1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:10,640 All across America and around the world, this is Veterans Radio. 2 00:00:10,640 --> 00:00:15,920 This is Veterans Radio. 3 00:00:15,920 --> 00:00:17,840 Welcome to Veterans Radio. 4 00:00:17,840 --> 00:00:20,520 I am Jim Fossone. 5 00:00:20,520 --> 00:00:22,840 I'm the officer of the deck today. 6 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:24,720 We've got some great programs for you. 7 00:00:24,720 --> 00:00:29,520 We always want to remind you you can find more about Veterans Radio at its Facebook 8 00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:35,240 site or at the web veteransradio.org where we're on the web 24-7. 9 00:00:35,240 --> 00:00:38,360 You can find a lot of our podcasts there as well. 10 00:00:38,360 --> 00:00:45,040 We post new ones every Tuesday so you can get a new story, a new interview, something 11 00:00:45,040 --> 00:00:49,600 you didn't know before by going to veteransradio.org. 12 00:00:49,600 --> 00:00:53,040 And before we get started we want to thank our sponsors. 13 00:00:53,040 --> 00:01:00,880 Next up we want to thank National Veteran Business Development Council, NVBDC.org. 14 00:01:00,880 --> 00:01:06,560 It was established to certify both service disabled and veteran owned businesses. 15 00:01:06,560 --> 00:01:13,080 You'll find out how they can help your business by going to NVBDC.org. 16 00:01:13,080 --> 00:01:16,600 We want to thank Legal Help for Veterans. 17 00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:22,120 Legal Help for Veterans fights for veterans disability rights all across the nation. 18 00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:33,240 You can reach them at 800-693-4800 or on the web at legalhelpforveterans.com. 19 00:01:33,240 --> 00:01:36,040 And finally, PuroClean. 20 00:01:36,040 --> 00:01:38,680 PuroClean is the paramedics of property damage. 21 00:01:38,680 --> 00:01:44,560 It provides water damage remediation, flood water removal, fire and smoke damage remediation, 22 00:01:44,560 --> 00:01:48,000 mold removal, biohazard cleanup. 23 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,280 It also has a focus on veteran franchisees. 24 00:01:52,280 --> 00:01:57,320 You can learn more about them by going to puroclean.com. 25 00:01:57,320 --> 00:02:04,680 We want to welcome to Veterans Radio today an Air Force veteran, Cheyenne Roland, who 26 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:10,000 is also the Chief Operating Officer of Titan Specialized Services. 27 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:14,800 We're going to talk about her career, her military family a little bit, and Veterans 28 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:15,800 in Business. 29 00:02:15,800 --> 00:02:18,400 Cheyenne, welcome to Veterans Radio. 30 00:02:18,400 --> 00:02:19,720 Hi, Jim. 31 00:02:19,720 --> 00:02:20,720 Thanks for having me. 32 00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:27,480 Now, how did a nice girl like you who graduated from the University of Tennessee in 2014 with 33 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:35,240 her Bachelor's of Arts in Audiology and Speech Language Pathology end up as an aircraft maintenance 34 00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:41,840 officer and ended up spending, what is it, about 10 years in the Air Force? 35 00:02:41,840 --> 00:02:45,520 Yes, yeah, almost 10 years. 36 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:48,080 So I was actually very lucky. 37 00:02:48,080 --> 00:02:54,360 So I went through ROTC during the sequestration, and a lot of opportunities weren't really 38 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:59,840 provided to us that ROTC previously had and now has again, which is great for those young 39 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:01,760 cadets. 40 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:09,800 But my commander in ROTC at the time had pushed the University to allow us to do base visits. 41 00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:16,480 So, I'm getting the Geetheis, which is a reserve base or a guard base, I believe. 42 00:03:16,480 --> 00:03:21,720 There's a lot of bases around the University of Tennessee, and he convinced them to let 43 00:03:21,720 --> 00:03:25,600 us spend our spring break down an Eglin Air Force base. 44 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:31,120 And my commander, who I'm still in touch with to this day, wanted to expose all of us to 45 00:03:31,120 --> 00:03:32,640 different career fields. 