Employment & Entrepreneurship: Empowering Veteran Success

Thank you for coming because what we do for veterans often uh what's the most important thing that we do for veterans is one of the questions I ask sometimes and a lot of people look at DAV and they look at our structure and they say it's helping them get their benefits right it's helping a veteran get justice for the sacrifice they made in uniform um and and that might be the most important thing but some of those veterans might come to you and that veteran is 30% disabled and that so that those funds are justice. They represent justice, but it doesn't mean that that was the most important thing you could have done because that veteran might need transportation. That veteran might need a job. That veteran might need disaster relief. So, the more you know about DAV, the more you're able to tell people where to go um in a pleasant way. Don't do the where to go the way uh Jeremy does it with me sometimes, but the more you're able to do that, the better an advocate you are and the more you're going to have those encounters. How many of you have a veteran who one time came up to you and said, "Because you told me this or did this, my life completely changed." Raise your hand if that's ever happened to you. How good does that feel? Uh I went through, you know, last year I went through this program uh or went through uh convention coming out of convention. I went to a program called Save a Warrior. Has anyone here ever heard of Save a Warrior? We have a couple people who've heard of Save a Warrior. That program absolutely changed my life. By this time, usually at a national convention, I was ready for my brain to explode. I was so stressed out. I was questioning everything in life. But this program really helped me in life. It helped me a great deal. But now I'm telling people about it because I want you all to have those same kinds of experiences and get through it. Let's talk a little bit about beat DAV Patriot Boot Camp just to make sure that we're still awake after the delicious carbohydrates we had at lunchtime. All right. Okay. Who's uh closest to the microphone? Sir, you are closest to the microphone. How's your vision? How's your vision? Okay. Can you stand up and read this for me, please? I am that lazy. It was joining the Air Guard after the Marine Corps that made me this lazy. Go ahead. What am I doing? >> Would you please read the slide, sir? Oh, >> DAV Patriot Boot Camp is a transformative program that empowers founders in the veteran and military community, including spouses with comprehensive entrepreneurship, startup education, mentorship, access to resources, and a vital community committed to their success. >> Give a round of applause. >> You did it. Thank you. Thank you. Um, he's in the Marine Corps. I just wanted to prove that Marines can read to all of you. >> All right. Uh, I want to introduce you to someone very important here. This is Matt Feld House. He is an army guy. He served in intelligence, the United States Army. He's a former entrepreneur. He's a fitness influencer. And he is a, no kidding, American Ninja Warrior. He is the head of DAV Patriot Boot Camp. He's a program director. Um Matt has really writed the ship with the AV Patriot Boot Camp. When it first came into DAV, we kind of went through a couple directors and and they both contributed something to the organization, but Matt is writing the ship and doing a great job. Did any of you get a chance to meet Matt? Anyone? Matt is a great person and he is a great source for referrals because if you send them to me, um you have to deal with, you know, whether I'm awake when I'm checking my emails or not. So, please send any referrals to Matt Feldhouse. He's a great guy. Um, we are just coming off of an extremely successful DAV Patriot Boot Camp cohort in Salt Lake City, uh, Utah. It was a fantastic event. One of the challenges that we've had, and this is an area where you can help the AV Patriot Boot Camp, but one of the historical challenges we have is getting people to commit to the program. getting enough people to commit to the program to form a cohort that is going to gel. We want to get people as close as we can in in where they're at in their businesses, we want to get people as close as they can in terms of um what they're going to contribute to the cohort because in as much as Patriot Boot Camp can give you some lifechanging advice, it can it can make an adjustment in your business that can be absolutely transformative. Um, it also really depends. The ultimate big thing that people take away from DAB Patriot Boot Camp is the network that Patriot Boot Camp creates and that starts with mentorship. Uh, I don't know what the hell. There we go. There we go. I'll use this as a rock after a while and just start banging on the computer. Um, mentorship. Now, I don't expect that you're going to be able to read all those things on the mentorship slide there, but those are some of the areas that we where when we're looking for entre for mentors for entrepreneurs, those are the things we're looking at. One of the big new focuses I I would say even since this program started, I mean, it's always been of interest to people, but especially in the last three or four years is AI. Um, it's a huge track at DAV Patriot Boot Camp. the more and more demand companies that are entirely based off AI almost um are coming in through the cohort. So that's an area where we're looking for help business planning and scaling. So when I'm looking for a mentor, I'm looking for someone who has either been there, done that, or who helps other people do that um in in their business or in what they're doing. Capital and funding. What's the difference between a veteran entrepreneur and another and a and a startup kid uh in Silicon Valley? To my mind, the difference is that the veteran um got out of high school, got out of college, and decided that they would serve their country and gave up four of the prime years of their life at least to serving our country. Meanwhile, the guy from Silicon Valley was smoking dope, hanging out with friends in a garage. He turned it into a business, made a trillion bucks, and doesn't give a about anything. Um, that was Yes, that was a joke. I mean I I get it if it's not funny but just chuckle so that I know to move to the next slide at least please. Um product development is an issue. Sales is an issue. Um operations and processes are issues um that people go through that people need help with. your marketing, your website, your digital presence, how you use those things to amplify your business andor convert to sales are all important things that we work with at DAV Patriot Boot Camp. Okay. What participants are saying about the program, um, we had a couple quotes there that, um, you can tell are I'm I'm working on things that are less than ADA compliant, so I don't expect you're going to be able to read those things, but one of those comments up there is, "Thank you for a great program. Looking forward to see it continue to grow. I had a great time there. I'm honored to be a part of this cohort. Come back as a mentor. Um, this is my favorite one though. It's at the bottom. Might be the only one some of you with binoculars can read. This cohort revived my business. Thank you. Uh, the people who are going through this program often because they weren't um entrepreneurs born and bred the way that um the Silicon Valley ptheads are, they look at things a little bit differently. They don't have the same network that everyone else has