by hAIR, LAND and SEA

Sit down with Jordyn Fetter, from being a trailblazing force in military marketing to working in global operations at Tech StartUp, Second Front Systems, Jordyn's journey from the U.S. Air Force to the forefront of innovation is an inspiring listen. She opens up about her transition from military service to mastering the marketing communication space, sharing invaluable insights on overcoming challenges, the power of trust and teamwork, and her ability to turn ideas into action. As she delves into her latest ventures and the exciting global expansion of her career, Jordyn's story serves as a masterclass in leadership, resilience, and the relentless pursuit of excellence. Whether you're navigating your own career path or looking to innovate within your sphere, Jordyn's journey offers lessons on adaptability, the importance of community, and the endless possibilities that come with daring to reimagine the status quo. Connect with Jordyn on LinkedIn to keep up with her journey.

Tune in with Hannah Hunt for an honest, heartfelt conversation about daring to lead with kindness, embracing feedback, and being gentle with ourselves. From her journey leading software teams across the Air Force's Kessel Run and the Army Software Factory, Hannah shares insights on transitioning from doer to leader, and explains her approach to empathy, vulnerability, and authenticity as keys to effective management. Hear Hannah's perspective on spearheading software innovation initiatives within bureaucratic organizations and military culture. She provides guidance on boundary-setting, avoiding burnout, and work-life balance as a young founder and working mom. Hannah also discusses her recent move from government to industry and the importance of workplace flexibility and investing in culture.

Rachele Dengler's journey shows the power of curiosity, empathy, and embedding with your users/customers. As an Air Force officer turned design thinker, Rachele stumbled into the world of human-centered design and found her calling. She shares how truly understanding users' needs transformed the capabilities her team delivered. Rachele argues more focus and effort on-the-ground engagement could revolutionize defense acquisitions. She offers insights on building trust, adopting new techniques, and retaining passionate talent. Rachele's story will inspire you to focus on people first and serve others through creative problem solving. Rachel recently left the Air Force and is off to do amazing things and you can follow her adventures by connecting with her on LinkedIn.

Former Air Force officer Brian Humphreys shares his journey from aircraft maintenance to hands-on innovation, blending military service, family life, and civilian work. Hear Brian's perspective on bridging the military-civilian divide, including lessons on motivation, communication, and working within bureaucracy. He explains his role spearheading new logistics software for the F-35 through the Mad Hatter project, giving a behind-the-scenes look at military innovation. Brian also provides an inside glimpse into the networking and relationships critical for senior leaders driving change. He discusses the difficulties of innovating in competitive, execution-focused environments and overcoming roadblocks as junior leaders. With insights on spouse support, adopting 3 kids and having another while moving up the ranks, and making a positive impact through work, Brian paints a holistic picture of service and leadership

From admin assistant to chief strategy officer at Building Momentum, come listen to Cheyanne Dwyer's story and mindset is uncovered on this episode of Be the Reason with Mohawk Matt Denny. In this episode we delve into Cheyanne's remarkable journey from graduating with a fine arts degree to working in the defense tech industry. Her path is a dynamic one, encompassing diverse roles within a company that changed the way the Marine Corps does training with the Marine Maker Program and more. From her start as an admin assistant, she rose through the ranks, infusing her theater management experience with the tech world. Her unconventional background in the defense tech space adds a unique flavor to the narrative, embodying the spirit of diversity of thought that Building Momentum thrives upon.

In the defense space you can only solve so many problems as the unclassified level and Sean and his Team at Nooks are solving the problem of access to classified spaces across the country by focusing on it as their main service offering at Nooks. In this episode we also highlight their new offering, which we are standing in front of if you are watching the video version of the show, their mobile classified space as a service. As the only accredited company in the country to have this capability, they brought it this week to the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs.  This problem of access to classified spaces, is something I have been frustrated with as a small business who can't afford to have my own dedicated space or contract related to one. This is a game changer for small businesses and consultants who can't afford to have their own dedicated space. Check out Nooks and maybe you will see a Nook in your neighborhood, soon enough. 

Navy Veteran and Small business owner, Brad Halsey, talks about his journey through the military and as co-founder and CEO of Building Momentum. He shares his core values as a CEO, building a diverse team with variety of skills and backgrounds, a place where everyone has a voice and finding people who have passion for solving problems. He shares their origin story as a company, the Marine Maker Program, training 10,000+ service members, their partnerships with the DoD, hiring diverse people and lastly their almost sinking moment for their company because of poor planning and bad management by the Navy. And tells the government powers to be better to small businesses.

Can't we all just get along? Join Mohawk Matt as he goes head-to-head in a friendly debate with Stephanie Alexander from govmates about certain stigmas and stereotypes between government employees and contractors. Let us know what govcon topics we should debate next. You can connect with govmates and with Stephanie on LinkedIn.