46 00:03:32,640 --> 00:03:35,400 And he took us out into the flight line. 47 00:03:35,400 --> 00:03:40,680 I'm not qualified to fly, I'm far too small, height-wise and terrible eyes. 48 00:03:40,680 --> 00:03:45,160 So I'm looking for another job, and he brought us out into the flight line. 49 00:03:45,160 --> 00:03:55,440 And I was absolutely in love with the environment, the people, just the entire experience of 50 00:03:55,440 --> 00:04:01,440 getting to walk on a flight line and be surrounded by like, just beautiful airplanes and operations. 51 00:04:01,440 --> 00:04:06,440 And it really, I was hooked since then, and I loved my job. 52 00:04:06,440 --> 00:04:08,000 Still love that job. 53 00:04:08,000 --> 00:04:09,600 It was a great time. 54 00:04:09,600 --> 00:04:17,240 Well, I should point out that you just left service less than a year ago as a major and 55 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:20,120 are in the business world. 56 00:04:20,120 --> 00:04:25,520 But I want to talk a little bit about, you know, your family has a history of service, 57 00:04:25,520 --> 00:04:32,560 which probably led a little bit to the ROTC program and being receptive to a military 58 00:04:32,560 --> 00:04:34,000 career. 59 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:42,720 Your dad, David White, was in the Navy back in the late 80s, 1989 to 1994 as an electronics 60 00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:46,480 and systems technician. 61 00:04:46,480 --> 00:04:49,080 Your grandfather was a Marine. 62 00:04:49,080 --> 00:04:51,560 So you've got a lot of history. 63 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:56,640 Oh, I should mention your husband is an Air Force pilot. 64 00:04:56,640 --> 00:05:03,720 So all of that was sort of in the mix as you were thinking about what do I do after graduation? 65 00:05:03,720 --> 00:05:06,920 You had an affinity for the military, it sounds like. 66 00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:08,720 Oh, 100 percent. 67 00:05:08,720 --> 00:05:13,040 And my whole family, you know, served. 68 00:05:13,040 --> 00:05:18,040 So the folks you mentioned, but I also have two of my aunts served as well. 69 00:05:18,040 --> 00:05:20,160 One was a Marine. 70 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:22,800 My other aunt was in the Navy. 71 00:05:22,800 --> 00:05:29,360 And then also funny enough, my younger, I'm one of five children, two of us entered the 72 00:05:29,360 --> 00:05:30,360 military. 73 00:05:30,360 --> 00:05:36,120 The sister right below me is also in the Air Force and she also went through the ROTC program 74 00:05:36,120 --> 00:05:40,800 at Tennessee and she is currently serving as an aircraft maintenance officer as well. 75 00:05:40,800 --> 00:05:47,600 So her and I have had a unique opportunity to intimately understand the good and the 76 00:05:47,600 --> 00:05:51,800 bad of serving because we've held the same jobs. 77 00:05:51,800 --> 00:05:56,320 Well I was hoping that we would have your father, David White, the Navy veteran on only 78 00:05:56,320 --> 00:06:01,760 so that I could make fun of him to say the only thing you taught your daughter was don't 79 00:06:01,760 --> 00:06:05,480 go to the Navy, go to the Air Force. 80 00:06:05,480 --> 00:06:07,520 100 percent. 81 00:06:07,520 --> 00:06:11,720 He said they take care of you far better and, you know, I have very little interaction with 82 00:06:11,720 --> 00:06:15,560 the Navy so I can neither confirm nor deny. 83 00:06:15,560 --> 00:06:22,200 But I certainly can say that we have quite a few perks compared to other services that 84 00:06:22,200 --> 00:06:23,200 I've seen. 85 00:06:23,200 --> 00:06:31,320 I can hear the Marines now just screaming at the, who does she, you know, those people 86 00:06:31,320 --> 00:06:32,320 in the Air Force. 87 00:06:32,320 --> 00:06:38,120 But I want to come back to sort of really what's it, 30 years ago now. 88 00:06:38,120 --> 00:06:44,240 Your dad gets out of the Navy, he's had an electronics skill set developed while in the 89 00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:54,840 Navy and goes into an interesting field of power systems and uninterruptible power system, 90 00:06:54,840 --> 00:06:58,560 UPS, emergency power issues. 