Boots About Business
32 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 3 years ago -Support for our military veterans has never been higher than it is today. Many businesses have an interest in employing veterans, but they don’t know how to connect, and they don’t really understand the skills veterans can bring to their business. Something similar can be said about veterans in transition and their understanding of the business world.
Hi, I’m Frank Strong, I’m a veteran, I’ve worked in businesses of all sizes, small-, medium and large, today I’m a business owner and now, I’m hosting a podcast called “Boots about Business.”
We interview business leaders, executives and entrepreneurs that all started their careers wearing boots in service of the US armed forces. This podcast will be equal parts about sharing great stories, helping veterans, helping businesses and ultimately helping them both understand each other.
The show is available wherever you get your podcasts. Keep an eye on the show’s website for show notes and links resources discussed on the show.
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Episodes
Episode 30: Veterans Have an Employment Edge With or Without a College; Jason Marchant of FineTune
June 16, 2021 14:00 - 30 minutes - 70.3 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/bab_030_jason_marchant.jpg Jason Marchant won’t tell you to not get a degree, but he will tell you don’t let not having one prevent you from applying for a job. That’s how he did it. And in a couple years, he went from a veteran in transition, and wondering what he’d do with his life, to having a career in sales and business card with the title of “president” of a franchise. Today he leads a sales team for a company called Fine Tun...
Episode 29: One Step Back to Go Many Steps Forward; Army Veteran Starr Corbin of Diligent Robotics on Building a Career in Tech
June 02, 2021 10:15 - 33 minutes - 77.4 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/bab_029_starr_corbin.jpg After leaving the Army Starr Corbin took a job for which she felt she was overqualified. But she took it anyway and excelled. In few years, she was running the shop that eventually led opportunities with companies like CapGemini, iHeartRadio, and eventually her own consulting company. Today she leads the software team for a robotics startup in Austin, TX. On this episode she describes how she made a career o...
Episode 28: This Army Vet Applied to 400 Jobs with Zero Callbacks, but Here’s How He Finally Landed His Dream Job; Chuck Kluball, Military Relations for Home Depot
May 19, 2021 10:00 - 39 minutes - 90.5 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/bab_028_chuck_kluball_home_depot-scaled.jpg After Chuck Kluball transitioned out of the Army, he spent months applying for jobs and sending out resumes. In fact, he says he submitted about 400 applications and received no responses. Zero. Home Depot was at the top of his most wanted list and he sent some 40 applications to positions there and had the same result: No call backs. No interviews. And no job offers. Still, he preserved...
Episode 27: This Veteran Started a Landscaping Business with Work Ethic and Organizational Skills Acquired in the Army; Michael Winters of ThirtySeasons LLC
May 05, 2021 10:00 - 23 minutes - 54.4 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/bab_027_michael_winters.jpg Many of the lessons Michael Winters applies to his small business, he learned in the Army. He and a buddy started researching what it take to open a landscaping business while he was still wearing the uniform. In fact, they started mowing lawns part-time, in off duty hours, to get things going. It wasn’t easy, but then Mike says a lot of the things that helped him to be successful with a small business, a...
Episode 26: Former Navy SEAL Shares How Broke into Business; DJ Faldowski on How he Moved from One Elite Team to Another
April 21, 2021 10:00 - 24 minutes - 55.6 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/bab_026_dj_faldowski.jpeg It was 9/11. That’s what gave him the motivation to join the service. DJ Faldowski went on to graduate from Annapolis and serve in the Navy SEALs. He spent nine years in the Navy and multiple deployments before he decided to transition out. He wound up working in private equity, which is an elite aspect of finance. He later moved into business development and operations. Today he’s a program manager at SER...
Episode 25: This Former Marine Landed in Cybersecurity Almost by Accident; Christopher Kennedy with Career Tips for Veterans
April 07, 2021 10:00 - 37 minutes - 85.8 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/bab_025_chris_kennedy.jpeg Christopher Kennedy joined the Marines as a communications officer, and almost by accident wound up in cybersecurity. Cybersecurity was still a nascent industry then, but the experience served him well over his career. He’s worked in high profile cybersecurity gigs across multiple vertical markets, including government and finance, and also in organizations big and small, with companies like AttackIQ and N...
Episode 24: Veterans Make “Savagely Loyal” Employees; Air Force Veteran Adam Braatz of the Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce
March 17, 2021 10:00 - 30 minutes - 69.2 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/bab_024_adam_braatz.jpeg Adam Braatz joined the Air Force to play the piano. A professional trained musician, he was among the few that audition and selected for the Air Force band. That experience took him around the world – before transitioning to a Military Training Instructor (MTI). Today he serves as Vice President, Communications & Programming at the Wisconsin Veterans Chamber of Commerce. There he works with an “ecosystem” o...
