy & Architecture, IT Systems Architecture, DevSecOps, IT Infrastructure, App Development, Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC), Stakeholder Management, Project Scoping, Resource Management, Waterfall, Technical Program Management, Distributed Team Management, Workflow, Business Analysis, User Stories, Stakeholder Interviews, Product Requirements Documentation (PRD), End-to-end Implementation (E2E), Windows PowerShell, .NET, Operations Analytics, Collaboration, Program Management, Agile Program Management, Project Management, Cross-functional Collaboration, Process Improvement, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Vendor Management, Objectives & Key Results (OKRs), Agile Sprints, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Document Management Systems (DMS), Jira Administrator, Project Portfolio Management (PPM), Process Optimization, CTO, IT Networking, Data Strategy, IT Governance, Hardware, Web Servers, Microsoft Azure, Project Reporting, Project Estimation, Backlog Management, Large Language Models (LLMs), Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), Cybersecurity, Project Delivery, Web Development, Selenium, Python, Mechanical Engineering, AI Chatbots, AI Integration, Human Assessment, Mainframe Systems, Records Management, AI Text Prompt Engineering, Gemini AI, PaLM SDK for Python, Conversational AI, Enterprise Search, Virtual Agents
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