91 00:06:58,560 --> 00:07:05,600 Tell us a little bit about Titan Specialized Services that focuses on that and we're going 92 00:07:05,600 --> 00:07:07,920 to talk about the sister company in a minute. 93 00:07:07,920 --> 00:07:15,280 But explain to people sort of how that transition got made from military experience ultimately 94 00:07:15,280 --> 00:07:19,160 to a very successful business experience. 95 00:07:19,160 --> 00:07:20,160 Right. 96 00:07:20,160 --> 00:07:31,360 So something about Dave that I think is really hard to recreate is he is very engineered-minded 97 00:07:31,360 --> 00:07:33,800 and he is a very, very bright person. 98 00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:38,440 So the Navy kind of gave him the skills and the introduction to something that previously 99 00:07:38,440 --> 00:07:40,600 he didn't know he was really all that interested in. 100 00:07:40,600 --> 00:07:45,200 You know, I think many of us start our military career and we're like, look at our MOS or 101 00:07:45,200 --> 00:07:47,800 AFSC and we're like, what the heck is this? 102 00:07:47,800 --> 00:07:52,400 I've never heard of an electronics HF system technician. 103 00:07:52,400 --> 00:07:57,280 And then you get into that career field and you don't really realize how applicable that 104 00:07:57,280 --> 00:08:00,160 is to so many different things. 105 00:08:00,160 --> 00:08:08,080 So for David when he got out, he originally got a job with a far larger company and he 106 00:08:08,080 --> 00:08:11,840 was very successful because of all the training the Navy had given him. 107 00:08:11,840 --> 00:08:15,120 He had kind of a jack of all trades. 108 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:24,120 He was able to cross different industry and type of HF systems in that job and it kind 109 00:08:24,120 --> 00:08:25,560 of gave him the spark. 110 00:08:25,560 --> 00:08:32,560 I can do this on my own and I can help people who are in the same boat as I can to be equally 111 00:08:32,560 --> 00:08:33,560 successful. 112 00:08:33,560 --> 00:08:43,240 And so something about TSS, a lot of our employees are veterans and we take pride in kind of 113 00:08:43,240 --> 00:08:49,800 fostering that bridge because not only are a lot of our folks veterans, but we are their 114 00:08:49,800 --> 00:08:53,280 first job after separating. 115 00:08:53,280 --> 00:09:03,800 And having just separated and understanding, it's very critical to me and to us that we 116 00:09:03,800 --> 00:09:08,960 support them and grow and find ways for them to be successful. 117 00:09:08,960 --> 00:09:14,600 Well I want to elaborate on this a little bit because TSS Titan Specialized Services 118 00:09:14,600 --> 00:09:19,720 is in the business of designing, installing and maintaining uninterruptible power systems 119 00:09:19,720 --> 00:09:24,400 and managing commercial construction projects for global organizations in the private and 120 00:09:24,400 --> 00:09:26,120 public sector. 121 00:09:26,120 --> 00:09:31,960 Well we want to welcome to Veterans Radio, we have David White joining us, the Navy veteran, 122 00:09:31,960 --> 00:09:35,720 the founder if you will of Titan Specialized Services. 123 00:09:35,720 --> 00:09:41,360 We were talking to his daughter, Cheyenne Rowland, about her time in the Air Force and 124 00:09:41,360 --> 00:09:44,080 getting out less than a year ago as a major. 125 00:09:44,080 --> 00:09:50,640 And we were asking about, you know, we can read what TSS does in terms of designing, 126 00:09:50,640 --> 00:09:56,520 installing, maintaining uninterruptible power systems, but put some flesh on that for us, 127 00:09:56,520 --> 00:09:57,520 Dave. 128 00:09:57,520 --> 00:10:00,760 What's that mean to the person who doesn't understand maybe power systems? 129 00:10:00,760 --> 00:10:03,440 Well thanks, Jim, for having me. 130 00:10:03,440 --> 00:10:09,400 What I would, the best way to describe what Titan does in both the commercial and government 131 00:10:09,400 --> 00:10:14,200 sectors is we are a critical infrastructure provider. 132 00:10:14,200 --> 00:10:19,920 In other words, we care for critical infrastructures from a data center perspective, a mission 133 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:29,720 perspective in supporting military, and in numerous environments, medical, banking, insurance, 134 00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:34,960 across many different markets where we support the infrastructure that keeps everything moving 135 00:10:34,960 --> 00:10:35,960 forward. 