Army

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BTU #13 - Taylor Justice: Army to Raising $6M in Funding

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“As you start to make this transition, -asking for advice is the smart move. Thinking that you have everything figured out or that you're going to be bothering someone learning about what they're doing that's the fool's road. I would urge people to not be scared of reaching out to people - if you don't, you're hurting yourself." – Taylor Justice

Taylor Justice is the Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer at Unite Us, a start-up that connects citizens with local coordinated services. Based in New York, Unite Us has raised over $6M in venture funding, and over 20 employees. After attending the U.S. Military Academy and serving for over a year as an Infantry Officer in the Army, Taylor was unexpectedly medically discharged from the Army. He faced his transition to civilian life years before he expected it, with no peers or classmates from whom to seek advice. Through a meticulous approach to reaching out to others, Taylor landed his first job in the Medical Devices industry, and then transitioned to the world of tech. While attending Columbia Business School he met his co-founder, and launched Unite Us.

In this conversation, we cover a lot of topics, including:

  • An unexpected departure from the Army, and navigating a career search before his peers
  • Using a systematic email process to gain information and his first job
  • The advantages of client support functional roles and sales roles
  • What it's like to start and grow a startup
  • Advice for other veterans seeking to start their own business
  • Not being afraid to ask advice from anyone and everyone as a means of learning
  • And much, much more…

iTurnes Beyond the UniformStitcher Beyond the Uniform

QUESTION OF THE DAY: How can I make these episodes more valuable to active duty military personnel considering transitioning to the civilian world? Please let me know in the comments.

Scroll below for links and show notes…

Selected Links from the Episode

Show Notes

  • [1:38] Background
  • [2:40] An unexpected separation from the Army
  • [8:40] The most helpful resources in his initial job search
  • [14:07] Advice for structuring an outreach process as part of a job search
  • [15:48] How the military most prepared and least prepared him for an Account Executive and Sales role
  • [18:50] The starting point of founding Unite Us
  • [22:25] Advice on finding and vetting a potential co-founder
  • [24:15] Whether to gain experience prior to starting a company, or do it straight out of the military
  • [29:12] The day-to-day life of starting a company
  • [33:30] Common misconceptions that military personnel have about starting a company
  • [38:25] How military personnel can benefit from Unite Us
  • [44:05] Biggest advice - don't be afraid to ask for help

 

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BTU #11: Alex Chivers - College at Dartmouth & Investment Banking

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“Being able to work with deadlines and under pressure, attention to detail...these little things add up dramatically to put you in a position to do well [in the Civilian world]." – Alex Chivers

Alex Chivers served as a Non-Commissioned Officer in the US Army, where was part of the elite Army Rangers. During his time in the Army, Alex deployed multiple times to Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. After leaving the Army, Alex was accepted to Dartmouth College, routinely ranked as one of the top ten colleges in the country. While at Dartmouth, Alex held internships in the Investment Banking world with both Barclays and Perella Weinberg Partners, as well as an internship at the US House of Representatives. Alex has also worked as an Ambassador for Service to School, helping other veterans get into college.

In this conversation, we cover a lot of topics, including:

  • His decision to leave the Army.
  • How a conversation on Reddit helped him get into Dartmouth
  • His work with Service to School, and advice on applying to college
  • Common mistakes he sees veterans make in their transition to civilian life
  • An overview of the Investment Banking world
  • And much, much more…

iTurnes Beyond the UniformStitcher Beyond the Uniform

QUESTION OF THE DAY: How can I make these episodes more valuable to active duty military personnel considering transitioning to the civilian world? Please let me know in the comments.

Scroll below for links and show notes…

Selected Links from the Episode

Show Notes

  • [2:10] Army Rangers, Darthmouth, and Alex's background
  • [3:10] Deciding to leave the Army
  • [4:31] How far in advance Alex started to plan
  • [6:35] Deciding between college vs. straight to industry
  • [7:45] Preparing financially for the transition to civilian life
  • [9:55] How Alex get into Dartmouth
  • [13:10] How a Reddit forum helped him get into college
  • [15:35] Advice for college applications
  • [18:36] Common misconceptions Alex sees when people are applying to college and transitioning to civilian life
  • [23:15] How the Army put Alex ahead... and where he felt behind his classmates
  • [27:20] Additional resources to consider
  • [28:31] Interning in the Investment Banking world
  • [30:50] Interning at the US House of Representatives
  • [32:22] What's next for Alex after Dartmouth
  • [35:30] Final advice to those on Active Duty
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BTU #9 - Will Grannis: Boeing, Google, Startups and More

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“Asking for help sometimes for some people implies weakness. If there's one thing I did that was semi-smart it was realizing that I wasn't going to be able to do it on my own and asking for help from those who were closest to me and had the most vested interest in my success." – Will Grannis

Will Grannis is the Managing Director of the Cloud CTO Office at Google. Since his time as an officer in the Army, he's had an incredible career prior to Google, including: Founding a company that was acquired after just two years; serving as the Chief Technology Officer for L-3 Communications, a company with over 38,000 employees worldwide; leading Boeing's Advanced Information Solutions team.

In this conversation, we cover a lot of topics, including:

  • His decision to leave the Army.
  • How he leveraged his closest relationships to land his first civilian job
  • How the Army most prepared him for his first job, and where he had to catch up to his peers
  • How overhearing a conversation in an adjacent cubicle changed his career
  • The advantages of working in a small office environment
  • How valuable industry experience is prior to pursuing an advanced degree
  • What it's like to work through the first part of a week, hop on a plane and attend grad school, fly back home and start the whole cycle over again
  • And much, much more…

iTurnes Beyond the UniformStitcher Beyond the Uniform

QUESTION OF THE DAY: How can I make these episodes more valuable to active duty military personnel considering transitioning to the civilian world? Please let me know in the comments.

Scroll below for links and show notes…

Selected Links from the Episode

Show Notes

  • [1:45] Background info
  • [3:04] Approaching the decision to leave the Army
  • [5:40] Active duty to IRR... and then to the Reserves
  • [7:51] The Telecom industry and a role as Program Manager
  • [10:19] How Will approached his job start when he first left the Army
  • [14:38] Day-to-day life in Will's first civilian job in the Telecom Industry, and why small companies are so valuable for veterans
  • [20:58] How the Army was a competitive advantage for Will... and where he had to catch up
  • [22:52] The biggest surprise Will faced when he transitioned to civilian life
  • [25:35] Making the transition to Boeing after one year as a civilian
  • [32:31] Pursuing an MBA at Wharton while working at Boeing
  • [36:15] How to consider grad school or straight to industry and what degree to pursue
  • [38:48] Final advice to anyone on Active Duty