In honor of Veterans Day earlier in the month, we wanted to focus our November NYCSA event on an entrepreneurial journey from the military to the private sector. As is widely reported, the transition back to civilian life can be challenging, & support systems for veterans are not always as advertised. On the other hand, many veterans have made successful transitions back into the private sector & are thriving. Among them, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Al DiLeonardo is a great example with a great story to share. Al served for 20 years as an Army intelligence officer, ultimately leading at team within the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). When he retired from the Army, Al & his team formed a private company called The HumanGeo, which is now part of a large Canadian public company called MacDonald, Dettwiler & Associates. Join us for Als tour of the ups, downs, highs & lows of making the jump from military to civilian life & selling his company three times within two years!
Alfred Di Leonardo, III
Al Di Leonardo is an experienced intelligence & special operations officer who utilized his military training to successfully found & sell two companies in the private & public marketplaces. He is widely recognized as a subject matter expert in analytical tradecraft.
Al founded HumanGeo, an innovative software & analytics company focused on technical solutions at the intersection of big data, social media, & geo-location intelligence that enables change in the government marketplace. He served as CEO, creating the vision & path to grow the team from a start-up to a recognized technology brand name within the Defense & Intelligence sector. Since its inception in 2011, HumanGeo quickly became synonymous with technical innovation. The company developed the Defense Intelligence Agencys (DIA) Nerd Brigade & the National Geospatial Intelligence Agencys (NGA) Rapid Feedback Teams. HumanGeo was routinely recognized as a Virginia Business Best Place to Work. It was named Arlingtons Fastest Growing Company between $5M-$50M & identified as among the Best Places To Work for Millennials.
In 2015, HumanGeo was acquired by the Radiant Group, a 450-person, 5-business unit technology company that supports the Intelligence Community with advanced software solutions & analytics. At Radiant, he served as president overseeing the integration of operational technical capabilities while simultaneously implementing the mission & vision across all five business units, & grew the Radiants annual revenue to over $125M. In 2016, Al & Aston Capital architected the sale of The Radiant Group to DigitalGlobe.
After 20 years of combined government experience with concentration in the Intel Community, he retired out of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) as a career United States Army Intelligence Officer. Prior to JSOC, Al specialized as a Signals Intelligence Officer & spent almost a decade inside the National Security Agency (NSA). He earned the Bronze Star Medal from U.S. Special Operations Command for his work in Afghanistan & Iraq.
He served as the Director of U.S. Special Operations Commands first big data analytics & innovation cell named Skope, where he became widely known across the Intel Community for his special operations intel teams success with geospatial analytics. In his Army career, he served overseas in support of operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait, Africa, Korea, & the Balkans.
Al holds a Masters in Business Administration from Loyola University, & Bachelor of Arts from Fordham University. Al currently serves as a board Councilor at the American Geographical Society, a board member of the Global Special Operations Foundation, & an Advisory Board member for The George Washington Universitys Data Analytic Masters program. Originally from Connecticut, Al & his wife Melissa, & their two daughters reside in Arlington, Virginia.