going into that. And they also have to deal with preconceptions that the world has about veterans. And one of those ideas that people have about veterans is that we are dumbass automatons who were willing to go and face rapid machine gun fire but don't ask for anything creative out of us. Right? It's the idea that we we take orders. That's that's the idea that some people have about veterans andor we have PTSD. We're messed up. we're potentially dangerous if you make us angry. These are all things that get in the way for for uh for veteran entrepreneurs and they're things that we address somewhat through the program. We're not necessarily doing it by educating the public. We're doing it by creating our own community. We're doing it by creating finding people who already understand the value that veterans bring to entrepreneurship and want to come in and support the program. Um, here's some feedback from the spring cohort um that I can't expect you to read either, but uh the the number in the top left there is called the NPS score. Does anyone know what an NPS score is? One of our entrepreneurs has a couple people do. What does it mean, ma'am? You you raised your hand back there. What's an NPS score? Oh, you who raised their hand when he did? I'm just going to make it up. It is the net. the net promoter score. That's an important number because a net promotion, it means that someone's going to definitely recommend your your program to someone else. It's a special kind of fan that we get out of EV Patriot Boot Camp. 100% of our last cohort's participants were so thrilled with the program that they'd do it again and they'd recommend it to someone else. That's not true of a lot of programs DAV has because there's a lot of friction between someone getting their benefits. There's sometimes some friction between the great smell of an air freshener and one of the DAB transportation network vehicles. John Klein, can you work on that for me, please? Just just dial it back on the air fresheners and the vans. Thank you. Thanks. I appreciate that. 94% would come back. Um it it it's a fantastic program and I have someone very special to talk about the program from M. The company is called Mind Spa. Sam Peterson. Everybody give him a round of applause. >> [applause] >> Oh, thanks Dan. Uh, I guess you can't read your own notes. Uh, it's Mind Spa with a D. Um, he's the marine that can't read. Um, >> thanks everybody. Uh, it's an honor to be here to uh to talk about this wonderful program. Um, I've actually been to Patriot Boot Camp twice. Um, my when my business first started back in 2018, it started as a nonprofit that was raising money for vets and first responders to get more effective care for traumatic brain injuries, PTSD, and uh, depression. And over, you know, almost a decade, it morphed into what is now MindSpa, where we have facilities to perform the treatments that we were paying for previously. And Patriot Boot Camp has been such a a blessing to me as a first-time founder. I got out of explosive ordinance disposal and went straight into this line of work trying to fix the brains of our brothers and sisters and did not know my ass from a hole in the ground. Didn't know what I was doing in medicine. And Patriot Boot Camp provided that first lifeline to mentors who could help vector me in to what I needed to focus on as a first-time founder. And then coming back during that last spring cohort um and winning the pitch competition was amazing because it it took it to the next level. Um, that's one of the biggest problems. Not in just losing the community that we normally have in the military, but stepping into something incredibly unknown that has really serious consequences. I I joke all the time that being a bomb tech's really easy once you get over the whole fear of dying thing because if you screw up very very very very quickly, it's no longer your problem. In business, that is not the case. That will follow you for the rest of your life. [snorts and laughter] Um, so being able to be in the room with like-minded individuals who are all rowing in that same boat gives us back that sense of community. Just a real quick show of hands. Are there any anybody own their own business in here? All right, cool. So, I have a challenge for all of you. For those of you who raised your hand, is there anyone in your chapter, in your DAV chapter, who wants to start a business? Cool. Well, you guys, I I challenge you to be an ambassador for a program like this because there are no other programs like this that can take job off the street who's got a good idea and put them in front of a billionaire. That's what this program does. I don't know any other program in the nation that can sit you in front of someone who's worth a billion dollars who will who will tell you exactly what you need to hear to grow your business. Um, it it's incredibly valuable. Like a perfect example of this, I was just talking to a Green Beret yesterday who wants to start a new business in in association with Penn State to create a blood test that can that can read the specificity and the severity of a traumatic brain injury, something that doesn't exist today. Those are the kinds of projects and the kind of businesses that are funneling through this program. So if you hear of someone in your formations who even has a has a good idea, has something that might have wheels, I challenge you to plug them in to this program because there is no program like this in the United States today. And it is an incredible asset for veteran entrepreneurs like myself because veterans are more likely to hire more veterans. we are more likely to give back to this community and we're more likely to make an impact on this community. So, um, thanks for giving me a couple minutes to talk about this. Really appreciate your time. >> Yeah, hit it. >> How much? >> Yeah. So, um, at the end of at the end of Patriot Boot Camp, we all get a chance to come up and pitch and you get what was it? 2 minutes, which by the way is like the hardest thing in the world to pitch is to memorize everything you need to say, be on point with all your marks and do that all in two minutes and communicate value. It is one of the most difficult things you can do with a microphone in your hand. And so we all got a chance to come up um first we submitted a was it a one minute video from all the submissions. The finalists were chosen and what we had 10, right? I think it was 10. Yeah, about 10 of us came up and and gave our two-minute pitch and got a chance to win $5,000, which is an incredible opportunity. And it's about really getting in the reps for this kind of thing because uh Dan Priestley says it best, entrepreneurship is the journey of a thousand pitches. And if you can master that, that's the first step to every other thing that you want. Yeah. Yeah. Mentorship. uh the the mentors who are in the room. Oh yeah, thanks for the mentors who are in the room are world class and I really appreciate the the lengths that this team goes to to make sure that the people in the right room are in the room are the right ones. So for all of you who raised your hand, you veteran entrepreneurs out there, sign up to be a mentor for Patriot Boot Camp. I'm going to do it uh what next the next cohort. What this system is doing is making sure that these new entrepreneurs that are coming into our formation as seasoned entrepreneurs are getting the best advice possible. And that only happens if the dude or gal sitting across the table from you knows what the hell they're talking about. And