136 00:10:35,960 --> 00:10:42,000 In other words, the computer that sets in Iraq and that data center, our responsibility and 137 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:49,280 our team design the systems that keep that equipment running in the event of any outside 138 00:10:49,280 --> 00:10:55,360 influence, in other words, power outages, disasters, you name it. 139 00:10:55,360 --> 00:11:01,560 So that's what we are key to doing, and we employ teams that move globally at a moment's 140 00:11:01,560 --> 00:11:06,320 notice to support those missions and efforts for both commercial and government clients. 141 00:11:06,320 --> 00:11:12,680 Yeah, if you really think about it, we expect our police or fire or hospital or military, 142 00:11:12,680 --> 00:11:14,760 personnel or EMS. 143 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:20,760 If there's an emergency and there's the power systems down, we still expect 911 to work. 144 00:11:20,760 --> 00:11:25,720 We still expect the ventilators to work at the hospital and the surgical suites to have 145 00:11:25,720 --> 00:11:31,160 lights, and that's what you're really focused on, as I understand it, is TSS makes sure 146 00:11:31,160 --> 00:11:33,880 the lights are on, the power is on. 147 00:11:33,880 --> 00:11:35,880 No, you're exactly right. 148 00:11:35,880 --> 00:11:42,480 So the systems that those first responders rely on, those are the systems that we ensure 149 00:11:42,480 --> 00:11:45,920 our solely operational support that mission. 150 00:11:45,920 --> 00:11:52,120 One of the things I wanted to ask you, Dave, about was, as you've gone through now, it's 151 00:11:52,120 --> 00:11:59,120 30 years since you've been out of the Navy and built this career, was there a, was it 152 00:11:59,120 --> 00:12:06,120 the experience that you got in the military that sort of, and maybe confidence that said, 153 00:12:06,120 --> 00:12:07,680 hey, I can go do this. 154 00:12:07,680 --> 00:12:09,520 I've got a lot of knowledge here. 155 00:12:09,520 --> 00:12:14,520 Yeah, I've had another civilian job, but does it fall back to some of those skills 156 00:12:14,520 --> 00:12:19,800 that you learned in the Navy? 157 00:12:19,800 --> 00:12:26,240 I think a lot of it comes back to that because as you think of it, it's not uncommon in any 158 00:12:26,240 --> 00:12:34,520 branch of the military that a lot of times you're on an island, and irrespective of rank 159 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:40,960 or position, you're often expected to perform in capacities that you're maybe not used 160 00:12:40,960 --> 00:12:45,240 to or and or trained to perform, but you have to do it just because the mission demands 161 00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:46,240 it. 162 00:12:46,240 --> 00:12:52,240 So it kind of sets a mind frame of, I can achieve anything if given the opportunity and 163 00:12:52,240 --> 00:12:54,240 the information to make it happen. 164 00:12:54,240 --> 00:12:59,680 So kind of at the core of Titan going way back, as you said a long time ago now in the 165 00:12:59,680 --> 00:13:04,720 inception of the company, one day I found myself sitting in my garage going, I'm going to start 166 00:13:04,720 --> 00:13:07,320 this company and I can make it happen. 167 00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:10,960 So a lot of that mindset is instilled in front of the military. 168 00:13:10,960 --> 00:13:12,960 And again, it's not a Navy-specific thing. 169 00:13:12,960 --> 00:13:20,240 I think all branches and all disciplines within those branches that people are challenged 170 00:13:20,240 --> 00:13:27,080 to perform above and beyond the expectation of the command at different instances. 171 00:13:27,080 --> 00:13:34,240 And the true measure of success, whether you're active duty or outside of the military, is 172 00:13:34,240 --> 00:13:36,240 how you respond to those challenges. 173 00:13:36,240 --> 00:13:37,240 Yeah. 174 00:13:37,240 --> 00:13:39,480 Let me go back to Cheyenne for a moment. 175 00:13:39,480 --> 00:13:45,920 You've just separated yourself from the Air Force after 10 years along the way you picked 176 00:13:45,920 --> 00:13:48,760 up a Masters of Science in Organizational Leadership. 177 00:13:48,760 --> 00:13:53,360 So I want to point out that the next question is not to be insulting. 178 00:13:53,360 --> 00:13:58,400 But instead, you're the Chief Operating Officer now at Titan. 