Mr. Friendly enlisted in the Army in 1989 and spent his first 4 years as a combat medic with two operational deployments, including Operation Restore Hope, Mogadishu Somalia. Upon Commissioning he was assigned to McDonald Army Community Hospital as an Environmental Science and Engineering Officer.

He held a number of Public Health Leadership positions in the Army to include: Commander of the 5th Medical Detachment (Entomology), Seoul, South Korea, where he reared and studied pesticide resistance in mosquitoes on the DMZ, Korean Hemorrhagic Fever in rodents and other zoonoses of military importance to the USFK; 1stMedical Brigade, Force Health Protection Officer during the initial phases of Operation Iraqi Freedom where he was responsible for establishing the Military public health network for all deploying forces assigned North of Baghdad; Commander of B Company, 21st Combat Support Hospital where he deployed the hospital to New Orleans in support of Hurricane Katrina Relief in Sept 2005.

In 2007, Mr. Friendly assumed an Army strategist position in the G-35 as Chief, Stability Operations. He retired in 2014 culminating his 24-Year military career as the Joint Public Health Program director in the Office of the Joint Staff Surgeon where he was responsible for serving as the principal subject matter expert and advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for all Public Health policy concerns relating to the Joint Force.

Mr. Friendly has been a member of the Defense Health Agency for seven years serving in a number of developmental position in the DoD Public Health enterprise. He served as the Strategy Lead for the Global Emerging Infections Surveillance Branch (GEIS), the Operations Chief for the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division and now the Deputy Director for the Defense Health Agency Public Health Directorate.

Sean has an MPH from the Texas Medical Center, Houston Texas, and a Certificate in US Defense Strategy from the Army War College.

His awards and decorations include the Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal w/4OLC, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement

Medal W2 OLC, Meritorious Unit Award, and Expert Field Medical Badge.

He is married to the former Yolanda Hernandez-Torres, also a 22-year Army Veteran. They are extremely proud of their 3 daughters and currently reside in Manassas, Virginia

As Chief Executive Officer of REI Systems, company co-founder Shyam Salona spends his days focused on building a culture of empowered teams and developing the agility of our company. Shyam believes the work environment that he fosters within REI Systems is the most crucial factor in REI Systems’ ability to build and deliver highly innovative solutions to our customers. Shyam looks at our company’s success from multiple directions and always looks for new ways that REI Systems can continue to grow. Shyam’s vision for the future of REI Systems is that REI’s customers, peers, employees, and the community in which we live and work will trust the company to do what is right, to keep its word, and leave our customers, employees, and our community better off than before.   

Before co-founding REI Systems in 1989, Shyam spent several years developing information systems and technology products. In the decades since, he has led REI Systems to design and implement innovative web-based solutions for complex business processes. Shyam has delivered multiple mission-critical solutions to public sector customers. He is happiest when he sees these solutions help achieve those agencies’ missions and improve millions of lives.  

Shyam received an M.S. in operations research at St. Stephen’s College in Delhi, India, in 1977. He then earned a diploma for his graduate research in computer science at the Indian Institute of Technology, also in Delhi, in 1978. In 1980, Shyam moved to the U.S. to earn his M.S. in computer science from the Center for Advanced Computer Studies at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (Lafayette) in 1982. After completing his education, he worked as a consultant, manager, and engineer at several corporations. After his job as a principal engineer at Digital Equipment Corp in Nashua, NH, Shyam partnered with Veer Bhartiya to start REI Systems.

Outside the office, Shyam enjoys listening to music, hiking, reading, mentoring entrepreneurs, and spending time with his wife, Poonam, and their two grown daughters