Alexander North Email & Phone Number

Toronto, On, Ca

Toronto, Ontario

As the founder and principal consultant of North Star Software, I established and grew a boutique consulting firm that specializes in greenfield software product development and cloud infrastructure for small and medium-sized businesses. Over the years, I have hired, managed, and led a fully remote team of senior software engineers, UI/UX designers, DevOps engineers, and other technical talent, scaling the team to over 10 members.My role encompassed all aspects of business and technical… Show more As the founder and principal consultant of North Star Software, I established and grew a boutique consulting firm that specializes in greenfield software product development and cloud infrastructure for small and medium-sized businesses. Over the years, I have hired, managed, and led a fully remote team of senior software engineers, UI/UX designers, DevOps engineers, and other technical talent, scaling the team to over 10 members.My role encompassed all aspects of business and technical operations, from setting strategic direction to overseeing day-to-day project management. I took on dual roles as both Scrum Master and Product Owner, utilizing the Scrumban methodology to manage projects, conduct code reviews, and implement CI/CD processes. My team and I architected, built, and supported multiple software products concurrently, which collectively contributed to generating over $20 million in annual recurring revenue for our clients.Key achievements include developing a comprehensive ERP system for a motorsport insurance company, which automated underwriting and policy issuance processes. This project led to a 30% reduction in operational costs, a 70% decrease in policy issuance time, and a 50% reduction in claim processing time and cost. Another notable project involved creating a predictive analytics platform for a boutique marketing consultancy. This platform performed cost-benefit analyses of high-budget advertising campaigns for Fortune 500 companies, providing detailed recommendations on optimal advertising strategies, which in turn improved client ROI by 25%.In addition to my technical responsibilities, I managed all client relationships, drafted project proposals, and negotiated contracts, fostering long-term partnerships with clients, some lasting up to a decade. My leadership style focused on cultivating a collaborative, inclusive, and productive team culture, ensuring successful project delivery and high client satisfaction. Show less

Tempe, Arizona, United States

As the Lead Software & Security Architect at Pocket, a startup funded by ASU and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, I spearheaded the development of a self-sovereign identity platform with mobile clients using Hyperledger Indy and Ares, integrating blockchain technology with decentralized PKI and end-to-end encryption. I drove the adoption of security-by-design principles, ensuring privacy and security were embedded in every aspect of product development.I designed innovative… Show more As the Lead Software & Security Architect at Pocket, a startup funded by ASU and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, I spearheaded the development of a self-sovereign identity platform with mobile clients using Hyperledger Indy and Ares, integrating blockchain technology with decentralized PKI and end-to-end encryption. I drove the adoption of security-by-design principles, ensuring privacy and security were embedded in every aspect of product development.I designed innovative encryption strategies that impressed stakeholders like the U.S. Air Force and ASU, and led the creation of a low-footprint on-premise agent for data anonymization and encryption. I cultivated strong relationships with the CEO, investors, and key stakeholders, aligning technical strategy with project vision and business objectives, and winning over clients in Higher Ed, enterprise, and the US military.I established higher standards in software engineering, security, and cloud architecture by collaborating with various teams and leading team-wide code reviews and technical deep-dive sessions. I actively managed DevOps and security teams, rolling out iOS and Android applications with fully automated CICD systems and implementing automated security scans integrated into Slack for real-time reporting.I led performance and load testing efforts, ensuring successful beta launches and seamless integration with client authentication systems. Additionally, I created a technical knowledge base by implementing a self-documenting API approach using Postman, significantly improving efficiency and reducing errors. I also built and mentored teams, ensuring alignment with company goals, and actively contributed to W3C standards development through participation in meetings and interoperability contests. Show less

