Editing Michael E. Hicks, Jr.

<p>'''Michael E. Hicks, Jr.''' (Mike Hicks) has more than thirty-five years of experience supporting public and private technology initiatives. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Computers and Information Systems from Florida A&M University and shortly thereafter was accepted into the Naval Flight Program. </p>
<p>During his career as a Naval Officer, Mike Hicks flew electronic reconnaissance missions in the EP-3E with VQ-1 in Guam, was a flight instructor with VT-2 at NAS Whiting Field and served as a staff member for Commander Training Air Wing Five. At Air Wing 5 he was assigned the duties of creating an IT department for the Wing, which supported all the squadrons at NAS Whiting Field. During his tenure he was involved in projects such as base-wide fiber network construction, data center design and construction, network design and support, help desk management, and contractor management.  </p>
After retiring from the military, Mr. Hicks established his first commercial business, Pensacola Internet. This company grew to become the second largest ISP in Pensacola Florida and was the first company to introduce new technologies such as the 56K modem and wireless internet access in the Pensacola area.  </p>
<p>Eleven years later, he sold Pensacola Internet’s residential customers to Mindspring and business customers to Network Telephone. He then joined Network Telephone as their IT Director where he was responsible for managing the IT needs of the company as it grew from 55 employees to 600+ employees operating in 9 states. He oversaw projects such as data center design, fiber network design, wireless network design/construction and was a member of the team responsible for billing, OSS, trouble/network monitoring system selection and integration.  </p>
<p>In 2001, Mike Hicks co-founded Hixardt Technologies, continuing to amass an additional two decades of business leadership experience in both the enterprise and federal information technology industries. 
After Hurricane Katrina washed through New Orleans Louisiana, Mr. Hicks consulted and provided recommendation support to US Army General Russel Honoré for the Joint Task Force Katrina response for coordinating military relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina and affected areas across the Gulf Coast. </p>
<p>Mike Hicks is also the emeritus chairman of the Board of Directors for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's New Orleans Branch, where he contributed real-world expertise on federal government requirements, administration, and entrepreneurial endeavors.<br> </p>
<p>'''Hixardt Technologies, Inc. (Hixardt)''' is an information technology firm established in June 2001 and headquartered in Pensacola Florida servicing the upper Gulf Coast and DC Metro areas. Hixardt is an IT solutions provider for both commercial and government clients. Hixardt provides best-in-class cybersecurity and compliance solutions to local professional organizations, regional government offices, and federal agencies. Across these diverse markets and geographies, our mission is simple; secure systems, empower people, and deliver peace of mind to leadership so they can focus on their mission. </p>