Episode 23: Finding a Purpose in Business After Military Service; Army Veteran Kent Wilson of Network Security Provider Bricata
March 03, 2021 11:00 - 26 minutes - 60.3 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/bab_023_kent_wilson.jpeg Some veterans struggle with finding purpose after military service. It’s hard to match the idealism of uniformed service – that is being part of something bigger than oneself. Kent Wilson, however, found purpose in his work in cybersecurity. The mission is very real every day, but it took a dinner with some old buddies that were still serving in the Army – after he got out – to make that point. Today he’s ...
Episode 22: This Air Force Veteran is Building out a New Food Delivery Service; Timothy Dance of Dancin' Delivery
February 17, 2021 11:00 - 23 minutes - 32 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/bab_022_timothy_dance.jpeg Some of the conventional popular food delivery services are missing important elements: tamper proof measures, temperature control technology and other food safety issues. That’s a big part of where Timothy Dance sees a niche for his business idea. An Air Force veteran turned chef and entrepreneur, he walks us through his plans as he builds out a company– and also explains how his training in the Air Force...
Episode 21: Operating in Chaos translates to a [Business] Bias for Action; Beau Higgins a Retired Marine Colonel Turned Senior Manager of Military Talent Acquisition for Amazon
February 03, 2021 11:00 - 26 minutes - 59.6 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bab_021_beau_higgins.jpg One of the skills Beau Higgins says veterans bring to business is an ability to operate in chaos. That is when things are chaotic – veterans learn to focus on getting things done. For 25 years, Beau got things done in the Marine Corps. He’s a retired colonel that held roles from intelligence to Marine Recon and went all over the world. Today, he is a Senior Manager of Military Talent Acquisition for Amazon....
Episode 20: Balancing Work and Life between Google and the Army National Guard; Googler and Intel Officer Nathan Iglesias
January 20, 2021 11:00 - 36 minutes - 82.4 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bab_020_nathan_iglesias.jpeg Nathan Iglesias joined the California Army National Guard right after 9/11 – and after graduating college he essentially spent the next six years on active duty. He was trained as an intelligence officer, attended the military’s language school where he learned Dari, and later deployed to Afghanistan. He eventually came off active duty and was recruited by Google. While he remains a member of the Army N...
Episode 19: She Left the Army, Married a Soldier and then Discovered Military Spouses Need Career Help too; Jaime Chapman on Careers for the Spousal Community
January 06, 2021 11:00 - 26 minutes - 61.5 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bab_019_Jaime_Chapman.jpg When Jaime Chapman married into the Army, she experienced firsthand how difficult it is to find a job or maintain a career. While she did find work as a DoD contractor running programs for veterans in transition, the contract nature of the work meant her employment was subject to budget constraints. Despite three promotions, when she was laid off for the second time, she decided to become an entrepreneur o...
Episode 18: How a Nuclear Machinist Mate got into Real Estate; Navy Veteran Craig Hatcher of Georgia Residential Realty
December 16, 2020 11:00 - 35 minutes - 80.6 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bab_018_craig_hatcher.jpg Craig Hatcher joined the Navy as a Nuclear Machinist Mate looking after the reactors and associated equipment that powered the nuclear ship to which he was assigned. He later got out, and worked for UPS, until his wife’s interest and budding career in real estate drew him in as well. Today, Craig runs his own real estate brokerage. On this episode we talk to him a bit about what it takes to become an agent...
Episode 17: How a Special Forces Soldier Deployed to Corporate America; Former Green Beret turned Management Consultant Herb Thompson and The Transition Mission
December 02, 2020 11:00 - 26 minutes - 26.2 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/bab_17_herb_thompson.jpg When Herb Thompson was getting ready to retire from the Army, he had no idea what he would do next in his career. However, the uncertainty is something he was trained to deal with, and he used those skills to start planning his next mission to the civilian world. He didn’t know much about LinkedIn, but he got on it and just reached to people asking for advice. The effort led to an astounding 2,000 informatio...
Episode 16: A Business Incubator and Support Network for Military Veteran Entrepreneurs; Business Author and Navy Vet Todd Connor on the Third Shift Entrepreneur
November 18, 2020 11:00 - 32 minutes - 33.3 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/bab_016_todd_connor.png Todd Connor is a Navy veteran that has really done some interesting things. He’s worked for big companies like Booz Allen, he’s run his own consulting firm, and he’s even run for elected office. However, two of the things that he’s done that we’ll talk about on the show is an organization he founded called Bunker Labs and a book he has coming out with Wiley called Third Shift Entrepreneur: Keep Your Day Job, ...
