The Army prepared Pat Lafferty for his career, currently as COO of the Acceleration Community of Companies (ACC), through seven years and three deployments.
“I was thrown into incredibly diverse situations where I and the soldiers I served with had to figure it out … Because the stakes are high and people’s lives are on the line, you must learn to lead authentically,” said Lafferty.
What qualities of military veterans best translate?
Justin Lewis, Stagwell Constellation chair, was part of the Marine force that rescued Captain Scott O’Grady from Bosnia, which was represented in the film Behind Enemy Lines. He stated that the military gives people the curiosity to uncover unseen truths and the desire to manage people to produce exceptional work.
“Like marketing and advertising, the military is also a human powered organization that must be curious about the world around us. We have to care for our troops in a manner that enables them to deploy around the globe in the most challenging situations,” said Lewis.
Other skills vets deem important include having individual initiative, creative thinking, following orders, being accountable, adaptable and determined, reporting up and down the chain of command and importantly, understanding human nature.
While some skills may not translate directly to the advertising industry, some do. Bob Devol, a freelance copy pro, was a journalist 2nd class with a broadcasting specialty in the Navy.
“My military experience was responsible for my first media job on-air in commercial radio, which then directly led to my first ad agency job,” said Devol.
If the industry embraces the skills veterans bring to the table, they may prove to be the next wave of leaders in the industry.