Pete Rodriguez ('90, Electrical Engineering MS)

Pete Rodriguez

Independent Advisor

BS Chemical Engineering, California Institute of Technology, 1984

MS Electrical Engineering, Cal Poly Pomona, 1990

MBA, Pepperdine University, 1993

Joint Professional Military Education, Naval War College, 2011

Born in Havana, Cuba, Pete Rodriguez came to the U.S. as a refugee at age 9, along with his mother and sister. Speaking no English—and carrying just two sets of clothes and $20—they sought a better life, and for Pete, education was the answer.

Cal Poly Pomona’s Learn by Doing paradigm became the critical foundation as Pete moved from his first engineering job—a process engineer at Siliconix—through his many diverse career roles. While working for Aerojet in 1993, Pete became the youngest third-level manager in the company’s history.

Next, Pete transitioned to a variety of executive leadership roles, including president and CEO of Exar Corporation, and vice president and general manager for NXP Semiconductor. In parallel, Pete served for 25 years in the U.S. Naval Reserves (which included resigning from a CEO job to mobilize for a tour in Afghanistan) and he also served as an aerospace engineer and worked on several aircraft and weapon systems programs.

This high-energy leader is now semi-retired, serving as an independent advisor to various technology startups and as acting chief technology officer for an early-phase wearable technology company.

“Take one day at a time, enjoy the journey, celebrate the small victories, focus on the correct problem and have a five- and ten-year plan for life,” Pete shares to students today. “Go to smart people and listen carefully to what they say. Integrate their best ideas—and always do the right, ethical thing.”