Leon Burns

Leon Burns’ ascension as President and CEO of Open Technology Group highlights the rapid advance of a business career centered on sound business principles and a clear understanding of the inherent value of DEI in effective employee relations.

A native of Silver Spring, Maryland, Leon earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Hampton University in 2012 and obtained a Master's Degree in Business Administration in 2016 from C.W. Post at Long Island University. His use of data migration early in his career would have a long-lasting impact on his success. It allowed him to create automated data platforms that track project progressions and help forecast government information technology (IT) infrastructure deficiencies. This innovation has successfully enabled Mr. Burns’ OTG team to implement price variation strategies for government contract bids.

Additionally, his pioneering methodology enabled him to construct modules displaying customer responsiveness (also known as customer intelligence analytics). His unique approach has been crucial in improving personnel retention and the bottom line.

Leon Burns has developed innovative approaches to enacting meaningful Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion methodologies. These strategies have expanded opportunities at OTG and proved a catalyst for vastly improved team cohesiveness across the company.

He is committed to maintaining his position on the cutting edge of information technology. He has earned IT certifications from Cornell University (including Business Analytics) and Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) certifications. Alongside these certifications, however, he believes profoundly in the power of numbers to impact lives. He has personally fought to break down social barriers that have constrained African Americans in the IT field by sponsoring a Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics symposium for African American youth for grade school students. He believes that collective efforts by diverse populations can make a far more significant difference than government funding. He is deeply devoted to the community and, since 2015, has co-chaired (with his mother) an annual Lung Cancer Walk/Run. His effort has raised over $140K since its inception. Leon now serves on the LUNGevity, Inc. Coordinating Committee for Fundraising in the Washington, DC area. Leon became the youngest recipient of Hampton University's Forty Under 40 award for outstanding community service and professional achievements.

Leon considers his tenure at Hampton University particularly impactful. In addition to his service as a Big Brother, his interaction with the campus and surrounding city led him to realize that knowledge and resources were lacking in the Black community regarding mental illness. Those who seek treatment must also battle an overwhelming stigma that portrays mental illness as a personal deficiency. Starting in 2017, Leon produced a YouTube series, Black Mental Health Matters, which successfully exposed the public to real-life mental health experiences.

Leon Burns continues his dedication to mental health as President of OTG. In January 2023, he co-sponsored a mental health seminar and fundraiser, Sound Mind, Mental Health, for PreK-12th grade educators to advance and encourage knowledge about mental illness and promote empirical research to advance the public good. He believes education can remove much of the stigma surrounding mental health, and fewer will feel that they must suffer in silence. Leon Burns looks forward to further advancing his mission of advancing corporate success through DEI and pursuing his journey of purpose.