Sad news from our partner ISL - their President and CEO Joe Guerci, a staunch supporter of Akida, passed away after battling cancer for several years…
We are deeply saddened to share the passing of Dr. Joseph Raymond Guerci, a visionary leader, brilliant mind, and cherished colleague whose contributions have shaped the foundation of our work and community. Dr. Guerci’s dedication, innovation, and wisdom left a lasting impact on everyone who...
www.linkedin.com
www.islinc.com
In Memoriam: Dr. Joseph R. Guerci
ISL mourns the recent death of its
President & Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Joseph Raymond Guerci, who tenaciously combatted cancer for several years and yet remained firmly at the helm of this Company providing guidance and direction. ISL’s employees are honored to commemorate his commitment to us, to ISL, and to the rigors of science about which he so passionately cared. Dr. Guerci’s remarkable career spanned over four decades, during which he made pioneering contributions to radar, electronic warfare, and advanced sensing technologies, shaping the future of defense and intelligence systems.
A Visionary Leader in Science and Technology
Dr. Guerci earned his Ph.D.E.E. in Electrical Engineering from NYU’s Polytechnic Institute (now the Tandon School of Engineering). Over the course of his distinguished career, he held leadership roles across government, industry, and academia, where he consistently advanced the boundaries of innovation.
A pivotal period in his career was his seven-year tenure at the
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), where he served as
Director of the Special Projects Office (SPO). In this role, he oversaw a
$500M annual technology portfolio, guiding the inception, research, and transition of next-generation multidisciplinary technologies. Among his most impactful achievements was the creation of the
KASSPER Project, a groundbreaking foundation for cognitive radar and electronic warfare (EW) systems—capabilities now deployed on advanced platforms such as the
F-22 and
F-35fighter aircraft.
Prior to joining ISL, Dr. Guerci served as
Chief Technology Officer for
SAIC’s $2B+ Research, Development, Test & Evaluation Group, where he directed engineering teams working on cutting-edge defense and intelligence technologies.
Since assuming the role of
President and CEO of ISL in 2015, Dr. Guerci guided the company’s mission to deliver science-driven, innovative solutions for complex real-world challenges. Under his leadership, ISL achieved significant breakthroughs in radar, RF hardware systems, modeling, electronic warfare, and energy systems, strengthening its reputation as a trusted leader in advanced technology development. These products developments also spurred great value for ISL’s stockholders, with Dr. Guerci’s corporate refocusing increasing stock value by more than 774%.
Dr Guerci’s strategic vision led to the creation of an RF Digital Twin capability and the first neuromorphic processing solutions to significantly reduce the development and test cycle time, cost, and size, weight, and power. Doing what many small businesses have not achieved, he transitioned Small Business Innovative Research Phase III projects into ISL designs and produced operational capabilities through direct sales to the DoD.
Scholar, Author, and Innovator
Dr. Guerci’s impact extended far beyond leadership—he was a globally recognized scholar and prolific author whose work continues to shape modern radar and sensor engineering. His published books have become foundational texts in the field, including:
- Space-Time Adaptive Processing for Radar (Artech House, 2003; 2nd ed. 2014)
- Cognitive Radar: The Knowledge-Aided Fully Adaptive Approach(Artech House, 2010; 2nd ed. 2020)
- MIMO Radar: Theory and Application(Artech House, 2018)
- Radar RF Circuit Design — co-authored with Nickolas Kingsley (Artech House, 2016; 2nd ed. 2019)
- Non-Line-Of-Sight Radar — co-authored with Brian Watson (Artech House, 2019)
In addition to his books, Dr. Guerci authored
over 130 peer-reviewed papers and contributed to numerous IEEE journals. He served as the
Radar Series Editor for Artech House, and was a member of the
IEEE Signal Processing Magazine Editorial Board. He frequently delivered keynote addresses at leading global conferences on radar advancements and cognitive sensing technologies.
Dr. Guerci was also dedicated to education and mentorship. He held
adjunct faculty appointments at
CUNY,
NYU Polytechnic,
The Cooper Union, and
Virginia Tech, shaping the next generation of engineers and researchers.
At ISL he was well known for placing employees in new and ever-more demanding roles, encouraging and helping them grow beyond their own expectations. He often claimed that he was a “micro-understander, not a micro-manager”—and, yes, his direct reports might occasionally have had difficulty discerning the distinction, yet everyone knew he was single-sightedly interested only in the Company’s improvement and in its employees bringing excellence to everything they did. Indeed, Dr. Guerci understood the importance of mentorship, not just as teaching, but as giving subordinates the opportunity to occupy the spotlight and to enhance their career paths. He encouraged and funded employees to present at technical conferences, to write for professional journals, and to serve on consensus standard setting bodies. And he celebrated their success and achievements at ISL and in those professional activities with awards and other tangible reminders of the esteem in which he held them. But best of all—ever the scientist—was the praise he heaped on colleagues when geeking out over a novel and elegant solution to a very difficult challenge. We all knew that Joe was our most ardent and loyal supporter and fan, and the empty space at our white board is poignant.
Honors and Awards
Dr. Guerci’s exceptional contributions to science, technology, and innovation were recognized with numerous prestigious awards and professional distinctions, including:
- IEEE Life Fellow (2005) — Recognized for “contributions to advanced radar theory and its embodiment in real-world systems.”
- IEEE Warren D. White Award (2007) — Recognizing excellence in radar adaptive processing and waveform diversity.
- IEEE AESS Organizational Leadership Award (2019) — Honoring his leadership as General Chair of the 2015 IEEE International Radar Conference.
- IEEE Dennis J. Picard Medal (2020) — IEEE’s highest honor in radar, awarded for “contributions to advanced, fully adaptive radar systems and real-time knowledge-aided, and cognitive radar processing architectures.”
- IEEE AESS Industrial Innovation Award (2025) — For groundbreaking contributions to high-fidelity RF modeling and simulation.
Beyond these accolades, Dr. Guerci was named a
Distinguished Industry Lecturer by the
IEEE Signal Processing Society and was widely regarded as one of the foremost thought leaders in radar and cognitive sensing technologies worldwide.
A Lasting Legacy
At ISL, we are proud to honor Dr. Guerci for his commitment to exceptional technical achievements. We are grateful for his leadership, vision, and dedication to innovation. His work has left an enduring mark on defense, intelligence, and sensing technologies, and his influence will continue to inspire generations of engineers, scientists, and innovators for years to come.
Professionally we at ISL know Dr. Guerci’s legacy lives on in the hearts of those he impacted with his presence, the groundbreaking systems he created, the knowledge he shared, and the culture of excellence he cultivated at ISL. Personally we know that his truest and most affectionate legacy lives on through his survivors—his wife of forty years, Evelyn Guerci, his two daughters, Sophia Scutari and Diana Guerci, and his two grandchildren, Roman and Isabella Scutari. He is also remembered by his two sons, John and Raymond Guerci, who remain in our loving memory.
Rest in peace, Joseph Raymond Guerci, Ph.D.