Brian Gardner

Brian Gardner is a Senior Software Engineer at Raven Software, a studio operating under Activision, where he has spent over two decades contributing to some of the most commercially successful franchises in the gaming industry. His work has spanned major titles across the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Black Ops series — blockbuster productions that demand the kind of rigorous, high-performance engineering that only comes with deep experience and technical mastery.

Brian specializes in C++ and internal tool development, areas that sit at the core of professional software engineering in large-scale production environments. His focus on internal tooling reflects an understanding of how software teams actually function at scale — building the systems and infrastructure that allow entire studios to operate efficiently, rather than just the end products that reach consumers.

Prior to joining Activision, Brian spent 15 years in software engineering and management roles at IGT, a global leader in gaming technology. This tenure gave him a broad foundation across both the technical and organizational dimensions of software development — from hands-on engineering to leading and managing teams through complex, long-cycle projects.

Across more than 35 combined years in the industry, Brian has developed a comprehensive view of what software engineering careers look like in practice — the skills that matter, the tools that are essential, and the gap that often exists between what academic programs teach and what the industry actually demands. This perspective is precisely what makes him a valuable reviewer of graduate-level content in technical fields.

Brian holds a B.S. in Software Engineering from the Oregon Institute of Technology, giving him firsthand familiarity with the academic pathways that lead into professional software development — and a clear basis for evaluating how well graduate programs prepare students for real-world engineering careers.