The skills many acquire during military service can be a valuable asset for veterans and service members making the transition to scaling and growing their own businesses.
A boot camp run by the Disabled American Veterans aims to provide guidance and support to make it happen.
“Veterans have given up the prime years of their life, where a lot of those tech entrepreneurs who are billionaires were in their parents’ garage, starting their company,” said Dan Clare, chief communications and outreach officer with DAV Patriot Boot Camp.
Returning veterans and service members can participate, at no cost, in a boot camp to bolster entrepreneurial skills they weren’t able to develop while in the military.
“Veterans were serving their country. This is tailored to make it accessible to them, to them give the resources they need, and a community that’s committed to their success,” Clare said.
The next three-day boot camp is being held Feb. 5-7 in the Cincinnati area. Applications are being accepted online.
“Like everything we do, this is offered at no charge to the veterans who participate,” Clare said.
While some might think of veterans as order-followers, Clare thinks of them as innovators and problem solvers.
“When I think of veterans, I think of people who have been in difficult situations, have endured some stress, have had to make some changes on the fly, and face some tremendous obstacles,” Clare said.
Military service provided a strong foundation for a budding entrepreneur, Clare said.
“Veterans are extremely resilient, and we see that in their companies. People involved, really, in solutions — veterans want a mission.”
The three-day program includes a series of seminars on topics ranging from funding and capitalizing a business to avoiding common legal startup mistakes to deploying marketing and sales strategies and pitching.
“Veterans have some great ideas and some great solutions, but they don’t necessarily know where to go to find the funding they need,” Clare said. “They might understand a whole lot about technology or product development, but don’t necessarily understand the financing things that go with it, and some of the marketing that’s required.”
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