Veterans
Veterans Team
11.11.2024
FDM has been a proud supporter of the armed forces community for the last ten years. Since 2014, the FDM Veterans Program has provided a next step for over 1,000 people globally, offering opportunities for military personnel from all ranks and branches of the services.
This year we’re attending Veterans Day celebrations in Downtown Belmont on November 3; Carolinas Veterans Day Festival on November 11, and the ‘Cycling Heals Vets Connect’ event on November 12.
Let’s meet three of our Veteran Consultants, each from a different branch of service and discover their stories of finding meaningful second careers after the forces.
Aullonzo Thomas
Aullonzo Thomas worked as an operations specialist for the US Navy for four years. He was responsible for the ship’s navigation and protecting it through using the radar. After completing his military service, he took on a role as a substitute teacher while looking for opportunities to return to the tech field.
He came across FDM through Indeed.com, and saw a chance to strengthen his skills, extend his overall knowledge base and secure full-time employment.
His role on the frontlines of navigation taught him invaluable skills in leadership, project management, and agility – qualities that would later prove essential in his civilian career.
Aullonzo secured his first client assignment within a few months of joining FDM and quickly got entrenched in FDM’s intensive training program, where he expanded his technical skills with SQL and Excel and also earned certifications in Scrum and project management.
He honed the art of public speaking, which became crucial as he began to report to senior management in various organizations.
His journey with FDM took him from Virginia to Boston, where he started as a project coordinator with a financial services company.
In time he worked his way up to prominent roles across the finance sector to his current assignment as a Business Analyst at a multinational bank in Tampa. His responsibilities have expanded to managing complex onboarding processes for nearly 3,000 employees.
Through his career journey, he has drawn from the skills he first developed in the Navy – adaptability, discipline, and operational efficiency. His path exemplifies the power of military experience translated into corporate success, where his service-driven mindset continues to make an impact in high-stakes environments.
Jeshua Haskins
Growing up, Jeshua Haskins spent his free time hosting game servers and developing modifications for video games. He joined the US Army straight after high school and specialized as a small arms and artillery repairman for seven and a half years.
After leaving the armed forces, his plans of going to college were disrupted by the pandemic. Not one to back down, he decided to instead focus on something he’d enjoyed since childhood and completed DevCodeCamp’s full stack development bootcamp.
His passion for software development led him to FDM shortly after.
Jeshua specialized in Java development and soon secured an assignment as an IT developer with a large banking client. He applied the skills learnt at FDM – particularly SQL and Unix to his projects on assignment.
‘I have transitioned from having zero knowledge on the Atlassian tools, to providing level two support and now level three support on the Developer Experience Tooling team.’
His day-to-day duties range from providing support to over 40,000 employees using Jira, BitBucket, Confluence, and multiple add-ons from the Atlassian products, to liaising with service vendors; communicating with teams and coordinating all maintenance activities.
All of these call for communication, problem-solving, critical thinking, teamwork and collaboration – essential skills for the workplace that are inherently developed within the armed forces.
Victor Barrington
Victor started his military career as a Non-Commissioned Officer in both the Marines and the Army. His early experience taught him leadership skills, resilience, adaptability, and a sense of mission above the self – qualities that would shape his career.
After his military service, he joined a telecommunications company as a network design engineer. Following a workforce reduction at the company, he decided to broaden his expertise and completed an AA degree in English Composition and Literature, followed by a BS in IT (Software Design and Development) and an MS in IT (Data Assurance and Security) within just two years.
Drawn to the possibilities within IT, he was approached by FDM’s Veteran recruitment team, where he completed AWS training and joined the deployment and release management team at a global bank.
In his current role as Deployment and Release Management Lead, he coordinates coding updates, product enhancements, and release schedules across the bank’s financial, currency, and compliance products, ensuring strict adherence to compliance processes. His hard work has earned him consistent praise from his colleagues and superiors, who recognize his dedication and technical versatility.
Victor believes his time with FDM has been transformative, enriched by mentors and peers who share a team-oriented, collaborative approach similar to the one he experienced in the military.
‘It is a true team-built environment FDM has created and follows the same philosophy as the US Military in the mission above the individual completed by the brothers and sisters in the team. “You succeed, I succeed” mentality. We do not achieve great things alone; we excel through cooperative efforts.’
Looking ahead, he aspires to give back to the IT community as a teacher and trainer, hoping to pass on the knowledge he has gained to future professionals.
FDM Veterans Program
‘For over 10 years, FDM has proudly engaged with the veteran community, recognizing the unique skills and perspectives that veterans bring to the business world. Their leadership, resilience, and dedication not only enrich our teams but also drive innovation and success across our organization.’
– Michael Griffin, Veteran Recruiter
Are you looking for your next challenge after the armed forces? It could be sooner than you think.
Apply to our Veterans Program to find out more.