179 00:13:58,400 --> 00:14:03,320 What gave you the experience and the confidence to jump into this role and say, I'm going 180 00:14:03,320 --> 00:14:05,440 to help the company grow? 181 00:14:05,440 --> 00:14:10,600 Well, I mean, I think it's two things. 182 00:14:10,600 --> 00:14:20,440 So I think the experience just comes from what I did in the Air Force, education aside, 183 00:14:20,440 --> 00:14:28,640 my last assignment, I basically was the Operations Officer for the largest C-17 base on the 184 00:14:28,640 --> 00:14:29,640 East Coast. 185 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:33,560 And then prior to that, the largest C-17 base on the West Coast. 186 00:14:33,560 --> 00:14:42,800 So experience-wise, I knew that I was capable of leading large teams with large efforts 187 00:14:42,800 --> 00:14:45,960 to make it possible. 188 00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:50,040 Confidence-wise, I think a lot of it came from my parents. 189 00:14:50,040 --> 00:14:53,920 I don't think anybody ever really starts a family company and expects a buck to stop 190 00:14:53,920 --> 00:14:55,360 with them. 191 00:14:55,360 --> 00:15:00,800 My parents have always had that door open for us to come back and work for them. 192 00:15:00,800 --> 00:15:07,800 And they gave me the confidence because I was unsure of how successful I could be. 193 00:15:07,800 --> 00:15:09,400 And they believed in me and said, you can do this. 194 00:15:09,400 --> 00:15:11,600 You've been doing it. 195 00:15:11,600 --> 00:15:14,040 Your experience speaks for itself. 196 00:15:14,040 --> 00:15:18,360 Now, come believe in yourself and come work for us. 197 00:15:18,360 --> 00:15:24,560 And there's another company in the group called Dash Technologies, which we haven't spoken 198 00:15:24,560 --> 00:15:31,960 about, which is a little bit different in terms of its scope of services than Titan's 199 00:15:31,960 --> 00:15:35,000 specialized services. 200 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:39,040 Go ahead and tell us about Dash, if you will, Dave. 201 00:15:39,040 --> 00:15:45,640 Yeah, so Dash Technologies was created to complement Titan, a specialized services. 202 00:15:45,640 --> 00:15:52,960 And essentially, Dash provides critical infrastructure monitoring of the devices that we install 203 00:15:52,960 --> 00:15:54,640 and maintain. 204 00:15:54,640 --> 00:16:05,440 So all of the systems that support the critical mission, Dash was created to monitor and basically 205 00:16:05,440 --> 00:16:11,160 report on the conditions of that equipment remotely and internally for the actual mission 206 00:16:11,160 --> 00:16:12,160 partner. 207 00:16:12,160 --> 00:16:18,200 Yeah, nowadays, with the internet of everything, you can monitor what's going on. 208 00:16:18,200 --> 00:16:24,560 And that sounds more of what Dash's specialty is, if I've got that right. 209 00:16:24,560 --> 00:16:27,120 That's correct, yeah. 210 00:16:27,120 --> 00:16:36,560 Dave, talk about the importance of being a veteran-owned business and hiring veterans. 211 00:16:36,560 --> 00:16:39,800 So to me, we prefer to hire veterans. 212 00:16:39,800 --> 00:16:48,040 Our company, I would say right now, our staffing level is roughly 85% to 90% prior service. 213 00:16:48,040 --> 00:16:50,800 And for me, it's important. 214 00:16:50,800 --> 00:16:55,080 Number one, as I understand, the guys coming out, where they're at in their life. 215 00:16:55,080 --> 00:17:00,640 And I was kind of there at one point as well, going, what can I really do? 216 00:17:00,640 --> 00:17:03,680 Where do I add value in the private industry? 217 00:17:03,680 --> 00:17:11,080 And the veterans, in my opinion, add more value than, I'd rather hire a veteran that 218 00:17:11,080 --> 00:17:15,240 has no college degree than somebody's got a master's degree in a discipline, because 219 00:17:15,240 --> 00:17:20,400 I know that they've been through the paces, they've performed under, a lot of times, under 220 00:17:20,400 --> 00:17:21,400 stress. 221 00:17:21,400 --> 00:17:27,280 And I know that their results that I get from a veteran are going to exceed most people 222 00:17:27,280 --> 00:17:30,560 that come off of the street, straight out of college. 223 00:17:30,560 --> 00:17:36,120 So, and especially with us working in military environments and government environments across 224 00:17:36,120 --> 00:17:38,040 the DOD. 225 00:17:38,040 --> 00:17:43,320 Having somebody that's a vet, they understand how the military works, they understand the 226 00:17:43,320 --> 00:17:48,360 decorum that takes place when you're working in a military facility, dress codes, being 227 00:17:48,360 --> 00:17:53,840 prompt, being on time, being courteous, respectful of those that you're working for, understanding 228 00:17:53,840 --> 00:17:54,840 the chain of command. 