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Forbes
09-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Leadership Lessons Veterans Bring To The Civilian Workforce
Scott Graybeal, CEO of Caelux, a solar energy innovator in perovskites to make solar energy more powerful and cost effective. The U.S. military has more than two million active duty and reserve troops serving vital roles across the country's six military branches. Every year, over 200,000 recruits will join their ranks, undergoing rigorous training and discipline to prepare them for the challenges of military service. Many of these recruits will become leaders in their respective branches of service, creating a pool of competent, tested talent to support the needs of companies across the spectrum. I served in the '90s as a nuclear submarine officer (a "nuke"), got my "fish" (gold dolphins), and survived engineer qualification. It was a job where I had a lot of responsibility at a very young age. It was a humbling experience that I am very grateful to have had. I will try to be as general as possible, but each service has its own valuable customs and traditions shaped by its history and unique contributions to national security. Over the last three decades, I have seen similar characteristics in veterans from other branches as well as those in foreign militaries. Time has provided a useful lens to the contributions that veterans can make to an organization. My experience offers a framework for veterans looking to translate their skills into the private sector and for business leaders looking to leverage these team members to enhance the performance of their respective organizations. Military veterans bring a wealth of leadership experience and skills to the civilian workforce. These attributes are highly relevant to the challenges faced by modern organizations. Here are just a few. Communication has topped LinkedIn's Most In-Demand Skills report for the past two years, as it becomes more challenging to communicate effectively across teams and within organizations. In the submarine force, communication can run the gamut of "Make sure the ship is spotless for the Commodore's visit" written in the Captain's night orders to a blaring announcement over the ship's public address system highlighting dangers and actions the crew needs to precisely execute within seconds to either strike the enemy or safeguard the ship. Veterans are overall skilled at conveying complex information in a way most people can understand. They also tend to excel at active listening and feedback. They tend to respond quickly and communicate rather tersely but will do what is necessary to see the job through. • Insight: People who learned to communicate in the service can often come across as stiff and sometimes get defensive when clarification is needed. Some veterans can default to the "because I said so" mentality when giving direction. • Civilian Leaders: Embrace the positive and coach them on ways to establish a more human connection when communicating and the importance of follow-up. Following up is not about trust; it's about alignment. • Vets: Resources are likely not matched with expected outcomes. Take a minute to really understand the task to be accomplished and communicate shortcomings to your boss. If you come from a community where resources were scarce, tap into that creativity that you honed and present your ideas fearlessly. Modern organizations of all sizes and in every sector face unique challenges, from the implications of artificial intelligence (AI) to general political or economic uncertainty, which requires organization-wide adaptability and resilient problem-solving. In the same way, even as its bedrock mission remains the same, the military constantly changes, modernizes and adapts, requiring veterans to stay agile and adaptable to new situations and challenges. • Insight: Many service people will take on any challenge and do their best to rise to the occasion, but they may overestimate their knowledge in a business context or fail to secure buy-in from supporting organizations. • Civilian Leaders: Be mindful that the vet's enthusiasm is matched to the task. Ask pointed questions about requirements and resources, and ensure that they are realistically connected. • Vets: The stakes are not usually as high as they were in the service. You may find boredom set in, leading to a sense of unfulfillment. Veterans should keep in mind that while it may not be life or death, they are in a job because they have proven they can accomplish difficult tasks. Find the elements that connect your work to the bigger picture. No matter how great a leader is, teams and organizations are ultimately successful because of the input and efforts from the entire team. That's why great leaders aren't just commanders. They are connectors, collaborators and consensus builders. The military is a team-oriented environment, and veterans are experts at working together to achieve common goals. As a result, veterans with leadership experience have had the opportunity to experiment with their leadership style while learning from other skilled leaders, refining their approach by observing both optimal styles as well as what not to do. • Insight: Generally, vets have experience in consultative decision-making where inputs are considered but the boss makes the final call. • Civilian Leaders: Generally, the style of leadership that your service veterans are used to may differ from your own. Vets on your team will get frustrated if you are the kind of person who only moves when there is 100% consensus. This approach may work in your company, but recognize that this may be a point of discomfort for your vet. To help with veteran engagement, assign your veterans projects that add value to the team, but maintain consistent touchpoints to ensure they stay on track. • Veterans: Fearlessly examine your military leadership experience and take inventory of your wins and losses. Your losses, if properly processed, will provide you with wisdom beyond your years of corporate experience; the hard part will be to develop a hybrid model that fits into the business world. Military service veterans often possess skills and experiences that belie their age. Organizations can achieve their goals by embracing these young leaders and supporting them by coaching, listening and providing opportunities for growth. Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump's Return Prompts Companies to Stifle Climate Talk With ‘Greenhushing'
