Brett Alayon, a proud alumnus of Pembroke Pines Charter High School (PPCHS), now works in finance for Northrop Grumman, one of the nation’s most esteemed defense contracting companies specializing in space and airborne systems. Every day, Alayon works hard to manage the financial side of projects that support aerospace innovation and national defense. His journey began in the halls of PPCHS, where his passion for storytelling and his natural talent for numbers slowly came together to curate the career he has today.
Working for the high school’s newspaper guided Alayon to work within finance and eventually pursue his current career.
“I used to work for the newspaper when I was in high school,” alum Brett Alayon states. “I always thought I was going to be in journalism, but I knew that I was pretty good with numbers and enjoyed numbers, so I decided to end up going that route.”
Brett Alayon went to Florida State University of Tallahassee (FSU). He was involved in Greek Life, Dance Marathon, and was even an orientation leader for the university. When the alum graduated, he was motivated to earn a degree in Master of Business Administration (MBA). Determined, he thrived at FSU for another year, which led to him now working for Northrop Grumman as a defense contractor dealing with aerospace and missile defense within finance.
Brett Alayon emphasizes, “I’m proud of myself for going to Florida State; I really wear my heart on my sleeve with them, and I have two degrees from there.”
Besides academic passion, the alum sincerely appreciates the activities on the campus. Alayon calls himself a “big sports fan,” continuing to admit how he hopes to “follow the Seminoles in all sports.”
That being said, the path from FSU to Northrop Grumman was not always easy. It took him perseverance as well as patience. Before working at Northrop Grumman, he was employed at a different company.
Even though he happened to work in the same position, he says, “I wasn’t feeling fulfilled in certain areas, and unfortunately, they weren’t honoring what I wanted. That is okay. It’s best to move on, but it was tough to transition.”
During the hardship, Alayon reminded himself that eventually there would be something better along the way. That would later present itself to being a job. He really wanted the same position but with objectively better pay, fair work, and more space to be recognized in a competitive industry. It was with his determination that Alayon was able to find a more than suitable job.
Even though his career often involves numerical data, numbers, and math are not the only things that Alayon has to maintain. Within his work, he handles aerospace and missile defense in the financial field, making day-to-day life nothing short of organized. Alayon always has to be on top of events he needs to go to, whether it is concerning work or keeping in touch with loved ones.
Alayon mentions, “Even as a teenager, I was pretty responsible and have always been organized, so this career connects to me as a teenager in some ways.”
Balancing career, family, and health as an adult has its difficulties. To combat this, Alayon tries to keep his mental and physical health stable while staying diligent.
Whenever he gets the chance to relax, he values it: “I think appreciating these certain times of relaxation while also living in the moment is important altogether.”
To the students of today, his most important lesson is to “stay true to who you are and be nice to people. It is crucial to be kind even through a phone screen; you never really know what someone is going through, so give other people grace even if they aren’t friends,” Brett Alayon explains.
Despite the countless obstacles in his way, Alayon remains steady and hopeful. His positive mindset radiates through his work and allows him to continue to play a pivotal role at Northrop Grumman.