the team does a really good job of curating that list of entrepreneurs to make sure that the right people are in the room. So if you are a veteran entrepreneur, please participate in this program. donate some of your time and help bring up the next cohort of entrepreneurs into our space. Lot lot of things on evenings. U yeah every after the curriculum's over it is a fantastic time to to get some fellowship with people who are row in the same boat as you. You might be in a different industry, but anybody who's been the CEO of a company knows that you don't get to turn to your left and right like you did when you were in the military and whine about your conditions because you're turning to your left and your right and you're whining to your subordinates or to your co-founder who you might be pissed off at at the time. This gives you a chance to sit down with other like-minded veteran entrepreneurs who are having the exact same problem in a completely different industry that you are. It really drives home the fact that we are not alone in this fight and that there are resources and people who are going through the same thing that we can build community with. Did we meet any celebrities? Yeah, I got to sit down with Robert Irvine for what was it like 30 minutes? Again, the guy's a billionaire. He he is in is now in charge of of running all of the food delivery and food services for the Army and the Air Force. like for someone who, you know, had just started out, there's no way in hell you would ever ever ever ever get into a room with that guy. And we had a a good grip of us that got face tof face one-on-one time with them. And I know at least one deal came out of um out of the spring cohort. So that just the access to that alone, being able to talk to sentillionaires and billionaires who have been in your position and started from the ground up is incredibly valuable. Yeah. Um, so my venture mind spa and you know anybody who's interested in this or who has a traumatic brain injury, PTSD, depression or anxiety, we focus on more effective care for those ailments. Uh, we target the root cause of those conditions and we can actually heal and rewire the brain. So, anybody who's suffering from a TBI and you've been told um by the traditional medical establishment that this is your new normal, that's a load of crap. Uh we can actually heal and rewire your brain. And if you're interested in any of that, come talk to me afterwards. >> We should have just given you a mic, Dan. [clears throat] Uh yeah, I still I still talk I still talk to uh to three of the cohort members that I went through in April. Um I've had a number of them uh one of the AI companies actually come into my business and help me dashboard out some of our processes. So it it's been incredibly valuable to me as a business owner. say just in just in the efficiencies we've been able to create in the clinic, we'll probably save 200 grand next year in operational costs, >> which is not a small number. >> So much thanks guys. [applause] >> I highly recommend if you're ever doing presentations, find someone better looking than you, funnier and more eloquent, and put them on the stand. just make them do all the work for you. Um, another thing the DEV Patriot Boot Camp is doing is is there are gosh, it's we've had a ton of training sessions lately. We call them caffeine connects are available online. We have a very special person here who contributed to those. Veronica, would you mind stepping to a mic and telling us all about it? Give Veronica a round of applause. Everybody, [applause] grab the mic and then turn around and face the people and show them how awesome you are. >> Hi there. Oh, this is loud. Uh, my name is Veronica Dorado. I'm a financial coach. I'm also a US Army veteran, an Army spouse, and we are currently PCSing this week. So, all of the things are going on. Um, I will be presenting a workshop on strategic budgeting for entrepreneurs. Um, my TLDDR backstory is I graduated with six figures of debt, started working for these high- netw worth individuals in commercial real estate, saw how they how their manner of budgeting was materially different from what I thought budgeting was, and I was able to pay off that six figures of debt on a median salary in three years with those tactics. So, I will be teaching that come October. Thank you so much, Dan, for connecting me with Caffeine Connect. And I also had a question if whenever we get to that section for you. >> Okay, try it and and if I like it, I might answer it. >> Okay, so my question is um what is the ideal profile of a business that you is is there an ideal profile business for the boot camp in terms of revenue sc like looking to scale verticals, anything like that? That's the thing about entrepreneurs is when they when they engage in questions, it's something that's going to help probably get the message out to everyone else. Um, we're looking for people ideally who have revenue, who have an EIN, who have a website, who have an employee. Those are fairly lowbar standards. That doesn't mean that um you have to be a millionaire. you don't have to, you know, it doesn't mean that you're not going to be considered if you don't meet those requirements. But what we found is first off, I want Patriot Boot Camp costs uh what I think we're at costs uh it's it's probably under $4,000, but it's in the $4,000 ballpark for an entrepreneur to go through DAV Patriot Boot Camp. That's what it costs DAV to get them through that program. Um that's a significant investment for our charity. It's you'd all agree, right? Um so I want people who have made an investment in themselves. I want people who come back and I want them to turn into massive donors for DAV so we don't have to solicit online anymore. What do you guys think of that? [applause] >> Sam doesn't know that we took 10% of his business, but we appreciate you not reading this fine print, Sam. Thank you very much. Um, I'll be up here to answer more questions as we go, but I do want to thank Veronica and Sam for making your way out here. I do want to tell you all that you have a role to play in DAV Patriot Boot Camp. And as you learn more about employment, just make sure that you're not the person who is in your bubble of DAV and you're treating it like that's the only thing. It's that we got to we got to know these programs to be able to sell them to other people because if you don't do that, you're actually limiting DAV. You're limiting the organization. So, get to know DAV better, be better advocates, and thank you all. Turn it over to Jeremy. [applause] Good afternoon, everyone. Again, I'm sorry for the height difference. They forgot my uh step stool up here. So, you're going to have to deal with it. My apologies. So, uh, main focus here is jobs.dav.org and our national employment program. Uh, anyone here ever come to one of our job fairs? Anyone here ever get a job at one of our job fairs? I might be talking to you in a few minutes. Thank you for putting your hand up. So, uh, first things first is going over our team. Uh, we are a small team, but we have a team of four. Uh there's myself, Jackie Graham, who will be talking in a little bit, our associate national employment director. Diana Stoer is our assistant to the national employment team. Uh she is the one that does all the logistics for us when it comes to getting everything sent to the job fairs, getting everything set up for them, and then also contacting uh some of the companies as well. And then Doug Faber uh used to be our employment specialist. He