Qualcomm Partners with REBOOT, Hosts Graduation

Qualcomm wants to promote veteran hiring in San Diego and has a program in place that helps achieve that goal.  This program is strengthening a partnership that is helping them and a local non-profit do more for the growing number of veterans in San Diego than ever before.

Last November Qualcomm donated $50,000 to the San Diego-based veteran transition program REBOOT Workshop and now they are doing more than sponsoring REBOOT financially.  They recently hosted a graduation and gave REBOOT students a first-hand look into Qualcomm’s corporate interview process.  

“REBOOT is expanding; they are growing tremendously and one of our Mil-Vets Club members brought up the idea of doing a REBOOT graduation at Qualcomm. This is just another way to continue that support of REBOOT’s efforts,” said Gerry Borja, about how Qualcomm ended up hosting a REBOOT graduation along with conducting mock-interviews for the graduating class. The Mil-Vets Club is an employee resource group that supports veteran initiatives at Qualcomm.

Borja is a corporate recruiter and the program lead for Qualcomm’s Corporate Integration Program for Warrior Veterans known as QCIP-Warriors.  

“I think the relationship has been built on the passion we share for serving and supporting our actively transitioning veterans and wounded warriors,” said Borja, an Army veteran himself, on the common mission REBOOT and QCIP-Warriors have for helping veterans succeed. 

Borja leads QCIP-Warriors, a bi-annual eight-week transition program for actively transitioning veterans and wounded warriors. The program provides an in-depth look into the corporate work environment and provides valuable skills in resume writing, interview techniques and networking. 

Currently there are 400 applicants for 16 positions in the QCIP-Warriors program with up to 32 positions filled per year.  Qualcomm recognizes the importance of supporting veterans transitioning from military service and how REBOOT’s transitioning program can reach even more veterans in need of transition services. Even so, REBOOT Workshop is supported solely through financial sponsorship from businesses like Qualcomm and they can only support about 250 of the more than 100,000 service members transitioning every year officials said. 

“In an ideal situation, in an ideal world, we want to get every veteran a job,” said Anthony Schmidt, a Qualcomm employee relations specialist. “With the draw down in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mil-Vets is trying to increase awareness through events like its partnership with REBOOT.”

Qualcomm employs approximately 700 veterans. These veterans stay connected through the network, Mil-Vets Club and work together to raise awareness for veterans in the community.  Mil-Vets took an interest in what REBOOT is doing for veterans transitioning from military service and a partnership was born out of the common interest in helping veterans.

“We love what REBOOT is doing for veterans. Helping veterans is something we are very passionate about at Qualcomm,” said Qualcomm HR Specialist, Associate Global Diversity and Inclusion, Maggie Bracewell.

Bracewell said a veteran shouldn’t be afraid to take a step backward in order to move forward meaning that as far as employment is concerned a veteran shouldn’t shy away from a temporary position if offered one after a successful interview. Qualcomm often hires on a temporary basis before an employee becomes permanent she said.

Borja, Bracewell and Schmidt worked with REBOOT to coordinate practice interviews and the graduation at Qualcomm’s Irwin M. Jacobs Hall located in the Qualcomm corporate campus.  The interviews offered students first-hand experience interviewing with corporate recruiters.

“They were very nervous, which is expected but the advice I gave them was to practice as much as you can because the last thing you want to do is to make beginner’s mistakes during the real interview for a position you really want, “ said Borja about what he noticed as a common response the students had during the mock-interviews.  

During the graduation each student thanked Qualcomm for the experience and the financial support that makes REBOOT possible.  The students also praised the REBOOT program and staff for helping them focus on their futures outside the military.

“I didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up, I now have a plan,” said Josh Nicols, REBOOT graduate as he spoke during the graduation about how he wasn’t sure what he was going to do after the military until REBOOT.  

One graduate, a Navy command master chief reminisced about when he joined the Navy post Vietnam and how much society has changed its view toward the military and veterans.

“When I first came into the military, we didn’t get a lot of recognition from the civilian populous. Today I am so enthusiastic about the appreciation that the public has shown and going as far as you guys have gone to support us. Thank you so much Qualcomm and Mr. Baker,” said Joseph Curtain to Brian Baker, Qualcomm vice president of information technology, global infrastructure, engineering tools and services, Air Force veteran and key-note speaker for the graduation.

By the end of the drawdown in Afghanistan in 2014, San Diego will have the largest number of transitioning veterans in the United States.  Transition programs like REBOOT and QCIP-Warriors are designed to help those veterans reintegrate successfully into the community.