Alexandria (Alex) Duran
Alexandria (Alex) Duran began her career in the space and defense industry at Pacific Scientific Energetic Materials Company, after completing her Bachelor of Science in Engineering and Master of Business Administration at Arizona State University. She joined Viasat in 2017 as a Quality Engineer, where she owned the product quality of components and modules for the Viasat-3 satellites. Alex was nominated for Viasat’s Operations Leadership Program (OLP) in 2019, a highly selective initiative aimed at grooming future leaders within the company. She completed four six-month rotations in various departments, including Supply Chain, Business Operations, Operations Program Management and Integration & Test, and honed her leadership skills, adaptability and technical proficiency throughout. Upon completing the program, Alex was appointed to her current position of Flight 3 Integration & Test Lead, a role in which she oversaw a team of engineers and technicians to integrate and test the satellite in the Tempe, AZ High Bay. She quickly mastered the intricate technical concepts required and put her new leadership skills to work, guiding the team to successful delivery of the Flight 3 satellite to Boeing in April 2023. Alex has continued to lead the Viasat integration efforts after delivery of the satellite to El Segundo, where spacecraft integration and environmental testing are currently in progress as of 2024. She also expanded her responsibilities to include leading the Flight 2 satellite team as well.
In addition to her role as Integration & Test Lead at Viasat, Alex has also become a major leader in the company’s efforts to foster a welcoming and diverse workplace. She worked with others at the Tempe, AZ site to establish a chapter of the Viasat Women’s Alliance in 2021 and created relationships with the other chapters in the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion group. In early 2023, Alex was nominated and selected for the newly created Viasat Women’s Alliance Global Lead role. She has since led efforts to advance women and allies within the company by providing opportunities for education and empowerment and elevating women’s presence and influence within all levels of Viasat leadership. Shortly after taking on this role, Alex also led the effort to host an inaugural Viasat Women’s Alliance Summit in March of 2024. The summit was a week-long event that covered many topics central to women in the industry, such as the importance of allyship, unconscious bias and imposter syndrome. It also included a World Café event on how to inspire more gender diversity in senior roles and how to empower your career. The first Viasat Women’s Alliance Summit attracted over 300 global attendees and garnered positive feedback from all levels of the organization, including executives.
Outside of working hours, Alex has a passion for supporting the next generation of women engineers and volunteers her time at many STEM events in the community. She speaks frequently at meetings of the Society of Women Engineers at the University of Arizona and Arizona State University and has also held talks for elementary school students. Alex supported ARISS (Amateur Radio on the International Space Station) at Tarwater Elementary School in Oct 2021 where she helped to connect the students with astronauts on the International Space Station via amateur radio. She also supports and participates in multiple events for the SciTech Institute, including the SciTech Festival at the Arizona Science Center. Alex is an active mentor within Viasat as well and has guided the careers of several men and women in the company.
