About Us

As the co-founder of North Star Group, Mr. Olsen is an experienced professional with more than 20 years of experience in operations, information technology, engineering, and finance. He is responsible for the daily operations and strategic direction of North Star Group. Prior to co-founding North Star Group, Mr. Olsen served as vice president of program management and corporate services for Broadwing Communications (Austin, Texas). In this role, Mr. Olsen managed network infrastructure, corporate acquisition integration, product development, customer implementation, corporate quality, and strategic initiatives on a nationwide scale. Mr. Olsen began his career in the 82nd Airborne Division, United States Army. Upon completing his obligation, he worked at Verizon Communications, achieving the level of regional engineering manager. Mr. Olsen went on to hold several senior-level positions with another organization, Corvis Corporation, in the areas of field operations, technical services, project management, quality assurance, information technology, and global education services. Mr. Olsen graduated from Towson University (Towson, Maryland), with a bachelor of science degree in liberal arts. He later earned a master of science in information and telecommunication systems and a master of business administration from Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, Maryland). Mr. Olsen is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP), Certified HealthCare Information Security and Privacy Practitioner (HCISPP), and an adjunct professor for cyber security at The Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School. Mr. Olsen also serves as a board member of the Dean’s Advisory Council at The Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School. Read blog posts by Bob Olsen >> 

Mr. Shveda is a co-founder of the North Star Group and a seasoned professional with more than 30 years of experience in project and program management, operations, and engineering. Prior to co-founding North Star Group, Mr. Shveda served as the director of program management for Broadwing Communications (Austin, Texas), where he led the development and implementation of project management processes—and increased the maturity level of the project management office (PMO) several stages. In this role, Mr. Shveda managed network infrastructure, product development, and strategic initiatives on a nationwide scale. Additionally, Mr. Shveda was responsible for a significant first, with the offering of both Layer 2 and Layer 3 Virtual Private Network (VPN) services on a new Converged Services Network based on Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS). Mr. Shveda began his career with the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) and received successive promotions, culminating in his role as senior project engineer for both the Navy’s F/A-18 Fighter Aircraft and Sparrow Missile System programs. Following his employment at NAVAIR, Mr. Shveda served as a program manager at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and became a product team leader for multiple cross-functional teams and successfully delivered the following key communications programs: Voice Switching and Control System, Air/Ground Communications, NADIN II Packet Switching Network, Low Density Communications Links, and the Data Multiplexing Network. Following his tenure at the FAA, Mr. Shveda went on to hold several mid-level positions with Corvis Corporation in the areas of project and program management. Mr. Shveda graduated with honors from the University of Tennessee (Knoxville, Tennessee) with a bachelor of science degree in aeronautical engineering. In addition, Mr. Shveda holds a master of science in technology of management from American University (Washington, DC), is certified as a Project Management Professional (PMP) by the Project Management Institute, and is a graduate of the Department of Defense (DOD) Defense Systems Management College. Mr. Shveda is also the author of “Who’s Going to Project Manage This?” Read blog posts by Mike Shveda >> 

As the Manager of Business Operations, Karen Wade is responsible for the daily business operations to include all financial functions, DCAA compliance, government contract management, company policies & procedures, and facilities management.  In addition, Karen closely coordinates with Human Resources Management, to assist in employee development, training, benefits, team building, employee engagement, payroll and performance management.  Karen is an entrepreneurial leader with over 20 years of experience managing accounting and human resources functions for small to medium sized business environments. Prior to joining North Star Group, Mrs. Wade was an Accounting & HR Manager and Business Consultant with technology companies to include Hewlett-Packard, Pointivity, ChannelCloud, and Dove Tree Canyon Software.  Other experiences include license management and reporting for Minor League Baseball, Dr. Seuss and LRG among others. Karen has a Bachelor degree in Business Administration and Management from the University of Puerto Rico and a Master of Business Administration and Finance from the Inter American University of Puerto Rico – Bayamon.