General Officer Transition Assistance Program (GO-TAP)

I wish to share with you the greatest honor I ever received in my multi-decades long business career.

I was sitting at my desk one day trying to figure out when and how I was planning to retire. Ring, Ring, Ring… I picked up the phone. The call was a man speaking on behalf of Flatter, Inc., a well-known executive training company managing multiple military and private sector training contracts. He told me Congress passed legislation stating that all United States Air Force General Officers were required to attend a session on career transition before retirement. The course was offered to help them successfully transition into other sectors of the economy in post-military life. Flatter was the primary government contractor selected by the Air Force to design and deliver the General Officer Transition Assistance Program (GO-TAP).

Having spent my life reviewing contracts and working in the bidding process my next question was, “Who else is bidding?” His answer was, after slight pause, nobody. The next thing out of my mouth was, “I hate paperwork.” His response was, “We do most of that. What we want to to do for us is to tell us what it will take for you to design the course content and deliver it to the Generals.”

You might be thinking right now, oh, that’s easy for Generals to get jobs, after all, they’re Generals. Let me assure you, it is not. I know this because over the years, since this course began, I still receive comments, and emails from attendees telling me that after leaving military service securing a meaningful and financially rewarding job is one of the hardest things they have ever attempted. Sure, they can get a “job” buy why? Like you, they have worked, or will, 20-40 years and can retire. If you think that, then you sure don’t know General Officers.

The words “meaningful” and “financially rewarding” are extremely difficult to achieve, even for corporate executives in the private sector, much less General Officers who have no profit and loss experience and other components seen always on executive resumes. They have those skills, but they don’t know how to translate them or communicate those effectively. So, they can wind up with much less pay than their civilian counterparts and jobs that hold little meaning or happiness. I promise you they need a corresponding amount of meaningful, effective, training.

On a personal note, if you will allow me, I found that all who attended our classes were dedicated to a cause – the defense of America. I know this because from the stories they told me as part of their training, it became clear to me and to my team, they meant it. Their sworn duty was to honor and defend the Constitution of the United States, so that you and I could remain safe from harm – “so help me God.”

Like you, the reader, I only claim credit and accolades that can be documented. So, when they called me and eventually awarded the contract to my company, I need to share this honor with Susan Thompson. Now, I cannot prove this, nor can I document the following. However, if I didn’t tell you this, I would not be true to my own honor code.

One day, long before the call from Flatter regarding the GO-TAP program, I received a call from Susan Thompson. She had been working for a company that taught Career Transition to Air Force Colonels (O-6)[ETAP], and Chiefs (E-9)[CTAP] both domestically and worldwide. The owner of that business had passed away, leaving Susan looking for a corporate home. She told me she wanted a “corporate home” so that she could continue to focus on delivering great coursework and not get bogged down in the government’s paperwork. Since I have always been a pioneer, I liked the idea that she taught at bases around the world. Simultaneously, I had been thinking as to how I could expand my company globally. What timing. Her core values matched mine. And, and so it began. For years we worked together on the ETAP and CTAP programs. Each delivery in the field was highly rated.

Here are the facts I can prove. First, people talk to each other. They share both what they like and what they don’t like. Second, some Colonels are promoted to Generals. Third, Susan’s performance scores were consistently high over the years. I believe, can’t prove, but believe that when the discussion of getting help for retirement issues arose, this small and very tight knit, high-ranking community may have discussed who to seek out when the contract came around for another bid cycle. When Susan’s name came up, they found her working on our team. So right or not, I wish to acknowledge Susan Thompson as contributing to the decision to hire my company. When the contract was signed, Susan’s schedule was so busy going around the world, she remained with the ETAP and CTAP community. Susan, the entire GO-TAP team, is grateful for your laying the groundwork. Thanks!

Once my company was selected to deliver the program, I was tasked with constructing a daily lesson plan and populating the content. I incorporated some of what we were currently teaching in Susan’s ETAP and CTAP lessons, the processes of securing meaningful and financially rewarding employment from steps and strategies laid out in my book, Ready Aim Hired, and from the coaching on interview and negotiating techniques taught by my team of executive coaches. Once Flater approved my course outline, I had 90 days to puy together the first presentation.

My dad always said two heads are better than one and, in this case, it was true. Sharon McCone had joined our staff a little before this situation came to be. I called and asked her if she would like to help with curriculum design. She readily agreed. In our initial conversation she told me that her husband was a retired O-5. I also learned that she had a substantial military and decision-maker network in Washington, DC, due to her work as a recruiter for all things for corporate affairs at Wal-Mart. Before she joined Wal-Mart, she was a retained executive recruiter. After she left them, she returned to retained search.

