Many companies focus on hiring veterans, but don’t necessarily realize the broad positive impact veterans can make until they join the organization. Veterans have valuable skillsets and applied experiences to share as leaders, often having been entrusted with leadership roles and experiences at a younger age than their civilian counterparts. They are motivated by values, mission, and purpose, and effortlessly engender trust and build high-performing teams. Veterans are a segment of employees that corporations should strive to develop, so focusing on how to utilize the unique skillsets that veterans bring to organizations is a pertinent area to explore for senior executives. During the COVID pandemic, veterans at corporations across America have proactively stepped up and led initiatives that have saved and grown companies.
Come together for a discussion with military veterans and C-suite executives on Veterans Day 2021 to understand how to capitalize on the unique assets of veteran employees.
Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy Officer, Nasdaq
Jeremy Skule is Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer. In this role, Skule leads the Global Strategy Organization to drive strategic planning, mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, venture investing, NasdaqNext innovation and is responsible for the company’s positioning as an innovative data, technology and analytics leader. In addition, he oversees Nasdaq’s Marketing and Communications division within Global Strategy.
Since joining Nasdaq in 2012, Skule has led the global rebranding of Nasdaq, as well as held a leadership role in developing the company’s 2017 strategic pivot to embrace its core strengths in data, analytics and technology. Under Skule’s leadership, his team revamped the company’s lead generation process, redesigned Nasdaq’s digital and social media properties, and introduced a new global thought leadership platform.
Skule’s 25-year career has spanned senior communications positions and marketing leadership roles in Washington, D.C. and New York. Before Nasdaq, Skule led marketing and communications teams across the financial services industry overseeing marketing, communications, business and financial media relations, internal communications, and analyst relations. He also led the financial services practices at the world’s largest marketing, advertising, and public relations firm.
He received a Master of Business Administration from George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts from Dickinson College.
33rd Chief of Staff, U.S. Army; Faculty, Thayer Leadership
General (Retired) Dennis Reimer graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1962 and was commissioned in the Field Artillery. He has held numerous command and staff positions throughout 37 years of active service to include serving in Vietnam and as the 33rd Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army. After his retirement from active duty in 1999, General Reimer became the first Director of the National Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism in Oklahoma City. In 2006, he became the President of DFI Government Services in Washington, D.C. General Reimer currently serves as Chairman of American Armed Forces Mutual Aid Association and is a member of the Mutual of America board. He is a member of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, Distinguished Graduate of West Point, and Senior Advisor Faculty Member at Thayer Leadership.
President, Thayer Leadership
Dan is the President of Thayer Leadership and a 1988 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. In 2010, Dan co-founded Thayer Leadership along with four other West Point graduates with the mission of bringing the world to West Point and bringing West Point leadership to the world. Over the past 10 years, Thayer has grown steadily, becoming one of the Top 40 leader development companies in the world. As a lifelong learner, he has earned 3 Masters degrees and recently completed his Doctoral classes.
He is a graduate of Airborne, Ranger, and Jungle Schools; and served two combat tours in the Middle East. After completing his Army commitment, Dan entered the private sector where he served as Chief Marketing Officer for a $500 million medical device manufacturer; Managing Director of a $10 billion investment firm; Co-Founder of a private equity firm in Iraq, and Co-Founder of a solar hybrid company in Afghanistan. In 2004, Dan voluntarily joined the New York National Guard as an Infantry Captain to deploy to Iraq, where he served for 1-year as a Civil Affairs Officer at Forward Operating Base Danger in Tikrit. He was awarded the Purple Heart, Army Commendation Medal, Combat Action Badge, and cited by his Commander for “courage on the field of battle.”
Dan has been published in the Wall Street Journal, Small Wars Journal, and Chief Executive magazine. In 2013, he published and co-authored his first book, West Point Leadership: Profiles of Courage, which features 200 of West Point graduates who have helped shape our nation. The book received 3 literary awards from the Independent Book Publishers Association plus an award from the Military Society Writers of America (MSWA). Dan has appeared frequently on various news networks including CNN, FOX News, FOX & Friends, Bloomberg TV, NBC, MSNBC, and The Today Show.
60th Superintendent, U.S. Military Academy at West Point
Lieutenant General Darryl A. Williams is a native of Alexandria, Virginia. He graduated from the United States Military Academy, West Point, in 1983 and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. A career Field Artillery officer, Lieutenant General Williams most recently served as the Commander, NATO Allied Land Command, in Izmir, Turkey. Prior to this, he served as the Commander, United States Army Africa (USARAF), in Vicenza, Italy; the Deputy Chief of Staff G3/5/7 of United States Army in Europe, located in Wiesbaden, Germany; the Deputy Commanding General for Support for the 2nd Infantry Division, Republic of Korea; and Commanding General for the United States Army Warrior Transition Command and Assistant Surgeon General for Warrior Care and Transition.
In addition to these assignments, Lieutenant General Williams has served in key leadership positions at the tactical, operational and strategic levels to include Battery Commander deployed in support of OPERATION DESERT SHIELD/DESERT STORM; Commander, Division Artillery, 1st Armored Division and Fire and Effects Coordinator, 1st Armored Division deployed in support of OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM; Deputy Director for Soldier Comprehensive Fitness, Department of the Army G3/5/7; and while commanding USARAF in 2014, he was involved with OPERATION UNITED ASSISTANCE fighting against the Ebola outbreak in Liberia.
He assumed duties as the 60th Superintendent of the United States Military Academy in July 2018. His military education includes the Field Artillery Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, Command and General Staff College, School of Advanced Military Studies, and the United States Naval War College. He holds Masters’ degrees in Leadership Development, Military Art and Science, and National Security and Strategic Studies. His awards and decorations include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, the Parachutist Badge, Presidential Service Badge, and the Army Staff Identification Badge.
