This Veterans Day, A “Coastie” Reflects on Principles Learned for an Impactful Career

As a veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard, I look toward each Veterans Day with esteemed pride, reflecting on my own time while giving thanks to all who have served in the United States Armed Forces.

For those unaware, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime law service branch of the United States Armed Forces and the smallest military service, with less than 40,000 men and women serving our nation. It is the oldest continuous seagoing service and has fought in almost every war since the Constitution became the law of the land in 1789. And, final fun fact: members of the USCG are often lovingly referred to as “Coasties”!

I joined the U.S. Coast Guard in 1994 and served for six years focused on search and rescue, Marine Safety, and Federal law enforcement. I decided to join the U.S. Coast Guard as a great way to pay for college and follow in my father’s footsteps. My father is a disabled retired Army Officer and Purple Heart recipient who served in the Vietnam war: a true hero to myself, our family, and our country. 

My time in the U.S. Coast Guard was formative, building foundational values that I still employ both at home and in the workplace. Importantly, serving in the military created career competencies, based on real world experiences and proven training opportunities. These have had lifelong impact on my leadership behaviors, actions and results.

 As a “Coastie” on Veterans Day, I feel compelled to think back on my time in the service and share three core principles that “stuck” and shaped my leadership priorities and behaviors:

o   Know your Purpose: As with all military branches, the USCG has very clear core values: “Honor, Respect, and Devotion to Duty.” Clear values play a critical role in defining purpose, which is necessary to drive businesses forward. For me specifically, the USCG’s values reinforced the importance of establishing your own personal core values and aligning those to your teams and the business/industry where you work.

I often start with any team by clarifying my own personal values – Family First, Accountability, Competitive, Trust & Transparency, and Selflessness (easy for me to remember, based on the old Dragnet show: Just the “FACTS”). Importantly, your personal values must be specific to what you believe, yet aligned to the industry, job, seniority level, or business situation. By infusing your personality into personal values that are translatable to the business, you can demonstrate the way you “self-lead” and interact with others; importantly, leading yourself is the first step before you can ever consider leading others, which is the perfect lead-in to my next point:

o   Leading leaders: “Leading leaders” involves working with, collaborating, and influencing others to achieve common goals. Early in my USCG career, I was trained to recognize the difference between being the rescuer or being rescued; in other words, ensuring the crew was trained, prepared, and aligned to a clear mission. The stakes can be higher in the military, but the principles do not change in business. 

Everyone has an equal opportunity to lead and take accountability – and this is necessary to driving business success. Leading “leaders” focuses on appreciating everyone’s individual talents, capabilities and leadership skills; investing in training; and aligning the team to a clear mission. As part of that, recognizing that we are all at various timepoints in our career and life journey – and most importantly, being respectful of those priorities – is key. 

o   “Semper Paratus”: The U.S. Coast Guard Motto is “Semper Paratus,” which is Latin for “Always Ready” – and it becomes part of a “Coastie” veteran’s DNA no matter where life takes them. As part of a mission, “Coasties” often face many unknowns, from unpredictable challenges to uncontrollable variables. To succeed, “Coasties” must be prepared to handle the “mission” under any condition, constantly prepared and training even when “seas are calm.” This requires clear performance competencies for everyday tasks, training, risk management, and the ability to manage change aligned to the dynamic external environment. A team that is “Semper Paratus” ensures they can calmly react to emergencies and make critical, impactful decisions.

Working in the biopharma industry - specifically in the market access environment - requires ongoing horizon scanning, preparation, training and careful risk management skills to manage the dynamic healthcare landscape. Change is constant within the industry and many uncontrollable factors often emerge requiring many of the same skills learned during my times in the USCG. Working in various leadership roles across the biopharma industry has reinforced the importance of being “Semper Paratus”: an awareness of the external environment that allows me/my teams to focus on what we can control and manage risk to positively impact patient lives.

I’m proud of my “Coastie” background and the important life skills I’ve learned and successfully implemented along my career. In my eyes, veterans are a very specific and talented group; they are fantastic hires with comprehensive, real-world experience that can build a well-rounded, diverse team. It’s my hope that over time, companies will begin to more thoroughly consider the benefits of incorporating veterans into D&I planning and non-traditional hiring methods.

As we round out this unprecedented year, I hope you’ll take the time to consider the value veterans bring to your organization. And especially today on Veterans Day, please take the time to thank them for their ongoing service and commitment to our country during tumultuous times.