It Starts With Us: Naval Oceanography with CAPT Christi Montgomery, Commanding Officer at Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center. Learn from Christi on how the Naval mission starts with her team as they map from the ocean floor to the stars above and everything in between.

Learn from Dr. Dolores Kuchina-Musina, the Dinocorn herself. We talk about her journey as an entrepreneur with REXOTA Solutions, LLC, her newly minted PhD, being a master of contracts, her OTA knowledge and much more. She also shares the value of networking and how she would not be where she is without the relationships she has built over the years. You can connect with Dolores and follow her journey on LinkedIn.

Playing outside -particularly in wilderness spaces- requires careful thought and planning. The “great outdoors” has not yet been cultivated to cater to humanity's every step. Learn from Matthew Brown, founder of Chimney Trails and former Navy Ship Captain how Chimney Trails Builds Resilient Kids! And how he has saw a gap happening from his military deployments and found a way to not only teach resiliency to military families but families everywhere. Parents can build resilience in their children through the process of planning, discussing, executing, and revisiting the memory of a shared adventure. Following two years of responding and recovering from the worst viral pandemic in living memory, there has never been a more appropriate time to focus on these fundamental, resilience-building principles. Subscribe here: https://www.chimneytrail.com/ or connect with Matthew Brown on LinkedIn today!

"We are there to chart and map the worlds oceans for safe navigation!" Learn from Michael Bendzlowicz who started his career in oceanography using two colored pencils and drawing paper and mylar charts. His friends call him BZ he has supported Naval Oceanography for more than 35 years. BZ is currently the deputy director of Operations at Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command (CNMOC). He has dedicated himself to the Navy and the armed forces most of his professional life, which has taken him on the road for 10 years of his 30 year marriage, something he and his wife agreed to a long time ago in order to serve country and people. He also shares one of his favorite experiences of using unmanned crafts to observe and discover shipwrecks thousands of years old. Check out the CNMOC on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

"Life is too short to not do what you love; and I love the role I have in bettering the Sea Services of the United States." Learn from Mike Stevens, who was once the most senior enlisted Sailor in the Navy and is currently the Chief Executive Officer of the Navy League of the United States. Mike takes us through the history of the Navy League and the value it has provided for 122 years. He dives deep into their main event of the year, Sea, Air Space - which is a massive conference in support of the Sea Services of the United States; like the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and the U.S. flag Merchant Marines. To learn more about how you can get involved as a member or volunteer, check out www.navyleague.org and come visit Mike and crew at Sea Air Space, tell them Mohawk sent you. In 2016, Mike retired as the 13th Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy. In his 33-year Navy career, Mike's various assignments included all technical and leadership levels of aircraft maintenance. His assignments included: Helicopter Crew Chief, Navy Recruiter, Officer Candidate School (OCS) Instructor and Class Chief Petty Officer. Connect with Mike on LinkedIn and better understand his passion for service to sailors and veterans, world wide.

“Creating a positive culture isn't something you can sprinkle around like [fairy dust] or expect people to read a document about and be better; it takes empathy and guidance to help b=people transition from all they have ever known.” Kevin Burnett shares his story of how he went from being an information technology specialist to leading culture change at the Department of Defense, over his past 20+ years of service. Kevin is currently the Chief Digital Officer at Definitive Logic. Reach out on LinkedIn and challenge him with an quoting contest for his favorite past time- films!

Join Navy CAPT Kate Hermsdorfer as she introduces us to the ‘Oracles of Sea.' The Fleet Weather Center San Diego is home for all weather forecasting in coordination with air, land and sea operations-a part of larger U S Naval Meteorology & Oceanography Command (CNMOC). With timely environmental knowledge on physical battlefields from beneath our waters up into outer space; these oracle's provide relevant info that keep Marines and Sailors safe everyday. Check out Naval Oceanography on Instagram, Twitter Facebook, LinkedIn and their website at https://www.cnmoc.usff.navy.mil/

What is innovation and how does it apply to the Department of Defense? Join Jason Knudson, as he defines innovation as a concept, idea, process or thing that creates change and delivers value. Jason, was recently honored as one of the 2022 Federal 100, which highlights experts across all federal government information technology fields! We explore where defense innovation started, where it is now and where he sees it going. Throughout his 24 year career, he has spent time places like Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), CNO's Rapid Innovation Cell (CRIC), the Navy's Seventh Fleet, OPNAV N2/N6, Second Front Systems, skyTran, Vysva Lab, Center for Technology, Research and Commercialization and Catalyst Campus for Technology and Innovation. Connect with Jason on LinkedIn and join him in his mission to improve our countries capabilities.