Engineering Leadership | Regulated Software | AI/ML Integration
I lead the US Software Center at Mettler Toledo AutoChem, a cross-functional team of roughly 20 professionals building the iC Suite, the instrument control and reaction analysis software that chemists rely on from early-stage research through full-scale manufacturing. My career spans nearly three decades across startups, a Fortune 10 pharmaceutical distribution company, a Fortune 500 medical device manufacturer, and now a business unit of a $4B precision instrument company.
The pattern is consistent: walk into a difficult situation, earn trust, build the team, ship the product.
I enlisted at 17, deployed to Desert Storm as a Private with the 82nd Airborne Division, and left the Army seven years later as a Sergeant, having been responsible for as many as 30 soldiers and over $4 million in communications equipment. What the Army taught me about leadership still shapes how I operate.
Read the full storyI came up as an engineer, working in C#, .NET, SQL Server, and enterprise architecture across the healthcare, legal, financial services, and technology sectors through the late 1990s and 2000s. While working full-time, I completed both a Bachelor's and Master's in Information Technology and earned my Microsoft certifications. I've never stopped building things, and I've never stopped learning.
The transition from engineer to leader wasn't a career pivot. It was a natural progression. I discovered that my highest leverage wasn't in writing code but in building the teams and processes that let good engineers do their best work. My track record reflects that: 0% technical staff turnover at Clinical Care Options, zero findings in a three-day FDA audit at BD, a zero-defect data integrity intervention at AmerisourceBergen that stopped a production corruption event, and 30% ARR growth at NextLOGiK while leading through COVID with zero layoffs.
“Under his leadership, I would jump through burning hoops if he asked. I believe trust is not given, it's earned, and he has undoubtedly earned mine.”
Dmitri So
Developer, direct report at NextLOGiK
At NextLOGiK, I joined as a senior engineer and became the company's inaugural CTO. When an unexpected leadership transition left the company without a CEO, the Board of Directors appointed me COO. I reported directly to the board and carried full operational, financial, and strategic responsibility for the business.
Over six years, I helped build CompWALK from the ground up: a cloud-based SaaS platform for accreditation and compliance management, deployed by some of the largest accreditation organizations in healthcare, food safety, and related industries across more than 15 countries. I led the offshore development partnership that scaled from 3 to 20 engineers, drove retention from 60% to over 90%, and signed the company's first international customer, the largest medical accreditation body in Australia, personally navigating the contract across jurisdictions and international data residency requirements.
“Ed leads by example, exemplifying hard work, respect, and professionalism. I wholeheartedly recommend Ed to anyone looking for a trustworthy, results-driven, and effective strategic leader who fosters great work environments.”
Sarah Koons
Product Manager, direct report at NextLOGiK
At Mettler Toledo AutoChem, I lead the team responsible for the iC Suite, a family of software products including iC IR, iC Raman, iC Vision, iC FBRM, iControl, and iC Data Center, each tightly integrated with AutoChem's precision instruments.
I delivered the first machine learning model shipped in iC Vision, AutoChem's particle analysis software, serving as both Head of Software Engineering and project lead. It powers Experimental Image Analysis, which identifies and sizes bubbles and droplets in real time and detects oiling-out events as they occur. Shipping AI in a precision instrument environment, where scientists make process decisions on the output, is a meaningful milestone.
I'm a member of the Global R&D Leadership Team, coordinating strategy across US and Swiss engineering organizations, and I've rebuilt the US Software Center's technical leadership bench from the ground up following an extended period of organizational instability.
FDA/GxP environments, software validation, a zero-finding audit track record at BD, and deep experience building compliance-critical platforms at both AutoChem and NextLOGiK.
Team building, retention, cross-functional alignment, and leading organizations through transitions that require both technical credibility and genuine trust.
Practical implementation of machine learning in precision instrument software, plus hands-on AI orchestration and tooling adoption across engineering teams.
I learned leadership in an environment where bad decisions got people hurt. That background shapes how I think about accountability, clarity, and trust. I don't manage through status reports and process theater. I build relationships, set clear expectations, and get out of people's way. When things go wrong, I own it. When people do good work, I say so.
The engineers I've led tend to stay. That's not an accident.
“I have observed Ed manage his team with kindness, compassion, and optimism. He is an excellent leader who trusts and believes in the people he works with.”
Maria Knake
Acting Team Lead, Standards and Conformity Assessment Services, NIST, client
Beyond the Work
Away from the office, I write music and children's books, published under Gibidda Press, my own independent imprint.
