Brad Sollar

Cybersecurity Trailblazer Brad Sollar’s Journey: From Radar Technician to the Forefront of Innovation

From the Army to his current role as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and co-founder of Mainsail Industries, Capitol Technology University graduate Brad Sollar, MS in Information Assurance '10, has built a remarkable career as a cybersecurity expert who develops cutting-edge cyber solutions for commercial and government sectors.

Innovating Cybersecurity for Commercial Enterprises & Military Defense 

As the CTO of Mainsail Industries, a federally focused cybersecurity startup, Sollar leads innovative projects to bridge the gap between military-grade and commercial technology. 

The company is currently adapting a security product originally developed for the Department of Defense (DoD) for the commercial market. “We're making it more enterprise-friendly,” Sollar explains. Another cutting-edge Mainsail project involves creating a new type of hypervisor. Metalvisor is a zero-trust solution designed specifically for edge computing with embedded systems. With built-in security functions to protect workloads that exist outside of traditional data centers and public clouds, Metalvisor seeks to improve the consolidation of workloads and hardware optimization.

Sollar also lends his expertise as an advisor for the U.S. Army's Cyber Platforms and Systems (CPS) Cyber Protection Systems (CPS), collaborating with the Program Manager for Defensive Cyber Operations. He plays a crucial role in testing and refining their defensive cybersecurity tools, including cloud computing, larger regional computing stacks, and smaller deployable kits. Much of this work is done with the Georgia Cyber Center, where the Army runs cyber events and simulates malicious traffic to provide hands-on training to soldiers.

A Career Built Through Military Service, Cybersecurity Roles, and Capitol Tech Education  

Sollar's journey into cybersecurity began as a radar technician in the U.S. Army. He then advanced his career at Raytheon as an integrated defense systems (IDS) analyst, a role supporting complex military defense systems that involve multiple components, and later at Lockheed Martin and MITRE, where he gained invaluable experience in cybersecurity and cloud engineering. Seeking to deepen his expertise, he pursued a master's degree in information assurance (now cybersecurity) at Capitol Technology University.

Capitol Tech provided Sollar with a well-rounded education, covering the technical skills he needed, as well as exposing him to the legal and policy aspects of cybersecurity. The opportunity to work with other Capitol Tech students, whether on group reports or hands-on projects, was instrumental in preparing him for professional success.

“When you get out in the workforce or own a company, you're going to encounter all different​​ levels of how people work and communicate,” said Sollar. “Especially with the way people are today, being more isolated with phones and remote work, the ability and the skillset to work with people in a group carries significant weight.” 

This emphasis on collaboration also fosters leadership skills. “That's something employers like to see—build leadership skills so that rather than just going along with something, you lead projects while working with a team and see those projects through to completion,” Sollar notes. 

After graduating from Capitol Tech, Sollar joined Red Hat as a Solutions Architect in the public sector. “It was really fun because it was taking a lot of my cybersecurity knowledge and working with emerging technologies at that time, around 2016. Containers had just come out, Kubernetes was coming out, a lot of the new development and new projects were coming out,” he recalls. 

Now, at Mainsail, Sollar’s broad expertise in cybersecurity and engineering drives innovation. “I've been trying to bring forth new cutting-edge technology that can really help to secure against a lot of these threats that we're seeing today,” he says.  

Looking Ahead: The Future of Cybersecurity 

Sollar sees significant growth potential in edge computing and peer-to-peer networking, particularly in critical infrastructure and regulated industries like finance, oil and gas, and electricity. These industries require secure solutions to address challenges like network degradation and the need for real-time data processing. 

He’s also anticipating rising demand for skills in Kubernetes, Golang, Rust, networking, and the ability to learn and adapt to new technologies. “Continuous learning is key in this field,” he emphasizes. 

Advice for Aspiring Cybersecurity Professionals

“Your education does not stop after school,” Sollar advises. IT is a field for lifelong learners, he explains, stressing the importance of seeking new certifications and continuously developing programming and problem-solving skills. 

Sollar’s career embodies the innovative spirit and adaptability that Capitol Tech graduates are known for. His commitment to lifelong learning and willingness to embrace new challenges propelled him to the forefront of the ever-evolving cybersecurity landscape. 

“I get requests to do new things and think, ‘Oh, I've never done that,’ but give me a weekend—I’ll come back an expert on it. That's the attitude to have,” he says. 

When hiring, Sollar values motivation above all. He offers this advice to young cybersecurity professionals: “Speak up. Let your employer know you're excited to be there, eager to learn, and that no task is too small. You’ll quickly learn new skills, and over time, you’ll become incredibly valuable. That’s where you discover your true value in the workforce.”