Seattle, Wa

As CTO at Rhino Security Labs, I worked closely with the CEO to set and achieve strategic objectives, overseeing all technical projects and managing the engineering team. I defined and drove the technical vision, leading to a 30% YoY revenue growth and a 250% increase in team size over five years. I led the transition to a fully remote setup, migrating IT infrastructure to AWS, and implementing unified SSO/SAML with MFA. Additionally, I automated key business processes using AWS Lambda and… Show more As CTO at Rhino Security Labs, I worked closely with the CEO to set and achieve strategic objectives, overseeing all technical projects and managing the engineering team. I defined and drove the technical vision, leading to a 30% YoY revenue growth and a 250% increase in team size over five years. I led the transition to a fully remote setup, migrating IT infrastructure to AWS, and implementing unified SSO/SAML with MFA. Additionally, I automated key business processes using AWS Lambda and Zapier, significantly reducing overall workload and onboarding time. I managed and mentored multiple teams of engineers and cybersecurity experts, with many advancing to roles at top companies like Uber, Amazon, and CrowdStrike. Show less

Seattle, Wa

As a Technical Product Manager at Rhino Security Labs, I designed, developed, and maintained a diverse portfolio of internal and open-source software products. I led product development using Agile methodologies, maintaining development roadmaps and overseeing multiple projects. I created Pacu, a powerful open-source AWS red-team toolkit, and developed Cloudgoat, a popular AWS CTF and training framework. Additionally, I built a sophisticated social engineering penetration testing platform with… Show more As a Technical Product Manager at Rhino Security Labs, I designed, developed, and maintained a diverse portfolio of internal and open-source software products. I led product development using Agile methodologies, maintaining development roadmaps and overseeing multiple projects. I created Pacu, a powerful open-source AWS red-team toolkit, and developed Cloudgoat, a popular AWS CTF and training framework. Additionally, I built a sophisticated social engineering penetration testing platform with personalized campaigns and real-time analytics. I designed a proprietary cybersecurity-focused ERP for efficient reporting and automated vulnerability detection, which enabled rapid company growth. Show less

Toronto, Ontario

During my internship at Sereda and Sereda, a prominent law firm, I gained invaluable experience in the legal field. I prepared case files, reviewed contracts, and observed legal proceedings, providing me with a deep understanding of legal processes and contract negotiation. I attended hearings and strategy sessions, enhancing my ability to analyze and interpret complex information.In addition to legal tasks, I significantly improved the office’s IT infrastructure. I created a secure… Show more During my internship at Sereda and Sereda, a prominent law firm, I gained invaluable experience in the legal field. I prepared case files, reviewed contracts, and observed legal proceedings, providing me with a deep understanding of legal processes and contract negotiation. I attended hearings and strategy sessions, enhancing my ability to analyze and interpret complex information.In addition to legal tasks, I significantly improved the office’s IT infrastructure. I created a secure office network with shared resources, VPN access, and automated backups to network-attached storage. I also set up new workstations, enhancing workplace efficiency and ergonomics, and trained staff on using these new tools. This experience honed my skills in IT project management, cybersecurity, and technical training. Show less

Toronto, On

At Strategic Claims Canada, a startup specializing in cost-management services for US-based health insurers, I managed the negotiation and settlement of health insurance claims up to $1,000,000. I developed and maintained contractual partnerships with healthcare service providers, honing my skills in negotiation and relationship management.As a project manager, I led the development of a secure portal site for exchanging and tracking claim materials, monitoring negotiations, and… Show more At Strategic Claims Canada, a startup specializing in cost-management services for US-based health insurers, I managed the negotiation and settlement of health insurance claims up to $1,000,000. I developed and maintained contractual partnerships with healthcare service providers, honing my skills in negotiation and relationship management.As a project manager, I led the development of a secure portal site for exchanging and tracking claim materials, monitoring negotiations, and managing a dynamic, filterable database of proprietary business data. This role enhanced my abilities in project management, web-based infrastructure development, and secure data management, which are critical in my current technical roles. Show less

Bachelor Of Arts (Ba), With Full Honors, Information Systems, 3.9

Information Systems was where things finally felt "Just Right". This discipline is essentially a computer science program with a dash.

Bachelor Of Engineering (B.E.), Materials Engineering, 3.85

After leaving the University of Chicago, I did a semester of Materials Engineering at University of Toronto. I loved the science.

Ba, Unspecified Major, 3.9

I wanted to see what an Ivy League University was like, so I worked hard and got accepted at this venerable university. After completing.