Value-Added

Jeff Blowers, Prime Vest Financial Services (L); Nate Spessward, Westwood Professional Services; Shelby Hadley, Metro Bus

Our citizen soldiers deliver a unique perspective, whether providing security detail in Iraq or serving customers at home.

By Gail Ivers

How do you prepare to be gone from the office for two years?

You don't.

Oh, you tell the boss. You might notify some clients…clean up a few files…tidy your desk. But then you walk away without looking back.

That was the consensus of four veterans who have served extended deployments overseas as a result of their service in the Minnesota National Guard. Much has been written about the challenges service families face and what they do to cope. But what about the employers? Though the impact is radically different, the leaving still creates a gap that employers must address.

"Employers say this is a blessing and a curse," said attorney John Kolb, a partner at Rinke Noonan. A Colonel in the National Guard, Kolb spent two full years away from his law firm beginning in 2005. "Employees who are in the National Guard bring an extra level of scholarship – in almost every case they've had some additional schooling paid for by the Guard, they bring an extra level of leadership, and their service is a reflection of citizenship. These are generally valued employees and it's hard to have them gone."

In best-attorney fashion, Kolb summed up what many employers in Central Minnesota say: We hired these employees because of their Guard experience, not in spite of it.

"I tried to sell the National Guard from the beginning," said Shelby Hadley, call center dispatcher with Metro Bus. "It's an investment and what I bring back from my trainings and experiences is a benefit to my employer."

That same attitude prevailed at Westwood Professional Services, which was good news for Nate Spessard. He was barely in the door of his new job when the deployment rumors started. "The military gives you three months warning," Spessard said. "Westwood knew it was coming when they hired me. I tried to keep them abreast of what was going on."

Of greater concern to Spessard was his ability to return to work at full speed. His first deployment occurred after his first year of school to become a survey technician. He worried then about remembering what he had learned so he could finish year two. With his second deployment occurring only a few months into his job at Westwood, the worry returned. "I was nervous," he said, "coming back from both deployments really. What will I remember, what have I forgotten. There was a definite learning curve." At Westwood Spessard was teamed with a crew chief in the field who was a former member of the National Guard. "We had lots to talk about," Spessard said. "He re-taught me. Westwood was really great – everyone is good about helping out."

When you go to work everyday at the same place it's easy to forget how much things change in a year, Kolb said. "I believe people are made up of their individual experiences. When I was in Iraq I was having one set of experiences that my co-workers at Rinke Noonan were not having. But they were having a set of experiences that I wasn't having and I have to remind myself about that. The office environment didn't stay static just because I wasn't there."

Both Metro Bus's Hadley and Jeff Blowers of PrimeVest Financial Services returned to work environments that had definitely not remained static during their absence.

An advanced market sales specialist at PrimeVest in St. Cloud, Blowers works with financial advisors, assisting them with product knowledge and case development. During his first deployment to Kosovo in 2003, little changed while he was away. His co-workers came together, redefined the territories, and covered until his return. But by the time he returned from his second deployment in 2007, things were different.

For one, the business was bigger, according to LeAnn McCool, national sales manager for PrimeVest. "We had to hire an individual to cover Jeff's territory. When Jeff came back we talked to him about a new opportunity in insurance and advisory. Jeff was aware that we were reorganizing while he was away – we communicated that."

"PrimeVest was great," Blowers said. "Others had to worry about their jobs when they came back. I didn't have that worry."

Businesses are already investing in their employees, according to Rinke Noonan's Kolb. "Now here's an employee that is getting training and investment from another group. Soldiers support a civilian economy and civilian businesses with minimal disruption. They help the economy as business people. They help society through security and service. Military employees are really a good bargain."

Shelby Hadley
Age: 31
Call Center Dispatcher, Metro Bus since 2002
Air Traffic Controller, G-Company 147th Air Traffic Services out of Camp Ripley
Rank: Sergeant
Deployments:
2003-2004: Bosnia
Sept. 2008 – June 2009: Iraq
Service: 2000-2009
Family: Husband, Jasen, an aviation electronic technician, also in the National Guard; three children ages 13, 3 and 1 ½ years old
Education: AA degree from St. Cloud State University
Hometown: St. Cloud
Hobbies: Reading
Missed most (other than your family and friends) while deployed: Celebrating holidays, driving a car and being able to go wherever you want to go.

Nate Spessard
Age: 30
Survey Technician, Westwood Professional Services since 2005
Security, 34th Infantry Division Bravo Battery, 1/125 out of Fairmont and Jackson, Minn.
Rank: Specialist
Deployments:
August 2003- March 2004: Belgium
Oct. 2005 – 2007: Iraq
Service: 2000-2007
Family: wife, Holle; 5 year old son and 6 month old daughter
Education: Graduated from St. Cloud Technical College in 2005 with a two-year degree in surveying and engineering. Nate was deployed to Belgium between his first and second years of school.
Hometown: Round Lake, MN
Hobbies: hunting, golfing, fishing, sports
Missed most (other than your family and friends) while deployed: Weekends outside in Minnesota grilling and relaxing in the summer sun.

Jeff Blowers
Age: 37
Advanced Market Sales Specialist, PrimeVest since 1999
Air Operations Officer, 2nd Battalion, 135th Infantry out of Mankato
Rank: Captain
Deployments:
2003 for a year: Platoon leader in Kosovo
2007 for 15 months: Company Commander in Kosovo (deployed for 12 months, away from work for 15 months)
Service: 1991 to present
Family: single
Education: 2004 graduate of St. Cloud State University with majors in finance and economics, currently working on an MBA at St. Thomas
Hometown: Breckenridge, Minn.
Hobbies: weight lifting, attending sporting events (season ticket holder for the Vikings)
Missed most (other than your family and friends) while deployed: Making my own meals

John Kolb
Age: 44
Partner, Rinke Noonan law firm, specializing in environment and natural resources law
Commander, 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment, headquartered in New Ulm, MN
Rank: Colonel
Deployments:
August 2003 - April 2004: All over Europe, mostly in England
Sept. 2005 – Sept. 2007: Iraq
Service: 1988-present
Family: wife, Susan, four children ages 9 - 18
Education: Bachelor of Science, St. John's University, 1988; JD from the University of Minnesota, 1996 Hometown: Eagan, MN; St. Cloud since 1998
Hobbies: Fishing, camping
Missed most (other than your family and friends) while deployed: grass under my feet, real milk, swimming

For the complete story visit the St. Cloud Area Chamber of Commerce for this issue of Business Central Magazine or subscribe by calling Cindy at 320-251-2940, ext. 100.