Dear Veterans: Strive to be a Better Veteran this Veteran's Day {special message}
November 10, 2020 21:15 - 4 minutes - 3.52 MBMy friend Tom Deierlein posted an update to LinkedI (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6732017553482235905/)n that reads: To all my Veteran friends: When people thank you for your service tomorrow and all days. Don’t say "you’re welcome." Tell them how you really feel: "It was my honor and a privilege." Tom was the first interview for this podcast series -- so it you haven't listened yet, go check it out: Persistence and Grit: Tom Deierlein CEO of Thundercat Technology (...
Episode 15: How to Identify those Transferable Skills: Retired Sergeant Major Turned High-Tech Business Recruiter with Tips for Veterans in Transition
November 04, 2020 11:00 - 31 minutes - 30.9 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/bab_015_elliot_marks_.jpg Veterans are quick learners that are loyal and perform well under pressure. They have a sense of integrity, selflessness, teamwork and resiliency. However, articulating these things and other transferable skills onto a civilian resume one of the hardest things for veterans in transition to do. So says Elliott Marks who has had two careers in recruiting – one in unform and a second time in the business worl...
Episode 14: Setting Up Military Affairs Programs in Business; Former Marine and Public Defender, Joshua Wilson Now Advocates for America’s Warrior Partnership
October 21, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 31.2 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/bab_014_josh_wilson.jpg Joshua Wilson is a Corporate Relationship Manager at America's Warrior Partnership. The organization is a non-profit aimed at empowering communities to empower veterans. That involves many different things, but Josh is focused on helping businesses set up military affairs programs. Military affairs programs are designed to help businesses attract and retain veteran employees. In addition, they also help attr...
Episode 13: This Former “8th & I” Marine Once Tried to Open a Dominoes Franchise; Today He’s an Entrepreneur with a Wearable Stylus that Might Help Protect Us from COVID
October 07, 2020 10:00 - 25 minutes - 26.7 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/bab_013_gable_eaton.jpg When Gable Eaton saw how many pizzas his peers assigned to Marine Barracks at 8th & I ordered, he saw an opportunity. The (then) young Marine came up a plan to open a Dominoes Franchise nearby…but there was one barrier: as an active duty Marine, he’d need the Colonel to sign off on his paper work, and he didn’t quite see the opportunity the same way. But in some, way, shape or form, that experience meant Mr....
Episode 12: Uncommon Route to Self-Employment: How Army Vet Ruthie Bowles Turned Her MI Experience into a Marketing Career
September 16, 2020 10:00 - 33 minutes - 35.7 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/bab_012_ruthie_bowles.jpeg Sometimes veterans struggle to translate what they did in uniform into skills that make sense in the civilian world. Ruthie Bowls spent eight years in the Army working in intelligence. When she got out of the service, she went to work for a government contractor doing much the same thing. Still, she wanted something more and one thing the Army taught her it was to perform analysis, conduct ‘audience’ iden...
Episode 11: Veterans as a Source of Cybersecurity Talent; Tim Callahan, Air Force Vet and Aflac SVP and Global CISO
September 02, 2020 10:00 - 25 minutes - 26.6 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/bab_011_tim_callahan.jpg There’s a talent shortage in cybersecurity and it’s been that way for several years. Because of that shortage, some analysts forecast millions of cybersecurity roles will go vacant over the next few years. One source of cybersecurity talent is veterans because they have a natural inclination to protect information and gauging risk. That’s according to Tim Callahan, a 23-veteran of the Air Force, who today se...
Episode 10: Entrepreneurship with Training Wheels: Bill Williams on Helping Veterans with Franchise Ownership
August 19, 2020 10:00 - 26 minutes - 29 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/bab_010_bill_williams.jpg He was certain he’d drafted for Vietnam in the next 90 days. Rather than wait for the notification, he decided to shape his destiny and volunteered to join the Army. That was many years ago, but today, Bill Williams helps veterans shape their destiny when they decide to leave the service and transition back to civilian life. He runs a small company that helps "corporate refugees" and veterans, especially re...
Episode 9: Thinking of a Judge as the General; How Pair of Army Veterans Turned Lawyers – Husband and Wife – Opened their Own Practice
August 05, 2020 10:00 - 26 minutes - 25.8 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/bab_009_steve_patty_shewmaker.jpg She went West Point and he went ROTC at the University of Alabama. They both wound up as military intelligence officers that first met at a pizza shop where they were stationed. Over time, that meeting grew into marriage, and the partnership would extend beyond the service when the pair went into business together and opened up a law firm. Today, Steve and Patty Shewmaker are partners at the Shewma...
