Mike Portland is founder and President/CEO of R&M Technology Solutions, and has over 27 years of experience leading people and programs. He joined the United States Navy in 1986 via the Nuclear Power Officer Candidate Program. He graduated from the University of Nebraska in 1987 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and was commissioned an Ensign in November 1987. Following the nuclear power training pipeline, he served aboard 4 different submarines over a 22-year career in the submarine force including Command at Sea of USS HAMPTON (SSN 767). He deployed overseas 10 times, and spent over 10.5 years on sea duty, loving every minute of it.

Ashore, he was selected for the Advanced Education Program and attended the University of Washington Foster School of Business where he earned a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Professional Accounting. He was also awarded a Financial Management Subspecialty Code (3110P) from the Navy.

After retirement from Naval service in 2008, he helped run a venture-funded startup commercializing advanced micro-channel heat sink technology in electronics cooling applications. As President of Pipeline Micro Holdings, he led operations on the mainland U.S., including R&D, rapid prototyping, product engineering, and finance with a $1M annual operating budget. He also led micro-pump research through a Singapore-based subsidiary. He was a key architect of the R&D and technology development business strategy leading to $7M in venture capital funding and over $1M in Singapore government grants. He fostered an environment of innovation and created processes leading to development of several “first ever” innovations in advanced electronics cooling and micro-manufacturing technologies.

Following Pipeline, Mike became the 10th employee at JRC Integrated Systems, a small service-disabled veteran-owned small business, where he was Vice President of Operations and Special Programs. At JRC, he was responsible for diversifying the company client portfolio as well as starting and growing an operating division called Special Programs. In two short years, he had established new customers, both commercial and government, and grew divisional revenue to about $1M, focusing on Advanced Technology Development, and Engineering and Technical Support to operational and R&D programs. During this same time, he helped grow company revenue from $1M to over $10M and over 50 employees.

In 2013, he founded R&M Technology Solutions LLC and hasn’t looked back.

At the edge of what is possible, making it happen.

Karl Prigge was born and raised in Golden Valley, MN, and attended the United States Naval Academy (Class of 1993) where he graduated with Distinction, receiving a Bachelor of Science in Systems Engineering. As a submarine officer in the US Navy, he served onboard USS HONOLULU (SSN 718) and USS TOPEKA (SSN 754) as Engineer Officer. Karl then transferred to the Engineering Duty community and reported to the Electric Boat Corp. nuclear submarine shipbuilding facility in New London, CT.

While there he managed two submarine repair projects totaling over $2 Billion and delivered two submarines from intensive three year conversions ($1.5 Billion program) as the Program Manager’s On-site Representative. Karl transferred to Washington, DC to lead critical fast paced projects including delivery of a new submarine rescue system, nuclear submarine modernizations and installation of a rapid development prototype hard-kill torpedo defensive weapon system. Karl earned a Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering (Digital Communications) from Worchester Polytechnics Institute, is certified in DoD Acquisition as DAWIA Level 3 Program Management and Level 3 Production, Quality and Manufacturing; and certified as a Project Management Professional (PMP).

Highly educated: