“I see the community reflect and recommit to paying it forward. I talk with colleagues about what the ERG can do to support. But what really stands out is the passion to give back. They ask, ‘How can I get involved? What can I do?’ and, ‘How do I help others get here when they retire?’ I am inspired by this selfless drive to continue the mission and serve one another.” — Gina K.

“I’m so impressed that the military and Microsoft teamed up. To me, growing up, the idea of being a software developer was like this magical thing that only the most special people could do. But here I am. It’s obvious that my Microsoft team wants to help me to be the best that I can be, and therefore make our team the best it can be. It’s been a fantastic transition process [from military service] for me.” — Jessica H.

“Service members sometimes have low confidence in what their skills and talents are — they don’t feel confident they can get the kind of jobs that their civilian college graduate counterparts can get. But those of us that have come to Microsoft are excelling beyond what we even thought possible. I’m doing way more than I thought I was able to do, and it’s because a lot of things we do here are things we did in the military: solving problems, completing tasks, taking things one step at a time until, eventually, you get a great product. So I tell service members, ‘Have more confidence in yourself. You can do this — you’re valuable to the corporate world, you’re valuable to Microsoft, and you can do well here if you just believe in yourself.’” — Anthony S.

“Most civilians struggle to understand the camaraderie within the military. Upon separation the hardest struggle is knowing that you don’t have that support system anymore… Through [our Microsoft Software and Systems Academy cohort], we are able to expand that support system outside of the service and maintain the motto of one team, one fight.” — Desi B.

“I can grow my hair, be myself, participate in the things I want to. One of the things my wife and I wanted to do was start a family, and we’ve been successful at that.” — Jovan F.

“The military is so tight-knit, and it doesn’t matter if you still serve, are in the Reserve or have completed your service. We all have a story that we can relate to each other. That we’ve walked in those shoes before. So, you really do have somebody to lean on — even here in Fargo.” — Lisa H. and David D.

“A lot of the struggles that military people have is in losing that connectivity. I think Microsoft actually has that. As you’re adjusting to your new work environment and new team, the military support at Microsoft is phenomenal. There’s email distribution groups, people get together to BBQ and go to the movies. There’s always someone with a military background to help you. Even MSSA is powered by this concept that we’re all military, all together.” — Mark S.