229 00:17:54,840 --> 00:18:00,560 There's so many things that a vet can add to an organization that you don't get just 230 00:18:00,560 --> 00:18:04,760 from hiring somebody straight out of college, that you have to train them in how to act 231 00:18:04,760 --> 00:18:09,120 in those certain environments, how to treat people with respect, understanding the chain 232 00:18:09,120 --> 00:18:10,120 of command. 233 00:18:10,120 --> 00:18:11,440 All of those things come into play. 234 00:18:11,440 --> 00:18:13,480 It's very, very important. 235 00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:19,120 I think that's one of the things that we kind of need to get across to folks is that, what 236 00:18:19,120 --> 00:18:22,800 am I going to get out of service while I'm going to spend these four years or maybe it's 237 00:18:22,800 --> 00:18:25,560 going to be 10 or maybe it's going to be 20. 238 00:18:25,560 --> 00:18:30,880 I'm going to get these sets of experience, but they do translate some in very direct 239 00:18:30,880 --> 00:18:33,440 ways but others in intangible ways. 240 00:18:33,440 --> 00:18:39,680 They really do translate to your civilian career and being successful, don't they, Dave? 241 00:18:39,680 --> 00:18:45,720 Oh, it's intangible what you learn even as you said, Jim, and in a very short period 242 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:46,720 of time. 243 00:18:46,720 --> 00:18:52,880 A vet coming out understands things that are very, very important to a business owner. 244 00:18:52,880 --> 00:18:58,920 Being on time, performing the job to the specifications or to the requirements that are detailed and 245 00:18:58,920 --> 00:19:04,000 communicated from upper management, understanding the chain of command within, inside of a company 246 00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:09,280 or inside of an organization, it all translates directly into success. 247 00:19:09,280 --> 00:19:15,440 These are things that for most vets, you don't have to retrain them or give them direction 248 00:19:15,440 --> 00:19:16,440 on. 249 00:19:16,440 --> 00:19:20,120 It's just inherent because of the training that they receive in the military. 250 00:19:20,120 --> 00:19:22,560 It's very, very valuable. 251 00:19:22,560 --> 00:19:28,040 One of the things I wanted to ask you, Cheyenne, because today we have such a recruiting problem 252 00:19:28,040 --> 00:19:34,600 and I think part of that is maybe kids don't realize the value of what they're getting 253 00:19:34,600 --> 00:19:39,680 out of those years in the military and how that's going to translate and impact the rest 254 00:19:39,680 --> 00:19:43,880 of their lives, Dave's talking about. 255 00:19:43,880 --> 00:19:50,520 As somebody who recently separated as a female veteran, somebody who rose to the rank of major 256 00:19:50,520 --> 00:19:58,480 in the Air Force, how do you look at the value or explain to people the value in enlisting 257 00:19:58,480 --> 00:20:01,800 and addressing the recruitment issue? 258 00:20:01,800 --> 00:20:09,480 So, Jim, I think the recruitment issue is very, very complicated and I don't think I'll 259 00:20:09,480 --> 00:20:14,920 ever be able to fully pinpoint what is and is not contributing to it. 260 00:20:14,920 --> 00:20:22,080 But I do think if anyone's listening or anyone who's ever curious about joining the military, 261 00:20:22,080 --> 00:20:30,520 I think something that everyone can positively walk away from is when you join the military, 262 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:33,640 you are introduced to the 1% of America. 263 00:20:33,640 --> 00:20:37,480 And so, usually in the service, that's what we say, we're the 1%. 264 00:20:37,480 --> 00:20:46,160 But that means extreme beneficial exposure to folks who are not like you, to folks who 265 00:20:46,160 --> 00:20:53,920 are different and getting to learn so much about interacting with people and how to interact 266 00:20:53,920 --> 00:20:57,280 appropriately and how to where people's at. 267 00:20:57,280 --> 00:20:59,400 And that's just a soft skill. 