Chief Content Officer, Chief Executive Group
Dan Bigman is Editor and Chief Content Officer of Chief Executive Group, publishers of Chief Executive, Corporate Board Member, ChiefExecutive.net, Boardmember.com and StrategicCFO360. Previously he was Managing Editor at Forbes and the founding business editor of NYTimes.com.
Co-Founder, CEO, American Veterans Group, PBC
Ben Biles is the co-founder and CEO of American Veterans Group, a social-impact investment bank that provides philanthropic support to Post 9/11 military veterans nationwide.
Since it was established in 2018, AVG has donated $184,000 to 22 veteran-focused non-profit organizations in 22 U.S. cities. AVG’s philanthropy has directly benefitted more than 1,300 veterans to date, with its primary focus being on helping veterans transition to civilian life, mitigating the high rates of veteran employment and suicide, and eradicating inequalities between veterans and their non-veteran peers. American Veterans Group is Wall Street’s first and only public benefit corporation.
Mr. Biles is a sought-after speaker, writer and panelist on veterans issues, ESG investing, diversity, equity and inclusion strategies, and diversity supplier relationships.
Mr. Biles is a U.S. Navy veteran, having served six years as an active-duty officer. He completed eight months deployment abord the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. In his last assignment, he served as a military procurement officer at the U.S. Naval Academy and is trained in government contracting programs.
Mr. Biles has a Masters’ of Business Degree from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia. He is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Vice President of Military Affairs, Microsoft
As Vice President of Military Affairs at Microsoft, Chris Cortez leads the company’s engagement with veterans and military families as part of its focus on inspiring and developing former service members for roles in the IT industry. Chris’ responsibilities touch STEM education, veteran community engagement, high-tech training and employment of veterans. His team’s mission is to lead and challenge the technology industry to fill the IT pipeline with former service members. Chris is an advocate for Microsoft employees who have served in the military and is executive sponsor of the Military Veterans at Microsoft Employee Resource Group. He has worked at Microsoft since 2006.
Chris served for more than 33 years in the U.S. Marine Corps. When he retired in 2004 as a major general, Chris had been leading the Marine Corps Recruiting Command in Quantico, Va., recruiting more than 75,000 men and women. Before that, he was director of operations for the U.S. Pacific Command — overseeing operations for 300,000 military personnel — and he previously commanded Marines at the platoon, company, battalion and regimental levels, including during Operation Desert Storm. Chris not only advocates for education, he also mentors others. It’s something he did in the Marine Corps and has continued to do at Microsoft.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Marietta College in Ohio and a master’s degree in business management from Azusa Pacific University.
VP Corporate Social Responsibility, Activision Blizzard
Dan Goldenberg was appointed as the executive director for the Call of Duty Endowment and an Activision Blizzard Vice President in 2013. Goldenberg, a retired Navy Captain, brings to the job 27 years of active and reserve military service and more than a decade of business experience – including serving as a Sr. Vice President at Frost & Sullivan and prior to that as a senior director and practice manager at CEB (now Gartner). Highlights of his military service include four tours as a commanding officer, carrier-based naval flight officer, and special assistant to four Secretaries of the Navy: John Dalton, Richard Danzig, Robin Pirie and Gordon England. He holds several individual and campaign awards, including the Defense Superior Service Medal.
Under his leadership the Call of Duty Endowment has risen to become the largest philanthropic funder of veteran employment, backing more than 90,000 high quality job placements. For his work in support of veteran employment, he was named to The Mighty 25: Veterans to Watch in 2017.
Goldenberg is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, National Intelligence University, Harvard Business School and the Air Command and Staff College. His strong personal connection to veterans and understanding first-hand the impact they can have in the civilian workforce drive the Endowment’s efforts to place 100,000 veterans into high quality jobs by 2024.
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1:00 - 5:00 pm
Over 70% of Executives Surveyed Agree: Many Strategic Planning Efforts Lack Systematic Approach Tips for Enhancing Your Strategic Planning Process
Executives expressed frustration with their current strategic planning process. Issues include:
Steve Rutan and Denise Harrison have put together an afternoon workshop that will provide the tools you need to address these concerns. They have worked with hundreds of executives to develop a systematic approach that will enable your team to make better decisions during strategic planning. Steve and Denise will walk you through exercises for prioritizing your lists and steps that will reset and reinvigorate your process. This will be a hands-on workshop that will enable you to think about your business as you use the tools that are being presented. If you are ready for a Strategic Planning tune-up, select this workshop in your registration form. The additional fee of $695 will be added to your total.
2:00 - 5:00 pm
Female leaders face the same issues all leaders do, but they often face additional challenges too. In this peer session, we will facilitate a discussion of best practices and how to overcome common barriers to help women leaders be more effective within and outside their organizations.
Limited space available.
10:30 - 5:00 pm
General’s Retreat at Hermitage Golf Course
Sponsored by UBS
General’s Retreat, built in 1986 with architect Gary Roger Baird, has been voted the “Best Golf Course in Nashville” and is a “must play” when visiting the Nashville, Tennessee area. With the beautiful setting along the Cumberland River, golfers of all capabilities will thoroughly enjoy the golf, scenery and hospitality.
The golf outing fee includes transportation to and from the hotel, greens/cart fees, use of practice facilities, and boxed lunch. The bus will leave the hotel at 10:30 am for a noon shotgun start and return to the hotel after the cocktail reception following the completion of the round.
