On Veterans Day and Every Day Samsung Honors Military Veterans Inside the Company and Across the Country

By reaching within and reaching out, Samsung Electronics America salutes military veterans inside the company and across the U.S., providing a welcoming workplace that celebrates veterans’ talents and programs that give back to the broader veterans community – not just on Veterans Day, but all year long.

Veterans at Samsung Electronics America enjoy a lunch in their honor with Tim Baxter, president & CEO of Samsung Electronics North America at their offices in New Jersey.

Military veterans comprise a fast-growing employee segment at Samsung.

“Veterans are a great fit at Samsung because they already know how to work independently as well as within a structured unit or team,” said John Hendrick, Samsung Electronics America Veterans Community Chief Advocate. “This company values their skills, personal accountability and mission orientation, as well as their focus on getting a job done well. They show up ready to go to work on day one.”

Hendrick noted that Samsung values and rewards the kind of innovation on the job that military veterans in particular bring to the workplace.

“Samsung encourages its people to think out of the box. Innovation and change is at the heart of Samsung’s culture and veterans are used to having to innovate and change on the move,” he said.

John Hendrick (right), veterans community chief advocate at Samsung Electronics America, poses for a photo with Sandy Cohen (left), a veteran from the 24th Infantry, Tropic Lightning Division, who served during the Korean War.

Samsung recognizes that vets are a highly valuable yet under-utilized segment of the labor force. Recruiting efforts are targeting veterans specifically, including at new Samsung locations opening in 2018. In the past year, Samsung’s Talent Acquisition team has engaged numerous veteran career events, from Texas to New Jersey, to identify hiring opportunities for veterans and military spouses.

Once hired within Samsung, the company takes steps to ensure vets are acclimating to work life and show that their service is appreciated.

In addition to year-round initiatives to support veterans, during the week of Veterans Day, large format displays at all Samsung locations nationwide will screen personal profiles of military veteran employees, while the vets themselves will enjoy a private lunch with Tim Baxter, President and CEO of Samsung Electronics North America. The Samsung Veterans Community, a group formally assembled just one year ago and already numbering more than 100 employees, focuses on engagement outreach, volunteering and mentorship of newly hired veterans.

Throughout the year, employees participate in multiple veterans-related volunteering opportunities, like working with transitioning and disabled vets to polish their resumes and interviewing skills, contributing to Operation Secret Santa, which fulfils homeless and special-needs vets’ wish lists, and taking part in Operation Gratitude, which sends care packages with handwritten notes to deployed troops.

Tony Cicio (far left), VP of The People Team at Samsung Electronics America and Joe Stinziano (far right), EVP of Consumer Electronics and Enterprise IT as Samsung Electronics America, pose for a photo at the company’s Veterans Day lunch.

Committed to Service Recognition

Samsung has affirmed its ongoing commitment to veterans’ communities in the U.S. for more than 20 years. The company uses its technology and resources to enhance the lives, experiences and opportunities for military veterans and their families. Samsung is proud to work closely with and provide support to a variety of veterans-facing organizations, including the American Legion and the Korean War Veterans Memorial Foundation.

Since 2015, Samsung has also been a partner of the Fisher House Foundation, which provides military families with housing close to a loved one during hospitalization. The company has donated hundreds of KNOX-secured tablets to Fisher Houses nationwide and is committing Samsung technology to homes being built in South Carolina, Texas, Nebraska and California.

Working with Vets in Tech, a non-profit organization devoted to moving veterans into the technology industry, Samsung’s $400,000 grant has provided scholarships to more than 50 veterans, giving them the opportunity to receive training in coding and web development and helping them to transition into successful careers in tech. Samsung was recently awarded the Vets in Tech Education Award.

In partnership with the National Military Family Association, Samsung’s 2015 $100,000 scholarship fund to help New Jersey-based military spouses has resulted in more than 70 individuals pursuing education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. To date, more than half of these military spouses have completed their degrees and of them, nearly two-thirds have secured a job or a new, higher-paying one. With a national military-spouse unemployment rate that is three times the national average, Samsung considers it an honor to be able to make a positive impact in the lives of military families.

This Veterans Day, Samsung will contribute more than 1,000 food boxes to South Carolina veterans, in partnership with Harvest Hope Food Bank, and provide a Veterans Day luncheon to area service members.