268 00:20:59,400 --> 00:21:06,560 And I think when we talk about recruitment and retention, the military can give you so 269 00:21:06,560 --> 00:21:12,240 much of stuff that you cannot get on your own. 270 00:21:12,240 --> 00:21:19,120 You know, hard skill includes like my husband, he's in the reserve now, but the Air Force 271 00:21:19,120 --> 00:21:22,280 gave him his pilot license effectively. 272 00:21:22,280 --> 00:21:27,520 They basically prepared him to then go to the airlines in his current job. 273 00:21:27,520 --> 00:21:32,280 And he served time, but it is definitely a benefit to be able to have those skills on 274 00:21:32,280 --> 00:21:34,520 the other side. 275 00:21:34,520 --> 00:21:41,800 And I think it's really important that folks realize and understand how outrageous that 276 00:21:41,800 --> 00:21:43,360 is because that's not normal. 277 00:21:43,360 --> 00:21:44,800 Normal people don't get those experiences. 278 00:21:44,800 --> 00:21:47,720 No, you definitely get experiences in the military. 279 00:21:47,720 --> 00:21:49,440 You're not going to get anywhere else. 280 00:21:49,440 --> 00:21:51,840 And they can translate to success down the road. 281 00:21:51,840 --> 00:21:58,920 We're talking to Dave White who's the owner of sort of driving force behind Titan Specialized 282 00:21:58,920 --> 00:22:05,120 Services and Dash Technologies and Cheyenne Rowland who's the Chief Operating Officer 283 00:22:05,120 --> 00:22:07,880 for Titan Specialized Services. 284 00:22:07,880 --> 00:22:15,520 Their website is titan-group.com if you want to know some more about them. 285 00:22:15,520 --> 00:22:20,200 Dave just in a little bit of time that we have left. 286 00:22:20,200 --> 00:22:26,320 Is it important to the growth of your business that you're a veteran-owned business and that 287 00:22:26,320 --> 00:22:31,520 you have such a large contingent of veterans in the workforce? 288 00:22:31,520 --> 00:22:41,000 I think that our success is directly attributed to the employees that we have and the skill 289 00:22:41,000 --> 00:22:48,240 sets that the veterans are brought to Titan and to Dash Technologies has directly contributed 290 00:22:48,240 --> 00:22:49,240 to our success. 291 00:22:49,240 --> 00:22:53,400 And we'll continue to contribute towards success moving forward. 292 00:22:53,400 --> 00:23:00,600 Our ability to position ourselves as a service-disabled veteran-owned small business has been instrumental 293 00:23:00,600 --> 00:23:05,760 in us being able to provide support to VA medical centers across the continental United 294 00:23:05,760 --> 00:23:06,760 States. 295 00:23:06,760 --> 00:23:14,320 It's been instrumental in us working with the DOD overseas and challenging environments 296 00:23:14,320 --> 00:23:20,600 such as Afghanistan when the U.S. was still there all the way into the Marshall Islands 297 00:23:20,600 --> 00:23:21,600 or the Quadrilateral. 298 00:23:21,600 --> 00:23:26,560 So having the experience of the veterans that are used to deploying and those type of environments 299 00:23:26,560 --> 00:23:32,560 maybe not in the same locale but in those environments that add challenges where somebody's 300 00:23:32,560 --> 00:23:37,320 stuck in a situation where they've got to be a problem solver and not a question-asker 301 00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:41,840 or somebody's asking questions but actually solving problems. 302 00:23:41,840 --> 00:23:48,760 Being a veteran in that position and having veterans on our team has been a definite advantage 303 00:23:48,760 --> 00:23:52,600 that we have over most of our competition. 304 00:23:52,600 --> 00:23:58,960 Well we certainly like at Veterans Radio talking to veteran business owners, showing success 305 00:23:58,960 --> 00:24:02,320 that veterans often have in business after they get out. 306 00:24:02,320 --> 00:24:04,680 And we really got both ends of the spectrum here. 307 00:24:04,680 --> 00:24:12,240 Dave's been out of the Navy I should say for 30 years or so and Cheyenne just got out 308 00:24:12,240 --> 00:24:15,840 of the Air Force less than a year ago. 309 00:24:15,840 --> 00:24:20,440 But both of you have had these experiences and now are applying them in the business 310 00:24:20,440 --> 00:24:21,520 world. 311 00:24:21,520 --> 00:24:27,600 It's really great to hear about this success and I know Dave you certainly got to be proud 312 00:24:27,600 --> 00:24:32,960 of the military career that Cheyenne and her sister, she was told me earlier about her 313 00:24:32,960 --> 00:24:36,240 sister have had in the Air Force. 