Chimers Chime In: Being a Veteran at Chime

“When I was driving a warship in the Navy, I had to stay flexible and roll with the punches — we could never know exactly what was going to happen,” says Anie Lee. “As a member of Chime’s Security Operations team, I bring a similar mindset to my work. In our hybrid remote environment, we navigate solving problems together, anticipate what might happen, and respond to incidents — it’s not unlike my time in the service.”

Will Wix, who was put in charge of a group of young military recruits as an officer in the Navy, remembers helping them navigate car loans or other forms of debt. “The car dealerships outside our naval base were notorious for taking advantage of young sailors with adversarial financing offers,” he says. “Fortunately, the Navy was proactive in looking after them and helping them understand the pitfalls of predatory lending. That experience came to mind when I joined Chime — I’m proud to work for a company that goes out of its way to help peoples’ financial well-being in the same way the Navy does.”

As Will and Anie’s stories show, serving in the military provides many skills and experiences that can help people truly shine in their careers as veterans.

We’re proud to have veterans on our team at Chime, both for their service to our country and the value they bring to our organization. Here’s a look at some of their stories, skills, and tips for veterans navigating the move into the tech world.

The role of service: What it means to be a veteran

It’s no secret that joining the military is a huge life decision. Everyone who joins has a different reason for doing so, yet everyone works towards a shared goal: to protect the country they’re serving.

For Anie, the choice to serve was borne of a desire to give back to her country and take some time to decide what she wanted to be when she grew up. “I was pre-med but had a lot of doubts about being a doctor, so joining the Navy gave me a chance to try something else out and start my career,” she says. “I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to serve my country and learn everything I did along the way.”

The transition from service to corporate America

Transitioning from service to civilian life represents a huge change for veterans. Whether it’s going from living aboard a ship or military base to in a local neighborhood or from interpreting enemy messages to analyzing fraud data, the shift is a big one.

It can sometimes be hard to adjust to civilian life — and working in corporate America — because of the nature of military work. Positioning your skills as transferable when you might not be able to talk about what you did during service can make it feel hard to land a new role.

For Anie, the transition was made a bit easier by her studies in cyber security, which she pursued a master’s in after leaving the service. “I was able to make connections through my master’s program, but there were still skills I didn’t know how to frame in corporate terms, like my experience firefighting,” she says. “My ability to advance my career came down to the people around me who supported and pushed me in the right direction and acted as sounding boards along the way,” she adds.

Anie’s advice for veterans moving into the corporate world is to try to specialize by focusing on their interests. “When it comes to veterans, there are a lot of people who have done the same work, so find a line of work that lets you show your strengths and passions,” she says. “And don’t be afraid to apply for a job in an industry you might not have considered, like tech — the doors to tech companies are far more open than they used to be, especially with virtual work environments.”

It’s also critical to consider how companies support veterans through their transitions to civilian life. At Chime, we believe that veterans are a huge value-add because of the perspectives and experiences they bring to the table. There is a lot of leadership, independence, and maturity that comes from time in service, as well as a high level of agency and ability to collaborate with people from different backgrounds to solve complex problems. We believe that skills learned in service are very transferable.

To help support veterans and their spouses transitioning to civilian careers, Chime is proud to partner with American Corporate Partners (ACP), a non-profit dedicated to assisting U.S. veterans and active duty military spouses find their next careers. As Chime veterans know, this support is invaluable. So Chime employees partner one-on-one with veterans and military spouses to provide personalized guidance and support them on their paths to a fulfilling civilian career.

Sam Donovan, Chime Senior Security Manager and ACP mentor, shared that, “Participating as an ACP mentor has been an impactful experience — it’s refreshing and exciting to connect with our service members and spouses who are transitioning to a career outside of the military — their enthusiasm radiates. It’s also a testament to the team-centric attitude of fellow Chimers who participate (both veterans and non-veterans alike) that they’re willing to spend time contributing to others’ professional success. People helping people is powerful stuff!”

Choosing Chime — and bringing skills learned in the service to the table

For Anie, service taught her teamwork — with deployments lasting 6 to 8 months and everyone living together on a ship, she understood a lot of other humans and how to best work together. “We came together for a common mission every day, which was a great experience,” she says. “That sense of teamwork and being united is something I work to foster at Chime now.”

For veterans considering Chime or the tech industry, Anie, Sam, and Will all agree — find companies with a mission that’s aligned with your own. “After all, the military’s mission is to protect your country, and that’s something we’ve all worked together towards,” Will says. If you’re leaving the military and you’re mission-driven, then working at a company with a strong mission will give you structure and motivation not unlike what you felt in the service. Finding that alignment can ease your transition and set you up for a fulfilling career as a veteran.

For more support as a veteran leaving the service, here are some resources our Chime veterans put together:

• American Corporate Partners (ACP): ACP’s free Mentoring Program connects post-9/11 veterans, active duty spouses, and eligible military spouses with corporate professionals for customized mentorship. ACP assists veterans and eligible spouses on their path towards fulfilling, long-term careers, whether the veteran is job searching or newly employed.
• FourBlock Career Readiness Programs: They partner with Columbia University and companies across a variety of industries to host education sessions focused on networking, skills translation, resume writing, interviewing, and other transition topics.
• Veterati: Mentorship program that allows Veterans, Service Members, and Military Spouses to find and schedule one hour conversations with volunteers with specific knowledge and experience. I am a mentor and mentee on the platform, and always find value in the conversations!
• Vets in Tech: Organization focused on helping Veterans transition into technology careers. They offer education services, employer meetups/job fairs, and LinkedIn profile/resume review services.