Friday, August 20th, 2010

Just crossing the wires — Ernest Borgnine, a man who served his country and knows how to play a Vet, will be receiving the Screen Actors Guild lifetime achievement award. The former star of the hit 60′s comedy “McHale’s Navy” served 10 years in the U.S. Navy, including a re-enlistment so he could serve during World War II. Borgnine went on to co-star in “AirWolf,” a 1980s military-themed action drama where he played a WWII Veteran. A great patriot and a fine actor!

Tags: topvet, world war 2, wwii
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Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

We visited the headquarters of Wendy’s / Arby’s Group last week to honor its CEO Roland Smith with our TopVet Award.  Like most West Pointers, he has a strong  desire to do things in a big way. But I must say, I’ve rarely seen it on this scale. A lot of us are athletes with some notable accomplishments, but have you ever met a guy who just successfully climbed Mt. McKinley, shoots an 81 in golf, having played only 4 times in the last 4 years, and bowls on average over 200? Look no further than the corner office of this $12 billion company. Is there anything this guy doesn’t do well?!

Kidding aside, Roland’s diverse range of talents is only exceeded by his desire to lead people and assist his employees to reach their personal dreams. His track record at this goal is impressive…read more about our TopVet here.

Tags: roland smith, topvet
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Wednesday, June 16th, 2010

We stopped by Sam Duncan’s office last week in Naperville, Illinois to present him with a TopVet award. Sam is an extraordinary American success story, rising from humble beginnings to CEO of OfficeMax, a Fortune 500 company. Sam married early, proudly served in the Army, and applied those lessons learned to his life and business.

Read Sam Duncan’s Profile. He has transformed OfficeMax from a struggling office supplier to a successful enterprise, a family of 35,000 associates, generating more than $7 billion in revenue. With his wife of 40 years, he is the proud father of three daughters and three grandsons. This Fathers Day, Veterans Advantage honors Sam.

OfficeMax CEO Sam Duncan receives “TopVet Award”
from Veterans Advantage Founder and CEO Scott Higgins.

Tags: officemax, sam duncan
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Friday, March 26th, 2010

In this internet and email age, thank goodness there are those who still value the art of the physical “thank you” note. I was delighted to receive an extremely well-written one in my mailbox from this week’s TopVet Nicholas Pinchuk, CEO of Snap-on (NYSE: SNA).

A fellow Vietnam Veteran, Pinchuk warmly welcomed us to his offices in Wisconsin last month. We exchanged stories about our service and the many ways military service contributes to success in Corporate America. Former 1st Lieutenant Pinchuk is a shining example of success and achievement in American business.

As he told us in an exclusive TopVet interview:

“In Vietnam, you learned the lesson of being confident and collected under pressure. And what you saw more graphically than in any other situation is that in such a pressure environment, your team can get rattled, but they look to you, as their leader, for stability. …They will take their cues from you. They will be confident or concerned, depending on how you react to the situation.”

In Vietnam, Pinchuk led with confidence and by example. Today, under his leadership, Snap-on greatly values these traits in their business. Check out “Snap-on salutes our Veterans,” a special video profiling a career Navy Veteran-turned successful Snap-on franchisee. Here are the lessons learned from military service successfully playing out in the civilian world of work. Snap-on is a proud supporter of the Wounded Warrior Project, an important partner of Veterans Advantage, too.

So, here’s to Nicholas Pinchuk! We honor him for his service and salute him for his achievements and continued leadership in business.

Tags: news, photos, veterans articles
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Thursday, December 3rd, 2009

Just prior to Veterans Day, we honored Navy Vet and Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam with a TopVet Award. Lin, Board member Peter Eldredge and Roy Asfar, our marketing VP, travelled to the sprawling corporate headquarters of Verizon Wireless in Basking Ridge, NJ and met with Lowell and his corporate communications chief, Jim Gerace. We presented Lowell with a framed copy of his TopVet Award for his service and achievements following his 4-year Navy stint. Lowell attributes his remarkable climb to the top of the largest U.S. carrier in part to the skills and experience he acquired in the Navy. “The things you learn in the service will stay with you your whole life,” he said. Lowell’s a wonderful guy, smart, knowledgeable and proud to be recognized for his service. It was truly a pleasure to meet him and recognize his achievements. Read our profile of Lowell McAdam.

Verizon Wireless has been very active lately with new products and services, and we salute the company for having one of the Navy’s best at the helm. Veterans Advantage hopes to work with Lowell’s team in the future to recognize service to our nation. Stay tuned.

Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam receives "TopVet Award” from Veterans Advantage Founder and CEO Scott Higgins

Tags: lowell mcadam, photos, topvet, verizon wireless
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Monday, July 7th, 2008

Got a challenging job to fill? Hire a vet. That’s what the National Basketball Association (NBA) is doing by hiring the former #2 at the Army Corps of Engineers. you see, the NBA is currently in the throes of a gambling controversy surrounding one of its referees. And with the integrity of the game being questions, the NBA taps General Ronald L. Johnson, its Senior Vice President of Referee Operations!

Tags: General Ronald L. Johnson, nba
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