314 00:24:36,240 --> 00:24:43,000 Yeah I'm extremely proud of all of my kids and both daughters that served in the Air 315 00:24:43,000 --> 00:24:45,840 Force, one still in as you said. 316 00:24:45,840 --> 00:24:48,680 I couldn't be prouder of what they've accomplished. 317 00:24:48,680 --> 00:24:51,360 In many regards they've well exceeded me. 318 00:24:51,360 --> 00:24:54,520 I shouldn't say many regards at all regards they've exceeded me. 319 00:24:54,520 --> 00:24:57,480 I've been simply accomplished. 320 00:24:57,480 --> 00:25:03,440 And having them or having Cheyenne on my team and working with Titan has really become the 321 00:25:03,440 --> 00:25:04,800 joy of my life. 322 00:25:04,800 --> 00:25:10,000 I wish it on everybody it would be able to experience what we're experiencing as a family 323 00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:15,200 and as a company and as well within the reach of anybody that's listening. 324 00:25:15,200 --> 00:25:20,280 And especially if you're a veteran don't hold back go for the gold. 325 00:25:20,280 --> 00:25:22,360 It's out there in your reach. 326 00:25:22,360 --> 00:25:28,400 I can hear the Navy recruiters and the Air Force recruiters calling me right now saying 327 00:25:28,400 --> 00:25:35,120 that Dave's got to get the next generation to join the Navy not the Air Force and the 328 00:25:35,120 --> 00:25:38,920 Air Force recruiters are saying of course Cheyenne went in the Air Force and her sister 329 00:25:38,920 --> 00:25:39,920 did. 330 00:25:39,920 --> 00:25:46,320 We're the best service so we will leave that rivalry alone but we really do thank both of 331 00:25:46,320 --> 00:25:50,440 you for the time that you've been able to devote to Veterans Radio today. 332 00:25:50,440 --> 00:25:55,680 Well thank you for the time taking your time to talk to us Jim it's appreciated that we 333 00:25:55,680 --> 00:25:59,680 can get our story out there and I think Cheyenne will say the same. 334 00:25:59,680 --> 00:26:03,800 Yes Jim thank you so much. 335 00:26:03,800 --> 00:26:06,720 And I want to thank everybody for listening to Veterans Radio today. 336 00:26:06,720 --> 00:26:08,160 I am Jim Fawson. 337 00:26:08,160 --> 00:26:10,600 It's been a pleasure to be your host. 338 00:26:10,600 --> 00:26:15,320 I'm a Veterans Disability Lawyer at Legal Help for Veterans and you can reach us at 339 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:22,880 800-6934800 or LegalHelpforVeterans.com on the web. 340 00:26:22,880 --> 00:26:27,760 You can follow Veterans Radio on Facebook and listen to its podcasts and internet radio 341 00:26:27,760 --> 00:26:32,400 shows by visiting us at VeteransRadio.org. 342 00:26:32,400 --> 00:26:35,000 That's VeteransRadio.org. 343 00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:40,600 We again want to thank our national sponsors, the National Veterans Business Development 344 00:26:40,600 --> 00:26:44,520 Council, NVBDC.org. 345 00:26:44,520 --> 00:26:51,480 Legal Help for Veterans, a Veterans Disability Law firm with a national practice before the 346 00:26:51,480 --> 00:26:56,680 VA can help you on your claims and your appeals. 347 00:26:56,680 --> 00:27:05,440 It can be reached at LegalHelpforVeterans.com or 1-800-6934800. 348 00:27:05,440 --> 00:27:10,280 And PuroClean, a leader in property emergency services. 349 00:27:10,280 --> 00:27:16,520 It's the paramedics of property damage, providing water damage remediation, flood water removal, 350 00:27:16,520 --> 00:27:22,200 fire and smoke damage remediation, mold and biohazard cleanups. 351 00:27:22,200 --> 00:27:30,520 You can reach them at PuroClean.com or 800-775-7876. 352 00:27:30,520 --> 00:27:33,480 We also want to thank our local sponsors. 353 00:27:33,480 --> 00:27:41,280 This would include the Charles S. Kettles chapter of the Vietnam Veterans of America, 354 00:27:41,280 --> 00:27:43,320 that's chapter 310. 355 00:27:43,320 --> 00:27:51,800 VFW, Graf O'Hara Post 423, the American Legion Erwin Preskin Post 46 in Ann Arbor as well. 356 00:27:51,800 --> 00:27:58,760 The VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System and certainly the National Vietnam Veterans of America Association. 357 00:27:58,760 --> 00:28:05,680 You can be a sponsor by going to veteransradio.org, clicking on the about us and our sponsors 358 00:28:05,680 --> 00:28:06,760 and help us out. 359 00:28:06,760 --> 00:28:12,600 Keep this program alive for the 21 and 22 years. 360 00:28:12,600 --> 00:28:14,160 Keep us going for another 20. 361 00:28:14,160 --> 00:28:30,200 Thank you.