THE TEAM
Azad M. Madni, Ph.D.
Founder, President and CEO
Azad Madni is a researcher, entrepreneur, educator and author. He is the founder, President and CEO of Intelligent Systems Technology, Inc. a high tech company specializing in modeling and simulation technology for complex systems engineering, education and training. He's the Executive Director of University of Southern California's Systems Architecting and Engineering (SAE) Program and Professor of Astronautical Engineering in USC's Viterbi School of Engineering. He is also the Principal Systems Engineering Advisor at The Aerospace Corporation. His previous positions include Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Perceptronics, and Simulation Research Leader at Rockwell International on NASA's Space Shuttle Program.
He pioneered the meta-discipline of transdisciplinary systems engineering to exploit the convergence of systems engineering with other disciplines. He is the creator of model-driven storytelling, a transdiscplinary approach that integrates model-based engineering with interactive
storytelling in virtual worlds to enhance stakeholder participation in upfront engineering. His areas of expertise include model-based methods for architecting and design of resilient systems and enterprises and intelligent systems for planning, decision making, training and tutoring. His research in these areas has been sponsored by the federal government, aerospace and automotive companies, several DOD agencies, Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps. His research sponsors in the government include DARPA, OSD, DHS, S&T, MDA, DOE, NIST and NASA. His research sponsors in the aerospace and automotive industries include Boeing, General Motors, NGC, Raytheon, Hughes, Omnicon and SAIC. He has served as a consultant to Institute for Defense Analysis, RAND Corporation, UCLA, Oakridge National Laboratory, and Omnicon.
He is the co-founder and current chair of IEEE Systems, Man and Cybernetics, Model-Based Systems Engineering Technical Committee, and serves on the steering committees of multiple centers at USC. He received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles.
For more information about Dr. Madni go to www.AzadMadni.com.
Carla Conaway Madni, M.S.
COO and Principal Scientist
Ms. Carla Conaway Madni is the COO and a Principal Scientist of Intelligent Systems Technology, Inc. She conducts research in modeling and simulation, human-computer interface design, embedded training, and decision support systems. Ms. Madni has led major DOD, DARPA, Army, Navy, and Air Force programs and their successful transition and commercialization. Ms. Madni has over 30 years of R&D and technology experience. She has approximately 100 papers in international and national conferences. She is a Member of IEEE and the Human Factors Society. She received her B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Tulane University, and her M.S. in Engineering Systems with specialization in distributed artificial intelligence from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Ayesha Madni, Ed.D.
Director of Educational Services and Senior Project Manager
Dr. Ayesha Madni is an educational psychologist. She is known for her ability to apply principles from cognitive psychology and social and emotional learning to develop and grow relationships, and foster creativity, innovation, and problem solving. With over 20 years’ experience teaching, mentoring, and providing targeted interventions for individuals and teams in various capacities across both academic and organizational contexts, she can tailor learning opportunities that capitalizes on the strengths of individuals and teams.
Dr. Madni taught, managed, and performed research at the two most prominent universities in Los Angeles. Her vast teaching experiences include training both teachers and executives as part of the MAT (Master of Arts in Teaching) and the Global Ed.D. program at the USC Rossier school of Education. Her teaching experience spans online, hybrid (technology-supported), and in person capacities, as well as developing curriculum and tools. Dr. Madni’s research experience at both UCLA CRESST and USC’s Viterbi School of Engineering has also afforded her the opportunity to work with diverse organizations ranging from non-profits, to industry and government. These include the Gates Foundation, DARPA, ONR, NSF, DOD, SERC, and CDE, among others.
Dr. Madni received her doctoral degree in Educational Psychology from USC’s Rossier School of Education. In 2019, she was awarded the Distinguished Achievement Award for STEM Education by the Engineering Council of Southern California for her STEM- focused research in simulation and game-based learning, and in 2020, the Engineering Council awarded her and her team the Distinguished Engineering Project Achievement Award.
Ashna Madni, B.A.
Communications and Social Media Specialist
Ms. Ashna Madni is an award-winning writer, and communications and social media specialist. She has proven experience in driving marketing and public relations initiatives. She specializes in significantly increasing viewer engagement on corporate websites. Ms. Madni is also an accomplished freelance writer with creative publications in Vocal Media (First Prize winner), the University of Southern California's The Healing Process, California's Emerging Writers, and the University of Southern California's Palaver Arts Magazine.
Ms. Madni graduated Summa Cum Laude and received two B.A. degrees from the University of Southern California in English/Creative Writing and Social Sciences with an emphasis in Psychology. She was the recipient of the USC Dean Joan Metcalf Schaefer Travel Award when she studied at Pembroke-King's Programme at the University of Cambridge, UK. She was also a Fellow of the Los Angeles Review of Books Publishing Workshop.
