VETERAN SPOTLIGHT: Leland Goldberg gets the mission accomplished

FORMER COMBAT VETERAN HELPS OTHERS WITH A NOVEL BUSINESS PROGRAM

Military veterans are more likely to start their own business than people who never served in the military — 45% more likely, in fact. That’s according to SBA statistics, which put the number of veteran-owned small businesses in the U.S. at 2.4 million.

Leland Goldberg understands why that is: “In the military, it’s all about a mission, it’s all about working with the team, and it’s all about having a sense of urgency to get the mission accomplished. They feel a sense of empowerment as a result of their experience. That’s why more and more veterans want to be their own boss rather than work for someone else.”

Goldberg should know. He is a combat veteran, having served as an Army officer in Vietnam. His tour included his involvement in the Tet Offensive, a massive, countrywide attack staged by the North Vietnamese Army. He says, when he landed back in the States, “I actually kissed the ground.”

Now, more than 50 years later, after a successful career in the business world, he is focused full-time on his fellow veterans, helping them learn how to prosper as business owners. He is the Founder/ President of the nonprofit Veteran Entrepreneurial Training and Resource Network Inc. (VETRN), created in 2013.

He says the impetus for creating VETRN was learning, long after the fact, that he had gotten his first job in large part because he was a combat veteran. The person who hired him was also a combat veteran, and he knew the qualities such an experience creates — perseverance, discipline and desire, among them. “I had had a pretty successful career as a result,” Goldberg says, “so how can I then not give back?”

From that first job, he went on to hold executive positions with major companies in the financial services sector, amassing extensive knowledge about management and finance over the years. Using that knowledge, Goldberg designed an MBA curriculum for a program that would teach veterans and their family members how to successfully grow a business. It’s for businesses that have been operating for a year or more and have the required revenue level. And, importantly, it’s free of charge.

The program consists of 14 threehour sessions over the course of six months, plus 100-150 hours of homework. Its components include business development strategies, government contracts, accessing capital, strategic planning, finance and financial management and human resources, with guest speakers — lawyers, bankers, accountants, consultants — supplementing the courses. Also supplementing them, panels of judges to analyze growth plans, as well as peer-to-peer and alumni networks.

VETRN graduates stand in front of the Service Credit Union corporate facilities, which were provided for New Hampshire classes.

Participants are assigned a mentor at the start of the program. “They have the ability to draw on the resources and experience of others who have been through it, those who already have the skills,” Goldberg says. “They can work with them, so when issues come up, they know they’re not alone.”

Also early in the program, an HBDI (Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument) assessment is made. “It’s an assessment of how your brain physiologically solves problems,” Goldberg says. The four categories are analytical, detailed and organized, conceptual, and interpersonal. “Entrepreneurs tend to be conceptual, but they may not have skills in details and organization, or analytical, so they would know they have to bring in those skills.” The goal is “cognitive diversity.” Goldberg says that he doesn't know of any other veteran entrepreneurial training program that uses that approach to cognitive thinking as part of its curriculum.

The program started in physical classrooms, but COVID changed that — it’s now strictly online. Though Goldberg says he prefers face-toface classes and hopes to eventually create a hybrid, he finds that online has its advantages. “Well, I’m now in 11 states, including Utah, Colorado and California,” Goldberg says. “Online, you can reach out to a much broader audience.” The current class has 15 participants. With this class, a total of 90 veterans and family members will have graduated from the VETRN program.

Another change COVID brought: a new curriculum option. In addition to learning how to create a growth plan, participants can choose a newly designed course to match the times — a 12-month turnaround plan. “It helps them take steps to make sure they don’t run into problems,” Goldberg says.

Ask him what aspect of running a business is most challenging for the program’s participants, and he says, without question, financials. “Most just don’t have a good understanding of accounting, they don’t manage their cash flow properly, and they don’t have a good understanding of how important it is to identify key financial metrics to see how well you’re doing,” he says. “It’s a big aha for them — I didn’t know what I didn’t know.”

Goldberg gets a lot of satisfaction out of knowing he’s helped his fellow veterans and their family members with a program that’s one of a kind. “To my knowledge, there’s no other program this comprehensive,” he says. “There’s nothing that is helping businesses grow the way VETRN is.” To apply, visit vetrn.org.

Partnering with VETRN

When the pandemic hit, the VETRN classes had to be moved online. Shown here, the first online graduating class.

Right from the start, Service Credit Union has supported the work of the VETRN MBA program by providing both expertise and classroom facilities. “It’s been a good partnership,” says David Weed, Assistant Vice President of Business Services for Service CU.

The missions of the two organizations — to support the military community — dovetail, so when Weed and VETRN Founder Leland Goldberg were introduced, it became clear a relationship would be of mutual benefit in their work.

At the time, Weed was providing expertise for Boots to Business, an SBA program for former active-duty military personnel who want to start a business. The VETRN program complements that program with MBA-level entrepreneurial training for existing business owners.

Before VETRN went online because of COVID, Service CU provided classrooms, AV and tech support for four graduating classes. Weed acted as teacher/visiting expert as well as a judge for participants’ business plans. That work continues for the online classes, but Weed looks forward to a return of in-person classes: “I think they lead to deeper relationships among the people.”