is now our veteran employment liaison. So he has adjusted roles and he is now uh also doing job fairs with us as well. Sorry, he adjusted my screen and all I see is my face. Fix that for you. Oh, you're good. All right. So our main focus when it comes to the DAV employment department is our uh direct assistant to job seekers. So when we're focused on this, we're doing it by going to where they are and what they need at that time. So he is really messing up my presentation. >> Thank you very much. So >> yes, sorry I am very short. My apologies. So, my apologies. So, supporting our meaningful employment and military community service. We've been doing that since 2014. We do that with all the job fairs that we do across the country. Uh when we're doing this, we're going to where the veterans are or we're doing the virtual job fairs where they're needed as well. So, we do those with regions. Uh we do direct assistance with job seekers. So, we're talking to them when they're contacting us and we're setting up uh additional information or additional conversations so they're ready when they're going in front of these employers. Uh we do strategic partnerships like one I'm going to be talking about with Recruit Military and Mike Frankham is over here to the left. Can you raise your hand, sir? Uh we've been with them since 20 uh my apologies, it's been 12 years, so 2014. Is that correct? Yep. So, uh, on top of that, we're doing outreach with our community efforts. So, we're getting with the companies that are in the area, but also with the chapters and departments. If you haven't received anything from our department, please check your emails. We send those out routinely on when we're going to be in your area and what time those events are going to be. So, if you're looking for the next time we're going to be there, you can come on to our website, jobs.tv.org, but also in your email box as well. And then we provide employment resources. So on the website we have additional information for your resume writing, interview prep, negotiation tactics. We can also get you with individuals like recruit military where they can do additional resume writing if you're looking for information for CVs or federal resume writing or civilian as well. Now, I talked a little bit, we partner with Recruit Military. We've been with them for over 12 years now, and we do a lot of additional events as well, like our MBA. Now, when it comes to the resume writing assistance, they do it on their website. They have it routinely multiple times a month that you can go on there and do that information, uh, including the Inerson job fairs that I'm going to be discussing and the virtual ones. But we also have our online job board. As of right now, we have over 225,000 jobs with over 1,700 companies and you can search that with multiple different facets to find what's best for you or the individual that you're helping with that's coming into your office. Like Dan said, we're we're wanting to be holistic in helping in all avenues of approach. So, there's a lot of them that are dealing with disability claims, but how many of the individuals that are having issues with their disability are also having issues with employment and are not being able to support their families when they're also trying to get those disability benefits at the same time. Or the ones that are needing individuals to help them volunteer and help them around the house, they're most likely probably not bringing income in as well. Now, again, you can go on to our website, jobs.dev.org, or and you're going to be able to see all the information I'm discussing. The first section when you go on to it, it's going to be discussing on how you can contact our team. All you do is the same way as you do for national service officers. You click on it, provide your information, what you're needing help with, and it's going to come directly to our team. So, it'll be myself, Jackie, Doug, or D that will contact you, go over the information, and get you set up with any additional conversations that we might need to have, and also all the resources that we have available. If you're a chapter or department and you're needing help with providing this information to your chapters and departments, we can go over it in more detail with you and make sure that you're giving the right information to those veterans, spouses, or children of veterans that are in the area. So going into our job fairs on average we're having about 351 individuals per job fair that are coming and attending and that was in 2025. In there we had roughly around 113 individuals that were getting um actually job offers from those events. So, we usually told those individuals when they were coming in, make sure that you're coming in at the beginning of the event to give yourself the most ample amount of opportunity to talk to all these companies. Every one of our job fairs are from 11 to 300 p.m. depending on where we're located. So, if you're on the Eastern time, it be the Eastern time if it's Pacific and vice versa. When you're going there, we have over 96 uh% of the exhibitors that are happy with the results on why they're hiring individuals. If you've came to one of our events, we always talk before the event on what you should do to be successful at these job fairs. One of the first things that we tell them is dress to impress. And we send that into the emails before they even come out there. You always want to be professional and look professional while you're talking to these companies. Next thing is don't discredit any company that's there. How many of us think we know a company before we even go talk to it. Give an example is TSA. When we think TSA, what do most people think? Anyone? Airport security. They were at an event in Denver, Colorado hiring nurses. If you were a nurse, would you go talk to TSA? Probably not. But when you think about it, it makes sense. People get injured all the time at an airport and need to be treated by somebody with medical profession like expertise. So we had a young lady that was volunteering for the event and walked up to TSA and said, "I don't need anything from you. I don't want to be airport security." And walked away. He stopped her, brought her back, started talking to her, and she had a job before she walked out of the room. Two weeks later, she was working at the Denver airport. Sorry. Another example of that is Waste Management. Waste Management changed their name to WM. Does anyone know why? They were tired of everyone thinking they only hired for trash service. They have six figure paid engineer jobs. But how many engineers go talk to waste management? Very little to none. So we we talk to these individuals while we're at these job fairs to give them these examples so they can understand a little bit better on what they need to bring to the table. And additionally we also talk to them about realistic expectations. You need to understand what the current market is. Does anyone know what the current market is for um the top 10% earners in the country making six figures a more? It used to be 10%. It's now higher. Does anyone know it's the top 18% of earners? So in six years it went from 10% of earners were making $100,000 or more in our economy to now the top 18%. Now during that time a lot of people's income has not went that high. But these companies have adjusted accordingly. Now we talked to them about it and they say on average they're looking around 70 to $80,000. Now, most of us here probably did not start out as 70 to $80,000 when