How Veterans are finding fulfillment and success in facilities management.
By Myrna Traylor
No matter their branch of service, men and women leaving the military want — and deserve — to move into solid positions in fulfilling careers. Happily, the field of facilities management (FM) has been a place where Veterans have found successful careers and, in turn, brought valuable experience and steadiness to the field.
ConnexFM spoke to three veterans to get some insights on how they transitioned from military service to careers in FM.
Matthew Lilley, who is now a strategic account manager of facilities for Herc Rentals, began working in sales for the company after serving in the Navy for four years. He said that as a salesperson, he liked the problem-solving aspects of the job and developing solutions for customers.
“Then I went into facilities management, and every day is a new challenge. Coming from the military, where every day is different than the previous one, I taught myself how to respond to challenges,” Lilley said. “Working on a national facilities level, alongside the facility managers, I realized how much I could impact [organizations] on a large scale. Plus, I just really developed a passion for it, developing solutions to optimize operations and ensuring that all locations are running smoothly.”
That sentiment is echoed by Christopher Byrne, senior vice president of commercial partnerships with Lessen. When he left the Army in 2010, he worked in security, then was recruited into facilities by a former Marine colonel. Byrne spent a few years at JP Morgan Chase, overseeing its national portfolio of retail facilities. “Having the opportunity to move into a role like that was great, but what was attractive to me was getting decentralized team members across the country to operate as one unit, something that was very reminiscent of my time in the military,” Byrne said. “Building, putting processes together, measuring efficiency, constant improvement — those were fundamentals that were drilled into me while I was in the military. In my new position, I was able to choose the processes that I thought would be best for my facility staff across the country and shape them based upon the unique nature of their specific role.”
That adaptability now serves Byrne in his role with Lessen, which curates and manages a network of trade professionals for customers nationwide.
Brian Diehl came into facilities management after an 11-year stint in the Navy as an electrician’s mate who worked on nuclear reactors on aircraft carriers. When he returned to his home in Columbus, Ohio, he made use of the post-9/11 GI Bill to enroll at Ohio State University and get a degree in construction systems management. He was hired right after graduation by L Brands, which then owned Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works (BBW), to join their construction team. He moved over to the FM team and oversaw facilities and maintenance for all 2,500 stores before BBW split off. He is now project manager for Bath & Body Works.
Diehl also confirmed that his military experience prepared him well for a facilities management career. “Half my job in the military was maintenance in some way, whether it was preventive maintenance or fixing broken equipment,” Diehl said. “I've talked to members of the Army, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard, and they all have that background in some respect. You’ve always got to maintain your equipment, whether it’s a Humvee or a big cannon. Facilities management is a great career path for someone who likes the challenge of never doing the same thing every day.”
Support from and for Vets
Although each of these men came into facilities management in a slightly different way, they all said that they’ve received support from other Veterans in the facilities management space. In some cases, their companies have proactive programs for recruiting, hiring and retaining Vets. They have also received and shared support through ConnexFM’s Veterans Council, which provides resources and support for Vets and companies working with Vets.
“I'm really proud that ConnexFM and all our member companies on both the service provider side and the multi-site side, have raised their hands to promote their own Veteran hiring initiatives and demonstrate a willingness to serve as resources for transitioning service members,” Byrne said.
“One great byproduct that I didn't really think about before getting into this career,” said Byrne, “is that when a lot of folks transition out of the military, they lose that sense of community. And this industry has a very collegial nature to it. FM folks who have been in the military seem to seek each other out. And there's almost an immediate sense of camaraderie with transitioning service members joining the industry — military members have a built-in sense of mentorship and wanting to help develop newer folks.”
“I would say that the [facilities] community is strong and truly understands what it took for a person to put their life on the line and show the dedication that they had to serve their country,” Lilley said. “People in the facilities management industry have their arms wide open to accept any new Veteran looking into this space.”