From Boots To Business Suits
There are times that a program gets it so right that you stand in awe of its ability to address the real needs of veterans. Such is the case of the Entrepreneurs Bootcamp for Veterans (EBV) with Disabilities, an organization brought to our attention by Erik Weihenmayer, founder of Soldiers to the Summits. The Character Building Project considers this effort as well conceived and implemented. It truly empowers vets with disabilities to “pull themselves up by their bootstraps.”
The Entrepreneurs Bootcamp for Veterans (EBV) with Disabilities program is very practical. It jumps right in and trains vets in the tools and skills needed to start and grow a business and also addresses issues unique to disability and to the public benefits programs. Equally insightful is their addition of a support structure to stay in touch with its business-starting graduates.
Envision yourself home from military duty post 9/11, and although disabled, you have a very good idea for a new business. By involving yourself in this program, you will be able to discuss your concepts with entrepreneurship faculty and graduate students from several partner EBV universities. This can only improve your success at developing and honing your business concepts. Once that is accomplished, the faculty will also support you with technical assistance to see that your concepts become a reality.
Graduates of EBV learn how to write a sound business plan, analyze the market that they plan to target, and figure out what money they will need to get off the ground. They learn to market operations on a slim budget and are given advice about how to best organize a business so it can provide sustainable growth.
Applications are being accepted for the 2012 EBV programs. Applications are accepted on a rolling admissions basis, so the program recommends that you apply by mid April 2012. The seven EBV programs will take place from June through September 2012.
I hope many returning veterans who are disabled will visit their site at: http://whitman.syr.edu/ebv/ for more information on how to reinvent yourselves into entrepreneurial businessmen or women.
One Response to From Boots To Business Suits
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My name is Josh Peyton, and I am the owner of a company called YellowFlag. We are a start-up company that connects friends through football, both NFL and NCAA, via mobile devices.
As a wounded warrior, and a small business owner, I commend veterans like Justin Costantine that have the courage to create new markets, products, services, and ideas. We need more organizations that support the “boots to suits” mentality of Justin, and many other like-minded American heroes. I wholeheartedly agree with Michael Kerrigan and the old adage that “giving a man fish is different from teaching a man how to fish.”
As the owner of the DC based start-up, I have experienced first hand how difficult a task it is to transform a business idea into a viable product. As my company grows, I continue to receive a ton of support from experts and peers, but when I inquire about resources that are specifically tailored towards “Veteranpreneurs”, I usually get blank stares.
In my experience, educational seminars, networking events, and financial resources are the greatest tools for Veteranpreneurs to launch successful business ventures. Unfortunately, educational seminars and networking events are very expensive, and financial resources are almost non-existent.
Over the past two years, I have seen a serious push from corporate America, with companies like Disney and Microsoft, to hire veterans and wounded warriors. While commendable on the surface, I find it difficult to believe that these bureaucratic organizations can empathize with the many issues wounded warriors face as they enter the civilian work populace. These veterans, adjusting to their new normal, could feel empowered by their new occupation, but at the same time resent that their medical conditions gave them an unfair advantage. Additionally, emotional and physical stressors surrounding medical conditions ranging from PTSD to triple amputation are difficult for any organization to handle, much less executives who have never been in combat to begin with.
In my opinion, more organizations need to support organizations like Entrepreneurs Bootcamp for Veterans. However, that’s only one leg of the three pronged solution. If we recognize that educational seminars like EBV cultivate veteran ingenuity, and couple that with networking opportunities and veteran focussed venture capital, I believe that our country will be sprinting in the right direction.
Whereas, on the surface, bureaucratic organizations are trying support our heroes through veteran hiring initiatives, it’s my opinion that transforming a combat veteran from “boots to suits” leverages the education, networks, and resources necessary to adequately support Veteranprenuers. These veteran business leaders could then leverage their new skill sets to not only run their companies successfully, but manage their future wounded warrior and veterans employees from a base of experience, not merely philanthropy.