we started in the workforce, did we? So, we're trying to get these these veterans to understand they need to look at all aspects and not just discredit them if it's not making six figures or more. Less than a half a percent of those individuals start at six figures. Now, when you're looking for one of these job fairs to go to and discuss this information with these companies, you can go on to the tab for job fairs on jobs.av.org. You're going to see all the events that we have for the remainder of the year. So, as of right now, all the ones in black are in person. All the ones in red are virtual. So, when you're looking at the information, you can click on them really easy and understand if they're going to be in person or if you need to go online. Now, it's really easy with our partnership with Recruit Military. Uh, you only have to set up one profile. Once you set up the profile, you never have to set up another one. So, whether you're on our website or theirs, you're going to be able to go online, look at the information, and then be able to start applying for these roles. Now, when it comes to searching on the job board, you're going to click on the tab for jobs uh job fairs with opportunities or uh job opportunities with these employers, and you're going to be able to search every opportunity that we have. Now, I stated we have over 262,000 positions. So, that's a very big market. So, you need to narrow down the search for where you're living or what you're looking for. So, when you click on jobs.org pv.org and you click into that area, you'll be able to search by keyword and location. When you put in the keyword, type in information technology or human resources, and you put in your location, we say use zip code over city. A prime example is Atlanta. If you did a 25 mile radius around Atlanta, that could be a 2 and 1 half hour commute. So, we advise them to do a 25 mile radius around their zip code. that'll narrow down that search. And if you need to go broader out, then just expand that to additional zip codes that are in your area. Now, if you scan the QR code that's up here right now, you can actually go straight to the tab for employers with career opportunities and search all those job opportunities that we have right now with those companies. While you're doing that, if you once you go on there, you're going to see the top eight companies that we're currently working with that have several opportunities that are available nationwide and those adjust over time. So, uh, we'll have some companies come off and additional companies come on. I see a few phones still out, so I'm going to wait for a sec. So to give you an example, we typed in before we came here, human resources. We put the location in here, which was uh the zip code 32819 for this area. And when we did that, it comes up with all the opportunities in the area. So we had one of 21 pages. There's 15 opportunities on each page. Uh so that comes out to about 350 current vacancies that are available within that 25 mile radius just for human resources. Now on the right hand side once you click on one of those companies it's going to populate and show the information for the company. The first part is going to talk about the job description or about the company. On the right hand side this one says about the company. On the left hand side it talks about the job descriptions. Now, it's also going to talk about any additional benefits that you might be entitled to. In that bottom right section, you're going to see similar jobs that are available. So, when it comes to the similar jobs that are available, that could be with that exact company or it could be with a different company, but has something close to the position that's available. And all you have to do is hit apply now. You don't have to pay anything. You don't have to you don't get only a few a month. You can apply for every one of these positions that we have available. All you have to do is hit apply now. You're going to register into your profile, hit submit, and your resume goes directly to the company. Doesn't come to DAV, doesn't go to recruit military, goes directly to the company. So, it can be as quick as possible for you to obtain that employment. Now, uh who was here for the business session where we provided large, medium, and small employer of the year awards? Thank you for all being here for that. Who actually has submitted an employer? Thank you very much. You see that there's a substantial difference on people that have submitted it. When it comes to our Patriot employer program, you don't have to work for the company to submit them. You can see that they're doing great things with hiring veterans, retaining veterans, or they're helping military veterans in the community or their family members. and you can apply for the award on their behalf. That's how Enso got the award this year. It wasn't an individual that was working for them originally that we talked to. It was somebody out in the community that saw what they were doing that led to them being applied and then we contacted the company for some additional information. So any company out there that you believe is helping, you can submit on their behalf and then we'll do the research on our end to see if they're going to be one of the programs or one of the companies that gets the award. Now with that, we've done a few adjustments this year. So in 2027, we are going to adjust a little bit. Uh if you have seen, we used to give out a Patriot employer badge to every single company that applied for that badge. um coming up this year, we are discontinuing that batch. There's some adjustments that we need to make, but we are going to look at it in the future to see if we're going to add it back. Uh we also uh continued the recognition for small, medium, and large. So, we'll continue to give out the awards next year for small, medium, and large, but we're not going to be giving out the awards for subcategories. We have removed the subcategories at this time, but again, we're going to look at it in the future and possibly add them back. But we still want to recognize those companies that are hiring, retaining, and helping our military community in any way they can. Just want to go over a few numbers with you. You heard Cody talk about it at our um business session, but this year we surpassed over 200,000 job opportunities that we've been able to give out to the military community in the 12 years that we um that is a substantial number. So that means from if you look at it, we've had 212,000 interviews um and we have over 27,000 job offers. Almost everyone that has been interviewed has been able to obtain employment, which is phenomenal. And then we started employment seminars this uh about a year and a half ago where we're providing additional information on what DAB does to anyone that comes to our job fairs. And since then we've already uh had 2,886 and that's not counting the amount that we had just last uh Thursday when we did the job fair here. Uh we're over 3,000 as of today. Um, in addition to this, uh, the jobs fair that we did just a couple days ago was one of our best job fairs in Orlando that we've ever had. We had 344 individuals that registered for, uh, that came to the event out of 706 that pre-registered. So, these job fairs are working and we're going to continue to do this throughout uh, the tenure of our program. And if anyone is interested or wanting to come to one of these events to see how it is, please contact us. We'll be more than happy to have you there. Now, how