Bunker Labs has been at the heart of entrepreneurial support for veterans for years. But what many people may not know is that its programs are also open to military spouses. In fact, it is launching one specifically for that demographic this week.
The Military Spouse CEO Circle is designed for spouses to discuss the challenges of being an entrepreneur or business owner, offer support to those in their cohort, and provide connections.
While the CEO Circle has been around for years, it recently transformed into a virtual model.
"We realized the program has the capacity to create the impact that entrepreneurs need right now, and so it was adapted over the last month for a virtual format," said Sabrina Wojtewicz, Southwest region executive director for Bunker Labs.
Wojtewicz, a military spouse, is one of several milspouses on the Bunker Labs leadership team. She mentioned that Bunker Labs has never really marketed specifically to the military spouse community and realized that it should.
"What we do really well is build community, and so we're changing how we talk to the community by creating the segment for a military spouse. And we're also doing it through leadership," she said.
Chief Operating Officer Sarita Connelly is a military spouse, and there are several milspouses on staff as well. Wojtewicz says Bunker Labs believes people will be who they can see, so by sharing more military spouse success stories and content they can relate with, they will see themselves in these programs.
How can you get involved? There are a few ways, actually.
First, spread the word. Help Bunker Labs reach more military spouses. The Military Spouse CEO Circle Program is launching nationally, so it'll be available as a virtual model at all chapters. (Need to find your local chapter? Start here.) Participants can choose the cohort that fits them best, including geographically based groups, industry-based groups or peer groups -- like the military spouse program.
Next, apply and get involved. Work with the entrepreneurs at Bunker Labs to help equip other entrepreneurs as you all learn together. Wojtewicz has many examples of how Bunker Labs is uniquely able to put together groups of people who learn from each other.
"What we've done is aggregate peer groups of entrepreneurs that are living the daily grind and grit of running and growing their businesses so they can crowdsource and share in a structured way what is working for them," she said.
When entrepreneurs get together and brainstorm, big things can happen, she said. Soon, they're adding revenue streams, pivoting from one month to the next and growing their businesses.
Third, share your resources. As Bunker Labs starts growing the Military Spouse CEO Circle and adding more spouses to local groups, it wants to feature more military spouse-friendly resources. Reach out and share them with the Bunker Labs team.
"What makes us different is that we recognize there is no single source or magic pill for being successful. Success is based on community and impact," Wojtewicz said.
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--Rebecca Alwine can be reached at rebecca.alwine@monster.com. Follow her on Twitter @rebecca_alwine.