(Bloomberg) -- As the chief executive officer of Caelux, Scott Graybeal runs a technology startup in Baldwin Park, California, that makes high-efficiency glass for solar panels. For years, climate change had been a crucial part of Graybeal's business conversations — until Donald Trump was re-elected last November. Cuts to Section 8 Housing Assistance Loom Amid HUD Uncertainty How Upzoning in Cambridge Broke the YIMBY Mold Remembering the Landscape Architect Who Embraced the City NYC Office Buildings See Resurgence as Investors Pile Into Bonds Hong Kong Joins Global Stadium Race With New $4 Billion Sports Park 'We have very quickly shifted gears to the other type of conversations,' Graybeal says. By that, he means to downplay his company's role in producing carbon-free electricity and instead, highlight its contributions outside sustainability, such as domestic job creation, onshore manufacturing and energy independence — all of which resonate with the new administration's priorities. 'It is not being manipulative; it is the actual truth,' says Graybeal of his new talking points. 'With any messaging, you have to tailor your message to the audience and to gain the most receptivity you can.' In the first month of his second term, President Trump pulled the US out of the Paris Agreement, froze funding for green projects, fired staff from agencies that do climate work and targeted agencies' climate-related programs and language. Against that backdrop, Graybeal and other US executives are dropping the mention of 'climate change' in meetings, even as they continue developing or deploying climate-friendly solutions. Meanwhile, companies in Europe are also trying to keep their climate actions away from public sight, in an attempt to avoid accusations that they're overstating their environmental claims. All of this has accelerated a phenomenon known as 'greenhushing': the inverse of greenwashing, when companies exaggerate their green bona fides. In 2024, 63 out of the 100 largest publicly listed firms in Britain were under-promoting their work in environmental protection, according to an analysis by the Manchester, UK-based research firm Connected Impact, which examined the differences between what companies disclosed in public filings and what they presented in promotional materials. When it came to US companies, the researchers found the desire for staying unnoticed was even greater — as many as 67 major public and private firms resorted to greenhushing. 'People were under-communicating and under-promoting what they were doing,' said Lucy Walton, chief executive officer of Connected Impact. 'We will perhaps see a widening of that gap in the coming year.' Jennifer Holmgren, chief executive officer of LanzaTech Global Inc., is also recalibrating her message under shifting political winds. Illinois-based LanzaTech specializes in capturing carbon dioxide from emitters and converting the gas into feedstock for chemical production. While her company's technology prevents planet-warming CO2 from entering the atmosphere, Holmgren says she will talk more about job creation and economic growth, rather than emissions reduction, over the next four years. 'I think we have to stop talking about, 'Everything we do is climate change,' because it's almost like there's a visceral reaction to those words,' Holmgren says. 'This isn't a good time to put a red flag in front of the bull.' This comes as some big corporations have already scaled back their climate commitments, due in large part to concerns over their financial performance and operational challenges. The US leadership change further propels that retreat. In January, the six largest banks in the US cut ties with the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, a United Nations-backed initiative that encourages financial institutions to zero out their greenhouse gas emissions. And for companies that haven't changed course, fewer are willing to publicly display their interest in decarbonization. Matthew Blain is a principal of Voyager, a US venture firm that has bankrolled climate tech startups serving heavy-emitting industries. While many of those emitters continue to explore low-carbon technologies to prepare for what Blain describes as 'the economy of tomorrow,' he says they have become 'increasingly nervous and hesitant to talk about the work they're doing from a climate perspective.' Along with the fear of political blowback, worries about reputational damage and regulatory scrutiny weigh on companies, especially outside the US. In Europe, where tackling climate change is still on governments' agendas, researchers say companies are pulling away from publicizing their climate efforts due to the risk of being seen as greenwashers. Unilever Plc, the British consumer group, has fallen afoul of UK regulators over alleged greenwashing and has faced consumer backlash. Last year the company announced it was watering down some of its environmental promises. Executives were being 'cautious and possibly scared by greenwashing investigations,' a Unilever shareholder told Bloomberg News at the time. Meanwhile, regulators across Europe have further stepped up a crackdown on greenwashing — in the UK, it could result in a penalty of up to 10% of a company's global annual turnover. 'People are so frightened of doing the wrong thing, potentially accidentally greenwashing without intending to,' says Walton. The divergent political climate on opposite sides of the Atlantic also makes promoting green credentials particularly fraught for large global corporations. However, silence risks damaging trust, she says, and could confuse consumers who have watched companies go from making frequent and enthusiastic pledges and disclosures to saying very little. Some industry observers say greenhushing is a positive tactic if it helps decarbonization continue in difficult circumstances. Companies are 'smart to play whichever cards are most likely to win at any given moment,' says Edward Maibach, a professor specializing in climate change communication at George Mason University. 'The most important thing is that their products succeed in the marketplace so that we can bring the fossil fuel era to a rapid close.' Maibach adds: 'A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.' Rich People Are Firing a Cash Cannon at the US Economy—But at What Cost? 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