Our Leaders
Here at Etegent, our leaders have a wealth of experience in each of their respective fields. They successfully guide our company with appreciation, curiosity, and respect while maintaining and encouraging an innovative workplace.
Stuart Shelley
CEO and President, Etegent Technologies
Stu is the co-founder and Principal of Etegent Technologies. He leads the Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance (ISR) and the MTech segments of Etegent’s business portfolio. Prior to forming Etegent, Stu was a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati – Mechanical Engineering Department, where he obtained his MS and PhD degrees, and conducted Post-Doctoral Research in the Structural Dynamics Research Laboratory, while also consulting with over 30 national and international companies and government organizations.
Tom Sharp
CEO and President, NLign Analytics
Tom brings over decades of experience growing high-tech companies into market leaders by combining innovative technologies and inventive go-to-market strategies. Tom holds a BSEE, MSEE, Ph.D. from University of Cincinnati. Previously, he was a visiting scientist at AFRL Material Directorate where he developed innovative technology to optimize manufacturing processes. He was also a senior member of the design team that developed multiple innovations for computer terminals in the early 1980s – some of which have been displayed at the Smithsonian Institution.
Kate Legters
VP of HR
Kate is a senior HR leader and Organizational Psychologist. She is experienced in organizational change, communication, and development, championing culture and employee experience, leadership coaching, training, employment law, analytics, statistics, and performance. She has two master’s degrees in HR Management and Industrial Organizational Psychology.
Justin Cerrato
Director of Finance and Accounting
Justin has over 10 years of experience working in Finance (Corporate & Government), Accounting, Government Contracting, Program Management, and Business Administration. He has led both small and large teams to success, as evidenced by several individual and team awards received during his tenure at the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC). Justin earned a Master’s of Business Administration from Wright State University.
Eric Needleman
Contracts Manager
Eric’s career in defense business began in 2016 with roles of increasing responsibility within Purchasing, Subcontracts Management, and Contracts Management. He has worked in support of domestic and foreign ally military programs including naval propulsion, missile and rocket fuzing, and precision navigation and timing products. Here at Etegent, Eric oversees the complete contracts lifecycle from proposal preparation through physical completion and closeout, and also leads the combined contracts/program management team. Eric graduated from Ball State University with a B.A. in International Business and Spanish Language and Literature in 2013.
Matt Rensing
Software Development Manager
Matt leads a team of software developers, building both prototype implementations of Etegent’s novel techniques and more formalized, deployable software tools for the intelligence community. His research focuses on the development and optimization of innovative signal and image processing techniques, including 13 issued patents for industrial signal processing techniques. He has been with Etegent since 1998 and graduated with a BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati.
Jacob Ross
Performance Modeling Group Manager
Dr. Ross has 8 years of experience in ATR performance prediction, high performance computing, multi-modal fusion, and developing and utilizing synthetic data simulators for sensor exploitation. Dr. Ross conducted his dissertation research while employed at the Air Force Research Lab Sensors Directorate (AFRL/RY) and focused on Synthetic Aperture RADAR and Synthetic Aperture LADAR ATR performance prediction. He developed novel performance prediction techniques for SAL ATR and increased the fidelity of in‐house SAL simulation tools. Current research focuses on multi-modal fusion techniques, synthetic data studies, and scale model data collects. Dr. Ross joined Etegent in 2022 as a Research Scientist and became the group lead of the Performance Modeling Group in 2023. He is principal investigator for Etegent’s META contracts PEMS and MARVEL, Etegent’s ongoing Phase II SBIR for 3D reconstruction (SILV3R), and a Phase I Navy SBIR for air-to-air SAR imaging.
Zack Steck
Machine Learning Group Manager
Zack leads Etegent’s AI/ML group supporting the US Department of Defense and Intelligence Community. He manages an experienced team of machine learning scientists and engineers that focus on developing algorithms and tools for pattern recognition across multiple modalities. Zack led the development of Etegent’s ML ecosystem and has years of experience in the ML system life cycle, successfully transitioning several products from prototype to deployment. Zack graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a bachelor’s in computer science and has been with Etegent since was a co-op in 2018.
