This week’s Social Enterprise Profile features Combat2Career® (C2C), a Connecticut-based technology start-up venture founded in May 2011 by Meghan Brunaugh and Charlotte Creech to assist military members and veterans in the pursuit of higher education and the transition to civilian careers. Through its online community of veterans, higher education programs, and businesses, C2C’s portal helps current and prospective veteran students navigate the resources and information they need to make a successful transition from combat 2 college 2 career. We had a chance to interview Charlotte about her venture. 

Why did you start your business and how did you get it started?

Combat2Career was legally founded in May 2011; however, the idea was originally conceived long before that as a result of personal experiences that my business partner, Meghan Brunaugh, and I both had when witnessing the frustration that many veterans face when trying to navigate the college search and application process after separating from the military. Meg and I first met while we were MBA students at the University of Connecticut, and the model for Combat2Career.com was developed as part of a class exercise which required us to write a business plan. Based on her experience as an Educational Services Officer in the Coast Guard, Meg suggested the idea for a company to help match veterans with veteran-supportive higher education programs. The idea immediately resonated with me because my husband had experienced a lot of difficulty locating and applying to a higher education program after separating from the Air Force—there was no easy way for him to compare schools based on how supportive they were of student veterans, and most programs were not sensitive to the specific needs of an older, non-traditional student veteran. We wrote up the business plan, placed third in a university-sponsored business plan competition and received a lot of positive feedback and advice from the judges, all of whom encouraged us to pursue the business. From there, we started conducting more serious market research and discovered that the market need was much greater than we originally thought.

We made the leap to forego traditional MBA jobs post-graduation and instead launch this business because we both felt compelled to solve the problem afflicting veterans and believe it’s our duty to offer this service to veterans in recognition of the sacrifices they have made for our country.

View more videos at: http://nbcconnecticut.com.

What do you sell?

Combat2Career offers access to its service completely free-of-charge to veterans. We sell annual subscriptions to our web-based portal (www.combat2career.com), giving higher education programs and employers the ability to identify, interact with and recruit skilled veterans to their organization. We also sell consulting services to assist academic institutions and businesses in building robust and supportive veteran recruitment and retention strategies.

Who are your customers?

Our primary end users are U.S. military veterans considering using their GI Bill benefits to pursue a degree in higher education at U.S. colleges and universities, and those that are already enrolled in a college program, or recent veteran graduates. We also encourage community supporters, veteran service providers, and other veterans to join our site as mentors to help coach and guide veterans through their transition from combat to college to career.

However, our paying customers are academic institutions looking to recruit, retain and place student veterans, as well as businesses looking to recruit and retain skilled veteran employees.

How do you measure success?

We measure success by the number of subscribing higher education programs, businesses and organizations that have signed onto our web portal and made a commitment to support and recruit veterans. In addition, we measure success by each connection made through our service, whether veteran-to-veteran, or veteran placement to an education program or employment opportunity.

What part of your business are you most passionate about?

The concept for Combat2Career is entirely based on our passion for helping veterans succeed in their transition to higher education, and ultimately, to a civilian career. Helping veterans find the education, connections and resources needed to succeed in their post-military lives is what motivates us on a daily basis.

What value do you bring to the community that you are a part of?

There are nearly 1 million unemployed veterans and 1 million servicemembers that are expected to exit the military by 2016 and return home to one of the most competitive job markets in U.S. history. Our social enterprise was created to provide an all-inclusive, online solution to bridge the gap between veterans, higher education institutions, businesses, and community supporters and mentors to help veterans make a successful transition from combat to college to career.

Our technology provides value by giving veterans a tailored college search engine, resume builder and career portal to identify the best fit colleges and businesses for their needs, and by giving education programs and employers the ability to seek out and build relationships with skilled veteran candidates they’d like to recruit. By facilitating these connections, we believe we can effectively reduce unemployment rates, increase retention, graduation and placement rates of student veterans, and help the community at large understand the value that veterans bring to the private sector.

What sets your business apart from others?

Our business is unique in the way it delivers a social network with customized resources and tools to provide an all-inclusive, online solution to bridge the gap between veterans seeking education and employment, and the colleges and businesses seeking to recruit veterans to their organizations. We also invite community supporters and mentors to play to play a role in educating veterans about their options and coaching them through their transition process.

What is the biggest challenge that you are facing right now with your business?

Our biggest challenge is scaling our business from a regional service provider to a nationwide platform. We are always seeking to connect with other individuals and organizations that can help us reach a larger audience.

Why do you think that social enterprise is important?

Combat2Career was specifically founded as a for-profit social enterprise rather than a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit business because we strongly believe that this is the most flexible and, thus, sustainable business model, with the greatest potential to positively impact the economy and local community. In recent years, the number of not-for-profit businesses seeking to survive on corporate and private donations has skyrocketed, while the level of donations has drastically declined, causing many not-for-profits to struggle to survive. As a social enterprise, Combat2Career can leverage multiple revenue streams while also doing its part to grow and support the local economy. Rather than focusing on fundraising, we can focus on executing on the mission and vision of our company—to help veterans—because we do not have to rely on charitable donations. We believe social enterprises hold the key to growing the economy in a responsible and sustainable way!

What role has reSET played in your business development?

As a participant in the reSET accelerator, we were introduced to a number of mentors, partners, and potential customers, and received valuable feedback and education which has helped us refine and grow our business. We also received a cash prize from reSET’s Social Enterprise Award business plan competition, which contributed to us hiring our first full-time staff member.