Episode 8: Leaving the Army and Starting a Business During a Recession: Brian Butler of Vistra Communications
July 15, 2020 10:00 - 20 minutes - 19.9 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/bab_008_brian_butler-scaled.jpg By any measure, Brian Butler was having a successful career in the Army. He served in Desert Storm, was chosen to work on the Homeland Security Council in The White House (where he worked on preparing for a pandemic no less!), and was selected for promotion to colonel (O6). And yet, after 22 years in uniform, he decided to do something else. So, he opened a business. That happened to be during a per...
Episode 7: Unbreakable Excellence: Army Vet Bob Eisiminger on Building and Selling a Company for $250 Million
July 01, 2020 10:00 - 22 minutes - 22.6 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/bab_007_bob_eisiminger.jpg How do all great things start? Over a beverage. How do you execute on big ideas? You “out-work” folks. So says Bob Eisiminger who describes how he and a friend (and fellow veteran) were sitting on a porch have a beer and talking about “doing something bigger.” The former Army officer and West Point graduate would subsequently form a team and the “unbreakable excellence” philosophy that built Knight Point...
Episode 6: Tossing the Resume – a Match Making App for Employers and Veterans; Robyn Grable of Veteran’s ACSEND
June 17, 2020 10:00 - 26 minutes - 26.6 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/bab_006_robyn_grable_-scaled.jpg About: Robyn Grable spent just shy of a decade as a sailor in the U.S. Navy – with tours in Iceland and Hawaii – before transitioning to the business world. Among her business assignment was a 15-year stint with ADP, the giant payroll processing and HR technology company. Today, she’s combined what she learned in the service and business to start Veteran’s ASCEND. She describes it as an “eHarmony for...
Episode 5: How to Come Back from a Kick in the Teeth; Dianne Falk an MI Officer Turned Management Consultant
June 03, 2020 10:00 - 21 minutes - 21.4 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/bab_005_dianne-falk-scaled.jpg Dianne Falk was as hard-charging as any Army officer, but when she was assigned to be the S2, a primary staff position for a cavalry squadron, her new commander didn’t want her, because she was a woman. So, before she even took the job, she was re-assigned to another position. That was a “kick in the teeth” that made her question her abilities. In this podcast, she shares how she recovered from that in...
Episode 4: Flying with G-Force: How an Army MP turned Air Force Pilot Built a Franchise Business to Employ Veterans
May 20, 2020 10:00 - 20 minutes - 21.4 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Jack-Child-and-Gordon-Logan.jpg Jack Child started his career first as an MP in the Army and he later became a pilot and instructor pilot in the Air Force. He left the military for a long career as a pilot with a major airline – a job he still holds today. However, after 9/11, the airlines took a hit and he started looking around for career options. That lead him down a path that eventually helped him found of G-FORCE Parking Lot St...
Episode 3: Business is also about Mission and Troop Welfare; BJ Schaknowski, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer at Vertafore
May 06, 2020 10:00 - 21 minutes - 20.9 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/bab_003_bj_schaknowski.jpg There are three things the Marine Corps taught BJ Schaknowski that he says are still true in business. First, highly diverse teams that are well organized are among the most successful. Second, the priorities of leadership business are still troop welfare and mission accomplishment. Third, the ability and desire to put in the work will pay off business just like it has in uniform. In this episode, he share...
Episode 2: The Subtle Things you Learn in Uniform; Fred Wellman on Entrepreneurship and Veteran’s Advocacy
April 22, 2020 10:00 - 25 minutes - 24.4 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/fred-wellman-veteran-advocate-scaled.jpg By his own admission Fred Wellman has had an “unusual career.” He flew helicopters in both Desert Storm and in Operation Iraqi Freedom too. His second campaign was unique because “one day you are fighting and the next day you are building schools.” He’s been a spokesperson for Generals David Petraeus and Martin Dempsey. He once ran for mayor of a small city in Georgia. And he was fired from h...
Episode 1: Persistence and Grit: Tom Deierlein CEO of Thundercat Technology
April 08, 2020 20:00 - 27 minutes - 29.2 MBhttps://www.swordandthescript.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/podcast_tom_deierlein.jpg He got a second chance at West Point. It took him three tries to get through the US Army’s Ranger School. He was shot by an enemy sniper in Iraq and some doctors never thought he’d walk again. Today, Tom Deierlein is a married father of three, he’s leads a charity that helps other veterans in need, and he’s the co-founder and CEO of a company called Thundercat Technology. Tom joins us for the inaugural epis...
Episode 0: Coming Soon! Boots About Business [click here to listen to the trailer]
February 05, 2020 21:00 - 1 minute - 1.4 MBWelcome to the Boots about Business podcast. We share stories from military veterans that have transitioned to the world of business. We interview business leaders, executives and entrepreneurs that all started their careers wearing boots in service of the US armed forces. This podcast is about helping other veterans advance their business careers and helping businesses to better understand the value veterans can bring to their team.