Episode Information
Show Notes
In this episode of Career Downloads, host Manuel Martinez interviews Adam Lopez, President of CMIT Solutions Las Vegas, a managed service provider specializing in cybersecurity for small to medium-sized businesses.
Adam shares his fascinating career path that began without a formal tech background. Starting as a slot machine technician at Las Vegas casinos, he developed an interest in the databases behind gaming systems. Through curiosity and initiative, Adam built project management skills that propelled him through increasingly senior roles.
Episode Highlights:
Adam’s early tech experiences, from building circuit boards to a shocking lesson about electricity
How he transitioned from hospitality management to technology through casino work
The development of his natural project management abilities
His career-changing experience working on cruise ships, which took him to all seven continents
Navigating transitions between operations and vendor roles in technology
Challenges of managing technical teams and handling workplace dynamics
Making the leap from corporate roles to business ownership
Practical advice on taking strategic risks and recognizing when to make career moves
Adam’s journey demonstrates that career growth often requires stepping outside your comfort zone—sometimes even taking a step back to ultimately move forward. His story offers valuable insights for technology professionals at any stage of their careers.
Whether you’re just starting in technology or looking to advance to leadership roles, Adam’s practical wisdom on building transferable skills, managing teams, and navigating the industry will help you chart your own successful path.
Listen to learn how being open to unexpected opportunities and having the courage to take calculated risks can lead to a fulfilling technology career.
#CareerDownloads #TechCareers #ProjectManagement #CyberSecurity
Transcript
Manuel: Welcome everyone. So my name is Manuel Martinez and this is another episode of Career Downloads where each episode I basically hit the refresh button, bring on a different guest to really learn more about their career and how they’ve managed it over time to really be able to uncover any actionable advice that you can use as you’re managing your own career. So for today’s episode I have with me Adam Lopez and I had met him at a networking event. So this was for SIM, so the Society of Information Managers. We had connected on LinkedIn. I had seen his kind of his career path and found a lot of interest in kind of the trajectory that he had. So I asked him to come on and he more than graciously accepted. So with that I’ll introduce Adam.
Adam: Hey thanks for having me, Manuel.
Manuel: I appreciate you coming on and kind of sharing your career trajectory.
Adam: Absolutely.
Manuel: So what I’ve been doing with my guests is if you just kind of give us a brief summary, just kind of tell us what your current position is and kind of some of the roles and responsibilities.
Adam: Yeah, sure. So currently I am the president of CMIT Solutions. We are a MSP cybersecurity company. So we predominantly do it in the cybersecurity space, but we also do MSP, which is your help desk for small to medium-sized businesses. Typically our market is small to medium-sized businesses, but we also do government as well, as well as enterprise, you know, just depending on the level. We are a franchise that’s been around since the 80s. Kind of funny story about the franchise. CMIT used to stand for Computer Moms in Informational Technology. So it was a mom that started the business and she used to go around and fix people’s computers. And so when I heard about the story, I love the story. I love the everything about that. And I was like, how do I get involved? So now, you know, now I am the president here in Las Vegas and it’s been great. You know,