August 31, 2026 – Julie Praino joined Ignite as Senior Vice President in August 2026.
In this role, she leads business development, capture, and proposal development initiatives, identifying new opportunities, cultivating strategic client relationships, developing winning capture strategies, and driving competitive proposals that advance Ignite’s growth and long-term business objectives.
“I am excited to welcome Julie as Senior Vice President at Ignite,” says Ignite Chairman and CEO, Clayton Hinchman. “She brings over 20 years of experience supporting various missile, radar, and advanced technology development programs, and I look forward to her leadership as Ignite continues growing while solving impossible problems for our customers.”
Prior to joining Ignite, Ms. Praino built her career across engineering, program leadership, business development, and consulting, with a focus on defense and advanced technology. She primarily supported Air and Missile Defense programs, including UEWR, THAAD, AN/TPY-2, and PATRIOT, through roles with industry partners including Raytheon. Her experience spans domestic programs, Foreign Military Sales (FMS), and Direct Commercial Sales (DCS).
In addition to her leadership and business development experience, Ms. Praino is a co-inventor on a patent and has co-authored several academic publications, bringing a strong foundation in technology innovation and applied research to her work.
Ms. Praino holds a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Bates College, a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Boston University, and an MBA from Boston College.
We are excited to have Ms. Praino on our team and look forward to the incredible impact she will have.