Allan Burwinkel
Intelligence Group Manager
Allan leads a team of engineers, scientists, and analysts supporting the US Intelligence Community. Allan manages Etegent’s Intelligence Group which maintains a portfolio of projects to create tools and algorithms to transform data into information and intelligence. Allan has experience researching data processing algorithms, analytics, and visualizations. Allan’s recent focus has been to transition these technologies to enhance the capabilities of the Intelligence Community. Allan graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a bachelor’s in electrical engineering and has been with Etegent since he was a co-op engineer, starting in 2003.
Rick Roth
MTech Manager
Rick has decades of experience working with embedded systems, real-time digital signal processing, measurement system design, ultrasonic systems, system identification, and vibration analysis for both civilian and military applications. He received his Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati – Systems Group. He has managed the day-to-day operations of numerous SBIR contracts (both Phase I and Phase II). In addition, he is leading Etegent’s continued development of waveguide temperature sensors. Richard has also managed various long-term commercial contracts.
Our Values
Our values are critical to our success. We use them to guide our behavior, to solve complex problems, seek new challenges, and set the tone for our culture.
We’re All in This Together!
Working with others is
critical to our success. We
seek to forge the best
partnerships and
understand individual
needs and desires.
Balance Work & Play
We have high expectations
of performance while also
valuing flexibility. It’s ok to
enjoy down time. We care
more about what you do,
not how you do it.
Curiously Smart
We believe curiosity is the
foundation of innovation in
science, business, and all
endeavors. We are curious
thinkers and believe in life-long
learning. We solve complex
problems with sound knowledge,
logic, and judgement.
Ownership
We hold ourselves
accountable to our work and
lend a helping hand to those
who need it. We own tasks
and projects as if livelihoods
and reputations depend on it
(because they do).
Innovate
We provide new ideas and
inspire new ways of thinking.
We create and encourage out
of the box thinking. We seek to
be bold and produce valuable
results.
Relentless
We set big goals. We’re not
afraid to be the underdog or
take on big challenges. We
take on the mindset of rolling
up our sleeves and being a
little scrappy. We don’t give
up.
Know Your Audience
We adjust and adapt our
communication to address the
main concerns of our
audience, in a manner that is
clear and understandable. We
know the importance of timing
and follow-up.
Humilty
We can always learn and
improve. We acknowledge that
the best ideas don’t always come
from ourselves, or the person
with the most education or
experience.
Customer Focused
Customers deserve our best every day and our work should exceed
expectations. We proactively
communicate to build understanding not to demonstrate intellect.
Insist on Greatness
We never settle for mediocrity. We
strive for delivering top-notch
results every time. We are proud
of what we deliver, discover, and
create
Authentic Feedback
We want to hear how we’re
doing. We encourage
transparent and cordial
dialogue to maximize
performance, growth,
progress, and potential.
Agile
We are about taking action and
getting the job done. We perform
in ambiguity and adjust plans if
necessary. We do not fear change
and do not hold onto traditions
that no longer work.
Our Story
September 18, 1996
Founding as Sheet Dynamics Ltd,. (SDL)
Stu and Tom were doing research work at the University and they wanted to apply their work to real-world problems.September 18, 1996
1996
First SDL Office
Mentor Avenue Cincinnati, OH 45212.
1996
1996
Long-standing partnership with Micro Motion Begins!
1996
1997
AK Steel
First Big Client as Sheet Dynamics was AK Steel in Middletown – Started off doing industrial consulting work for numerous industrial clients.1997
1998
We worked on a wide range of industrial consulting projects such as with Corning Research to diagnose faults in a new process to manufacture computer monitors.1998
1999
Emerging Technology Award with Ohio Governor Bob Taft.
1999
1999
1st patent application filed by Sheet Dynamics for structural control and monitoring using adaptive spatial-temporal filtering.
1999
1999
We were chosen to participate in the [MACE II] Zero gravity vibration control experiment conducted on the International Space Station.
1999
2000-2005
Marketed software product to enable rapid development of embedded algorithms on real-time hardware – DSPdeveloper
2000-2005
2004-2006
We designed and delivered a High Speed Research Press to Procter and Gamble, enabling them to rapidly prototype new products and processes.2004-2006
2013
Etegent expands into a new office at 5050 Section Avenue Cincinnati, OH 45212.
2013
2015
Boeing adopts NLign for manufacture of 787.
2015