ANTONIO J HERNANDEZ BLANCO, Ph.D

Machine Learning · Generative AI · Data Science

Branford, US.

About

Highly accomplished IT and higher education professional with over a decade of experience in business process analysis, systems implementation, and data-driven decision-making, uniquely blending academic leadership with advanced technical expertise. Possessing a Ph.D. and a strong background in AI, Machine Learning, and cloud technologies, I excel at translating complex institutional needs into innovative technical solutions that enhance operational effectiveness and academic quality. Proven ability to drive strategic initiatives, improve program outcomes, and develop scalable AI/ML systems that deliver measurable impact.

Work

Florida National University

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Adjunct Faculty – Business

Hialeah, FL, US

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Summary

Led undergraduate courses in Information Technology, Management Information Systems, and Data Mining, fostering student understanding of core business technology concepts.

Highlights

Delivered comprehensive undergraduate courses including Introduction to Information Technology, Management Information Systems, and Data Mining Methodology.

Supported students in mastering foundational and advanced concepts in business technology and systems, enhancing their practical application skills.

Universidad de Las Américas

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Capstone Instructor - M.Sc. Business Intelligence & Data Science

Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador

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Summary

Guided graduate students through M.Sc. capstone projects, focusing on data preparation, modeling, and dashboard development using advanced methodologies.

Highlights

Mentored M.Sc. graduate students in the 'Proyecto MDB' capstone module, guiding comprehensive data preparation, modeling, and dashboard development using Python, SQL, and Tableau.

Instructed student teams on applying CRISP-DM methodology and machine learning evaluation best practices for robust project execution and analysis.

Chattigo SpA

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Software Engineer - AI & Conversational Systems

Remote, Remote, Chile

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Summary

Engineered and maintained multilingual AI agent models and scalable ETL pipelines, significantly improving chatbot accuracy and data querying efficiency.

Highlights

Developed and maintained multilingual AI agent models with advanced intent detection, significantly improving chatbot accuracy and user engagement.

Built scalable ETL pipelines and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) workflows, enabling efficient querying over 100,000+ unstructured documents.

Managed large datasets using SQL and integrated ML workflows into containerized microservices with Docker and GitHub Actions, reducing deployment cycles.

Collaborated with product and customer experience teams to define key performance indicators (KPIs) and optimize model performance through rigorous A/B testing.

Indoamerican University

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Director of Internal Assessment & Accreditation

Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador

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Summary

Led comprehensive institutional assessment and accreditation processes, managing data and collaborating with units to develop academic quality frameworks.

Highlights

Directed the design and implementation of comprehensive institutional assessment and accreditation processes, ensuring alignment with national and international standards.

Managed data collection, analysis, and reporting to inform strategic planning and data-driven decision-making processes.

Collaborated with faculty and administrative units to develop and implement academic quality frameworks and continuous improvement plans.

Technical University of the North

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Rectorate's Advisor

Ibarra, Imbabura, Ecuador

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Summary

Advised the Rectorate on academic policies and strategic initiatives, leading cross-departmental projects that enhanced operational efficiency by 15%.

Highlights

Advised the Rectorate on academic policies and strategic initiatives, contributing significantly to institutional growth and academic excellence.

Led cross-departmental projects that enhanced operational efficiency by 15% across the university, optimizing resource utilization and workflows.

Supervised the successful presentation and defense of numerous undergraduate degree projects, ensuring adherence to academic standards.

Education

University of Alicante

Alicante, Alicante, Spain
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PhD Computer Science

University of Matanzas

Matanzas, Matanzas, Cuba
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BEng Industrial Engineering

Languages

English

Spanish

Skills

Data & Analytics

SQL (MySQL, PostgreSQL, NoSQL, MongoDB, Cassandra, BigQuery), Data Collection, Data Management, Statistical Analysis, ETL, Orchestration (Airflow), Pandas, NumPy, Business Intelligence, Data Visualization (Tableau, Power BI, Matplotlib, Seaborn), Programming (Python - 15+ yrs, SQL, Bash, R, Node.js).

AI & Machine Learning

LLMs & Generative AI (Prompt engineering, RAG, AI Agents, Vector Databases - FAISS, Pinecone, Fine-tuning, Evaluation), NLP & ML Techniques (Transformer architectures, Classification, Clustering, Recommendation, Reinforcement Learning), Frameworks & Libraries (PyTorch, TensorFlow, HuggingFace, LangChain, CrewAI).

Cloud & DevOps

Cloud Platforms (GCP - Vertex AI, BigQuery, Dialogflow), AWS (S3, Lambda), Containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), CI/CD (GitHub Actions).

Business & Academic Processes

Business Process Analysis & Modeling, Program Evaluation & Continuous Improvement, Institutional Accreditation & Compliance, Strategic Planning & Academic Policy Development, Stakeholder Communication & Faculty Collaboration, Learning Analytics, Educational Data Science.

Projects

Optimization of Chatbot & AI Agent Systems

Summary

Focused on enhancing the accuracy and user engagement of multilingual AI agent models through advanced intent detection and A/B testing, drawing from experience at Chattigo SpA.

ETL Pipeline Development and Large Dataset Management

Summary

Designed and implemented scalable ETL pipelines and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) workflows for efficient querying over extensive unstructured document repositories, based on work at Chattigo SpA.

Institutional Accreditation and Quality Dashboard

Summary

Developed a comprehensive dashboard to support institutional assessment, accreditation processes, and continuous academic quality improvement, derived from university leadership experience.

Data-Driven Program Evaluation Framework

Summary

Designed and implemented a robust framework for program evaluation and continuous improvement, leveraging data analysis and strategic planning principles from academic leadership roles.

Adaptive Reading-Sequence Recommender (Ph.D. research)

Summary

Ph.D. research project focused on developing an adaptive recommender system for reading sequences, utilizing advanced machine learning and natural language processing techniques.