Transitioning to civilian life can be challenging, but many veterans discover that the discipline, teamwork and leadership they honed in the military make them natural entrepreneurs - and help fuel their success in starting their own businesses.
Vetpreneurs like Barbara Jones-Brown and Greg Murray credit their business success in part to CEOcircle, a monthly peer accountability group for growth-stage companies hosted by the D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University.
“I was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug in college and started my first business then,” said Jones-Brown, an Army veteran who served during Operation Desert Storm.
After graduating from college, Jones-Brown was recruited by Motorola in Austin, Texas. She decided to leave corporate America and went to work as the first Java Developer for a startup company in Austin.
“From that startup, I learned how to build a successful software company from the ground up,” she said.
That startup, 360Commerce, was acquired by Oracle Corporation. The software Jones-Brown helped to create went on to generate over $1 billion for Oracle and launched the Oracle Retail vertical.
“I was employee number twenty-five and we had grown to over 200 people by the time of acquisition,” she said. “After seeing our growth to acquisition first hand, I decided to start my own company post-acquisition and have been running my own business since then.”
Jones-Brown’s Freeing Returns is a total retail loss prevention company. Software created by Jones-Brown helps businesses understand retail crimes, prevent losses, and find hidden profits in data. It is currently running in over 4,000 stores throughout the U.S., Canada and Japan.
“I learned so much in the military, like my work ethic, my grit, finishing something once it’s started, working as a team, leadership, honor, trust, loyalty - which are core values for my company today,” she said. “Our military training prepares us for anything life throws our way and when you start a business, you must be prepared for all of these things.
"Becoming an entrepreneur has been the hardest thing I've ever done but it’s also one of the most rewarding things. Even when things get tough, I lean on my military training to keep pushing through and not give up.”
Murray joined the Marine Corps in 2002 and served two combat deployments in Iraq. He said he was completely lost when he decided to leave the service to pursue higher education and entrepreneurship in 2006.
“I had to figure it all out on my own,” he said. “Looking back now, it’s kind of amusing. I started college in San Diego and just signed up for courses that sounded interesting, not realizing they didn’t align with any degree path. I didn’t know how the system worked. It was a tough but eye-opening learning curve.”
Murray founded Manly Man Co., which boasts an ever-growing line of unique, custom and curated gifts for men, ranging from personalized ammo cans to grooming essentials.
“I’ve always been fiercely independent and drawn to adventure, and entrepreneurship offers plenty of both,” he said. “Starting my own company has absolutely transformed my life in every way imaginable. It’s been both rewarding and brutal.”
Both Jones-Brown and Murray urged their fellow veterans to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams.
“Veterans are trained to be tough. It takes mental resilience to gear up and charge into combat, and that same mental toughness is exactly what entrepreneurship demands,” said Murray. “Business ownership is like operating in a battlefield, full of uncertainty, challenges, and threats to your survival. Veterans know how to adapt, improvise, and overcome.
"That mindset is crucial to succeeding in business, which is why I believe veterans make some of the best entrepreneurs out there.”
IVMF Director of Development said CEOcircle stands out not only because of who it serves, as one of the few growth-stage programs for military-connected CEOs, but also because of how it serves them.
“What truly sets it apart is its emphasis on peer connectivity through authentic vulnerability,” she said. “While the program delivers valuable tactical business knowledge, its core strength lies in fostering deep, lasting relationships among peers. This unique combination empowers participants to navigate business challenges and drive growth.”
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com.