can you help us? Biggest thing is promoting our employment program. When you're at your chapters and departments, provide the information so they can get it out to your members. Now, we also know that some of our members are not looking for jobs. We get that. But that doesn't mean that their family members don't need a job or their kids don't need a job or spouses or their caregivers don't need a job. So, please provide that information out to the proper to your entire community because we don't know who we're going to um give this information to that ultimately need it. Um familiarize yourself with your local and state veterans resources. Who here knows what a lever and devop is besides Joe Hall? Thomas, who what is a lever and devop? Did you come to the mic? >> See, I put the mic down for me. >> Um, they're like work source um veterans. They basically just help all the veterans that are looking for jobs. Yeah. So, local veterans employment representatives and disabled veteran outreach program specialists help our veterans with finding employment and they're paid by the Department of Labor. It's completely free to the veteran to be able to obtain that employment. Now, they've also added an additional position. It's a consolidated devop and lever for those areas that don't have the availability for both. Uh so now they've merged and have a new role so they can continue to support our veterans in that local community. Now additionally on that um reposting our job fairs we put everything on Facebook, LinkedIn uh Instagram also on YouTube as well. So if you see it, repost it in the area to make sure that the individuals in that area that are also in your network know that we're coming there to get more people to come to the events and then also nominating your organizations or companies that are in your area for the award as well. Uh we would love to have that number exceed. This year we had 48. We would love to be over a hundred next year and finding more and more companies that are supporting our fellow veterans and obtaining employment. Here is all of our social media if you're looking for it. The best one for us is going to be LinkedIn. LinkedIn was built for the networking for employment. That is going to be the one that you're going to find the most information when it comes to the employment program. I'm going to pass it along to Jackie Graham to talk about our new DAV hiring guide that came out this year that we are giving free to all of our employers uh that are hiring veterans. I'm kind of torn with this microphone. Have it close, have it in my hand. I'm usually one that likes to walk and talk and not uh stand still. This is going to be a little odd for me, but uh I'm Jackie Graham, associate national employment director, and I would like to share with you our new and improved DAV hiring guide. Over five million Yeah, now I have to hold it. Over five million veterans have a service connected disability and are among the most resilient members of society, having served in the military and overcome adversity. We created this guide to help employers confidently navigate the often complex process of recruiting, hiring, and retaining veterans. It also serves as a valuable resource for veterans and employee employees, offering insight into the practices, culture, and support they should expect from their employer committed to building a veteran ready work workforce. We know veterans thrive in the workplace when employers recognize their strengths, invest in their development, and value their leadership, adaptability, and dedication they bring. But creating a truly veteranfriendly workplace means more than just hiring veterans. It means building a culture where they can connect, contribute, grow, and feel valued. This is why DAV created the hiring guide to give employers practical strategies and proven best practices for recruiting, retaining, and empowering the veteran talent. In the military, training is often delivered by step by step, by the numbers. I'm sure you all have heard those terms. Building knowledge and confidence through a proven process. The hiring guide follows that same approach, providing employers with a practical roadmap to building a successful veteran hiring program. The guide includes foundational education on military culture, training, values, shared experiences, explores common barriers to veteran employment, and provides practical guidance for recruiting from the military community. Employers will also find step-by-step instructions for building a veteran hiring initiative and a veteran employee resource group along with resources on financial and legal considerations, creating veteran friendly job descriptions, interviewing and onboarding veterans, and dedicated sections focused on hiring disabled veterans, military spouses, and members of the National Guard and Reserve. Whether an organization is just beginning its veteran hiring journey or looking to strengthen an existing pro program, this guide offers the tools, strategies, and best practices needed to create a workplace where veterans can thrive. While most employers recognize the value veterans bring to the workforce, many still face challenges in recruiting, hiring, and onboarding the veteran talent. Military occupations do not always translate neatly into civilian job titles, making it difficult to recognize equivalent skills and experience. Misconceptions and unconscious bias can also influence hiring decisions. While many organizations struggled to identify the most effective ways to reach and attract veteran candidates, even after hiring, differences between military and civilian workplace cultures can create challenges during the transition. And because many veterans, we do it to ourselves, many veterans choose to not self-identify as a veteran. Employers may miss opportunities to recruit, support, and retain this valuable talent. Understanding these challenges is the first step towards building a workplace where veterans can successfully transition, contribute, and thrive. Every year, about 200,000 service members transition from the military to civilian life, and most are seeking meaningful employment. More than 80% of military occupations have civilian equivalents. Yet, many veterans are overlooked because their skills are not easily translated into civilian language. Military acronyms, terminology, and job titles can also prevent qualified candidates from making it through automated screening systems. The reality is military service develops highly transferable skills employers value most. Leadership, adaptability, problem solving, teamwork, resilience, and a strong work ethic. These qualities make veterans exceptional contributors across virtually every industry out there. Hiring veterans is not only good for business, it's also financially beneficial. Employers who hire disabled veterans may qualify for valuable tax credits. And most workplace accommodations cost little to nothing to implement. When employers understand that military talent, they gain access to one of the nation's most skilled, dedicated, and mission focused workforces. Participating in job fairs this past year has given me the privilege of speaking with employers across a wide range of industries and I consistently hear the same message. They are actively seeking veterans and their dependents. And when I say dependent, I mean the spouses and adult children, right? Not just the spouse. The reason they're seeking veterans and their dependents is because the work ethic, character, and values the