By General Ray Odierno and Ross Brown
With more than 200,000 U.S. service members returning to civilian life each year, the task of facilitating their transition deserves our focus and best effort. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a long history of supporting this effort, as a founding member of the Veteran Job Mission, and hiring over 9,500 U.S. military veterans since 2011.
They recently announced the appointment of retired General Raymond T. Odierno, former U.S. Army Chief of Staff, in a senior advisory role with the firm. During more than 39 years of distinguished service, Gen. Odierno commanded units at every level of the Army, with service in both the Persian Gulf and Iraq Wars. He will provide his expertise to JPMorgan Chase to help structure and carry out leadership and workforce development programs and advise the firm on a broad range of issues.
Ross Brown, Director of Military and Veteran Affairs at the company, discussed with Odierno the importance of hiring veterans, what support is needed as they transition to the private sector, and what advice he has for both veterans and employers as that change is made.
You retired from the military earlier this year after nearly 40 years of distinguished service. What has that transition been like?
Ray Odierno: I was in the military since I was 17 years old, so there is certainly an adjustment, but what I have found is that many of the same problems I faced as a senior military leader dealing with complex issues are very similar to the problems that major companies like JPMorgan Chase face. It comes down to understanding the ever-evolving global environment and dealing with constant change
