Hello, I'm Brandon

Technical Lead | Software Architect | Data Scientist

Technical lead for the Science Data Management software development group at USGS, specializing in building scalable data products and services. I lead web application development teams building data repositories and spearhead AI chat application development to enhance knowledge access and improve technical efficiencies. With over a decade of experience in software architecture, I focus on modernizing legacy systems and implementing cloud-first solutions using AWS infrastructure.

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Brandon Serna

About Me

I live in Denver with my partner, two pups and one cat. As a technical lead for the Science Data Management software development group at USGS, I focus on building scalable data products and services that support scientific research and open data initiatives.

I mentor engineers across all career levels on software architecture, cloud computing, and modern development practices. My work spans from legacy system modernization to implementing cutting-edge AI solutions.

Galaxy's Edge Grogu Chance Mabel

Professional Experience

Nov 2019 - Present

Technical Lead & Software Architect

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

Greater Denver Area

Leading the Science Data Management software development group, building data products and services for scientific research. Responsible for modernizing legacy applications, implementing cloud-first approaches, and developing AI chat applications to enhance knowledge access and operational efficiency.

Jan 2019 - Aug 2019

Data Scientist

KPMG Lighthouse Center of Excellence for Data and Analytics

Greater Denver Area

Worked as a Data Scientist and Machine Learning expert. Built machine learning solutions that helped with high impact decision making and created data-driven insights for enterprise clients.

Mar 2014 - Jan 2019

Software Engineer

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

Lakewood, Colorado

Responsible for software architecture and redesign of major search applications used to support open data initiatives. Created text mining applications and worked on large-scale data processing systems supporting scientific research and public data access.

Technical Expertise

Leadership & Architecture

Technical Leadership Software Architecture Team Management System Design Mentoring

Programming & Frameworks

Python FastAPI Flask Pandas Dash Streamlit Pydantic SQL

Cloud & Infrastructure

AWS ECS Azure Lambda S3 OpenSearch Bedrock ECR RDS

DevOps & CI/CD

Terraform CloudFormation GitLab CI GitHub Actions

Data Science & AI

Machine Learning Data Science LLMs & RAG AI Chat Applications Text Analytics Data Repositories

Authentication & Security

OIDC OAuth 2 Keycloak

API Development

REST GraphQL API Design OpenAPI Microservices

Development Tools

Docker Jupyter Git VS Code MacOS Development

Education

Master of Science - MS, Data Science

Regis University

Selected coursework: Data Engineering, Machine Learning, Text Analytics, Data Analytics, Statistical Methods and Experimental Design

Bachelor of Arts - BA

University of Colorado Denver

Selected coursework: Introduction to Computer Science (C++), Intermediate Programming in C++, Data Structures and Technical Writing

Projects

Disney Projects

Disney-Themed Hardware Projects

Collection of Disney-inspired projects including NFC MagicBand readers, animatronic digital eyes, and LED tiki drummers using microcontrollers and Python.

MagicBand Reader Digital Eyes
🚧 Work in Progress
Modelcat TAM & Horizon Data Model

Modelcat TAM & Horizon Data Model

Modelcat TAM: A data model representation of a model concept to support the USGS Model Catalog web application using Python and Pydantic.
Horizon Data Model: Python-based data modeling framework for the Horizon application at USGS, supporting scientific applications and data management.

Modelcat TAM GitHub Horizon Data Model GitHub
3D Design

3D Design Projects

Practical 3D designs including a magnetic ice scooper holder and other everyday utility items.

Thingiverse

USGS Data & AI Systems

Leading development of data repositories, model catalogs, and AI chat applications for scientific research and knowledge management.

Model Catalog Data Catalog
🚀 Active Development

MacOS CPU Temperature

A lightweight, open source statusbar app to monitor Mac CPU temperature. Built with Python and distributed as a native macOS app.

GitHub

Development Tools & Examples

Collection of Flask applications, Docker examples, AWS Lambda resources, and training materials for web development and data science.

Docker Example Training Resources

Get In Touch

Interested in collaborating on data science projects, discussing AI applications, or exploring software architecture solutions? I'm always open to connecting with fellow professionals and potential collaborators.

LinkedIn GitHub Email USGS Profile