military community brings to the workforce. Employers know they can count on them to show up, work hard, embrace challenges, and adapt quickly to changing environments. They also appreciate that members of the military community ask questions. We ask questions to fully understand the expectations, the requirements and object objectives. And most importantly, once the mission is clearly defined, they take ownership, execute with a purpose, and deliver results. Those qualities make veterans and their families an exceptional addition to the workforce. And these are what the employers are looking for. This is why they want them. Our hiring guide is organized into three key sections. Each is aligned with a different phase of the employment life cycle. Successfully hiring and retaining veterans and military spouses begins with understanding the unique experiences, strengths, and perspectives they bring to the workplace. From recruitment and hiring to onboarding and long-term retention, the guide provides practical step-by-step strategies to help employers bridge the gap between military culture and civilian workplace expectations. By following these proven practices, organizations can build a stronger, more inclusive workforce while creating an environment where veterans and military spouses can thrive. One of the most effective ways to recruit veteran talent is by creating a deliberate organizationwide veteran hiring initiative. Successful initiatives begin where? With leadership. When executive lead leaders champion veteran hiring, they demonstrate a genuine commitment to align resources and set the tone for the entire organization. Veteran hiring should be positioned as a strategic business investment, not a charitable effort. The business case is compelling. Veterans bring highly transferable skills, strong leadership, adaptability, and mission focused work habits. Organizations benefit from improved retention, enhanced workplace culture, and a stronger employer brand. Supporting the initiative from supporting the initiative with data and aligning it with your organizational goals helps demonstrate a clear return on investment. Once a veteran hiring initiative is established, the next step is execution. Employers must know where to find veteran talent, how to connect with the military community, how to create recruiting, interviewing, and onboarding processes that recognize veterans unique experiences and position them for long-term success. Transitioning from military service to civilian life is much more than finding a new job. It often requires adapt adapting to an entirely new way of life. Does that sound about right? Yeah. Veterans leave a highly structured environment with clearly defined roles, routines, and chains of command. We wake up every day. We know what we're going to wear. We know what we're going to do. You wake up in the civilian world, it's a little bit different. Adjusting to workplaces with greater ambiguity in different organizational cultures can be challenging. For many, military service, it is a core part of their identity. And leaving the uniform behind can bring a sense of loss while they redefine their purpose and professional identity. How many, just think about it, I don't want you to raise your hands, but how many when you left the service felt that loss? It was either when you took off the last uniform or when your ID card expired or when you drove off base. We all had a different day, but we all felt a loss. Many veterans also miss the close-knit camaraderie that comes with military service. Without the shared experiences of military life, some experience loneliness, isolation, or a feeling of not fully belonging in civilian environments. At the same time, the transition often often involves navigating complex administrative processes, including health care, disability compensation, education, and other earned benefits. These challenges can add stress during an already significant transition. Understanding these experience helps employers create a more supportive workplace, one where veterans feel welcomed, connected, and positioned for long-term success. Hiring veterans offers employers more than access to exceptional talent. It provides valuable financial incentives and important legal considerations. Understanding these programs helps organizations maximize available benefits, remain compliant, and create a workplace that supports success. One of the most impactful resources is the GI Bill. It enables service members and veterans to earn degrees, certifications, specialized training without taking on additional debt. For employers, the GI Bill approved apprenticeship and on the job training programs create a pipeline of highly skilled and motivated employees while improving recruitment, development, and retention. Veteran Readiness and Employment Program, VR&E. It connects employees with veterans, employers with veterans whose skills and career goals align with workforce needs, helping both the veteran and the business achieve long-term long-term success. Employers may also qualify for the work opportunity tax credit when hiring eligible veterans, providing a financial incentive while expanding employment opportunities for those who have served. In addition, the credit for employer differential wave wage payment offers a tax credit, a tax benefit to employers who provide differential wage payments to employees still serving in the National Guard or Reserve when they're called active duty. By understanding and leveraging these programs, employers can strengthen their re their workforce. They can reduce hiring costs, demonstrate a meaningful commitment to those who have served our nation. The hiring guide provides practical strategies for creating an inclusive workplace where veterans, including those with disabilities, feel supported throughout the hiring process and beyond. It offers guidance on writing veteran friendly job announcements, encouraging conversations about accommodations, and recognizing how military skills translate to civilian careers. The guide also helps employers understand their legal responsibilities, ensuring compliance with federal protections while fostering a workplace where every employee has the opportunity to succeed. Those of you that need a workplace accommodation, no hands. But think about it. When you had to go to your supervisor and say, "I need," did you have to think about it or did you just ah no, go tell them it's no big deal? Most of the time you have to think about it because you're worried about the repercussions. Employers with strong retention strategies experience reduced turnover costs, increased financial incentives, and a more stable workforce. High turnover, especially in the employees first year, can be costly. And you know what? It signals a lack of effective support. So, if you start losing people in the first year, you probably need to look at what you're doing as an employer. You can avoid all this by creating a strategy to ensure long-term success for all parties. Veterans value loyalty, commitment, and sense of purpose. They're looking for companies that genuinely care for them and the military community both internally through their workplace culture and externally through community support. In return, veterans are eager to provide the same loyalty, dedication, and commitment to an employer that reflects the values that they experience during their military service. The mutual commitment helps build a more engaged workforce, strengthens employee retention, and can significantly reduce turnover for the company. It's never too late to invest in veteran retention. While retention begins with onboarding, it is strengthened through ongoing support, professional development, and an inclusive workplace culture. provide opportunities for training, certifications, and career advancement, and work with veterans to establish clear career paths that build on their military experience and future goals. Regularly seek feedback from veteran employees and use their insight to continuously improve your programs. If you're going to ask for guidance, consider using it. Support veterans by offering flexibility for VA appointments and military obligations with clear policies that encourage open communication. Foster understanding across your workforce by providing education on military culture, helping employees better support their veteran colleagues. And finally, create opportunities for connection through mentoring and veteran employee resource groups. And demonstrate your organization's commitment by actively engaging with and supporting the military and veteran community. These strategies not only improve retention, they help veterans grow into long-term leaders within your organization. Veteran employee resource groups, ERGs. They're voluntary groups formed around a shared characteristic or life experience. And while they're led by employees, these groups are formally recognized and supported by the organization. These groups help promote an inclusive workplace where all employees feel valued and respected. Isn't that what we all want? Providing a community camaraderie and psychologically safe place for veterans. Veterans bring unique perspectives to innovation and problem solving. An ERG can serve as a platform to share these diverse viewpoints across the business. ERG leadership roles provide opportunities for veteran employees to continue developing skills in a civilian context. Many veteran ERGs engage in community service projects and partnership with veteran nonprofits, allowing the company to give back to the veteran community and enhance its corporate social responsibility efforts. Active involvement in veteran causes through an ERG can enhance the company's reputation. A visible and active ERG can be a powerful recruiting tool as it signals to prospective veteran candidates the company truly values their service and it demonstrates a genuine commitment beyond just hiring quotas. ERG members can assist recruiters at career fairs, provide insights into veteran resumes, and help translate military roles for civilian job descriptions. Some ERGs offer educational seminars and workshops to support their members professionally and personal development. They may also invite organizations such as DAV to provide information on VA benefits, employment resources, and other services available to the military community. Many ERGs extend their support beyond the workplace by assisting the families of deployed service members, organizing support networks, and coordinating care package drives to send encouragement essential items to those serving overseas. In essence, a veteran ERG transforms a veteranfriendly hiring philosophy into a tangible, supportive, and empowering reality within the workplace. It's a strategic investment that yields returns in recruitment, retention, employee well-being, and overall organizational strength. Some ERGs like to cook dinner for veterans on like the big days. Some of them like to cook them a dinner on their birthday. There's a lot of different companies out there and they have different ERGs that do different things, but it's nice when they get involved and recognize their veterans. Building a successful ERG begins with typically leadership support. Everything starts at the top and works its way down, doesn't it? Executive sponsorship provides the visibility, credibility, and resources needed for long-term success. Identify passionate employees to champion the ERG's vision and mission and start with one or two measurable goals such as a mentorship program or military to civilian resume translation initiative. Encourage participation from veterans, military spouses and family members and allies to create an inclusive engaged community. Partner with other employee resource groups such as disability or inclusion networks to expand, support, and strengthen collaboration. Finally, promote the ERG through creative communications and internal company channels to build awareness, encourage participation, and reinforce the organization's commitment to the military community. You know, I like to tell veterans when we go to the job fairs, you're not just talking to that employer so that they can determine they like you. You're talking to that employer to determine if you like them. You spend more time at work than you do at home. You have to like where you work. If you can't love what you do, you have to be able to fake it so people think you love it. And if you can't fake it, you need to find something else to do. So if you go to a job fair and you have a an ERG representative there and they're just not doing anything for veterans or maybe they're not thrilled, would you want to work there? So these are things you'd want to look for. The transition from military service to the civilian workforce can leave some veterans feeling isolated or uncertain as they adapt to a new professional environment. A mentor, especially a fellow veteran, can make a meaningful difference by providing guidance, encouragement, and practical support throughout the transition. Mentors help veterans navigate company culture, communication styles, and workplace expectations while introducing them to colleagues, leaders, and professional networks. They can assist with setting career goals, identify training and development opportunities, provide constructive feedback to support long-term success. Perhaps most importantly, mentors help veterans recognize the tremendous value of the leadership, discipline, and problem solving skills they developed through the military service. By celebrating progress, building confidence, and offering trusted advice, mentors help veterans successfully integrate into the workplace and thrive in their civilian careers. Veterans do not just bring experience to the workplace. They strengthen organizations through qualities like integrity, leadership, adaptability, and mission focused mindset. DAV's employment team. We're committed to helping companies unlock the potential of a workforce that's resilient, results driven, and ready to make an immediate impact. So, I'm going to tell you, download the hiring guide today. If you're an employer, download it today so you can make sure you're doing a good job for your employees. And if you're an employee, download the hiring guide today so you can see what your company should be doing for you. Because if you want to see a change, you have to be the change. And you don't know what you don't know. So, if you read the hiring guide and it's like, "Oh, I didn't know they should be doing that." And you take it back and you go, "Hey, I got some ideas." You might have a change. All right. Our team is here to support you every step of the way. If you ever need assistance as an employer or as an employee, all you have to do is reach out. So, I'm going to tell you, take a photo. Photo is worth a thousand words. Take a photo of this slide so you will always have our contact information handy. And I will tell you, we look forward to connecting with you and we are here whenever you need us, anytime. >> [applause]