Wow! She was a retained executive recruiter, an executive coach, and very well-connected. I hit the trifecta. Moreover, I discovered her to be well-organized, detailed, and simply a wonderful human being. Sharon helped me design the course. In my eyes, it was an immediate and recognizable improvement over my initial design.

At first, Flatter told us that we had 1.5 days of course instruction time. I dropped the bomb on them that our C-level clients took four months to pull off what the Generals were expected to absorb in 12 hours. They continued to ask for a 12-hour training schedule. We complied with the material and made it effective, given the time given to us.

Since the first course delivered in February of 2020, every member of our team has engaged in numerous conversations and have received many emails from the General Officers about how much they liked and appreciated what we did for them. I can’t tell you the number who have called us afterward to simply chat. Valuable friendships were made and still exist.

Actions speak louder than words. Here’s what happened. In each class, the attendees score instructors on many items. One of those questions asks whether the course should be repeated. The second question asks what your overall rating for this course is. I am proud to say our scores over five years were 98%+ for course retention and 95%+ for quality of delivery. I’ll take those scores any day! Again, I can’t prove it, but I believe those scores, and the written and oral feedback to the Air Force and Flatter led to an expansion to two full days of instruction.

A few years before retirement, I began thinking how I would accomplish this. I set my goal that at age 80 I would retire. To accomplish this required a team larger than just Sharon and me. I asked Sharon if she wanted me to pass the mantle and she could do this by herself . She said no but would do so with a team behind her. I appreciated her candor and insight. We knew how hard it was to attempt it alone. Sharon already had real-world experience at the senior executive recruiter level and had garnered respect from each class she taught. She was also listed in the top 1% of executive recruiters in the United States. That was when I decided to look at hiring and training a team.

I decided that the General Officers attending the course might appreciate learning from a peer. That was when I asked James “Rev” Jones, USAF Maj. Gen (Ret.). to join the team. As it turned out, I guessed correctly. When he presented, they listened attentively. Why? Because he was one of them. Rev had made an extraordinarily successful transition to the private sector and could share with them the difficulties they were about to encounter as they made their own transition. In the early classes, some of the class attendees had either worked with or for Rev. Additionally, they respected not only his rank, but the fact he was a combat pilot who had been on multiple missions in-theater and had received citations for his actions and leadership.

Our final addition to the team was Conne Reece, PhD, I had known Conne for years. First through the professional conferences we attended and resulting conversations and workshops we attended. Conne was a tenured professor in the Communications Department at Lock Haven University, in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. At one point, Conne invited me to speak to her Capstone classes and arranged for me to conduct a one-day training session for over 13 Pennsylvania University college career teams around central Pennsylvania. I may be a little biased, given this background, but she also was using Ready Aim Hired. as the textbook for one of her courses. You can see the book in the Helping Others section of this website.

That aside, she also knew what I was trying to communicate to senior leaders seeking meaningful and financially rewarding employment. She had taught my concepts for years. During the GO-TAP courses she received applause from the Generals. This was a singular honor reflecting her knowledge and instructional excellence.

I collaborated with my new team, taught them what I know and wanted to communicate during the sessions. They did one better by adding their own materials and knowledge. The result was performance excellence, reflected in our high scores throughout the term of our contract. By adding “Rev” and Conne, we presented a powerful presence. We had a respected military peer, a retained executive recruiter and coach, and a communications professional. I was also there providing my two cents to the mix. This was well-rounded team of experts. I am proud of each of them and how they represented me and my company.

After a period, and many courses under their belt, I felt confident they would continue our reputation for excellence. They still do, to this day, impart some of the most valuable information the General Officers will ever receive. I am genuinely proud of them. My heartfelt thanks to Sharon McCone, Major General (Ret.) James “Rev” Jones, and Dr. Conne Reece.

Instructing the GO-TAP classes remains the highest honor of my long and diverse career.

F.E.A.R.

After meeting with Flatter, Inc, and Air Force representatives, I was scheduled to teach the first class in late February 2020. I had 90-days to prepare. Our presentation was constructed, and we felt confident our content was sound. The classes were to be held at Joint Base Andrews (JBA), in Maryland. My entire career, to this point, was focused in one form or another or the other on business development, sales, and marketing. I had presented to CEO’s in many diverse industries. My presentations were successful, resulting in profitable contracts.

Let’s back up a little. Remember our first course was to be delivered in February of 2020. It was my first time in front of General Officers. My apprehension was a little elevated because of the “unknown.” You know what I mean, the “jitters” that just won’t go asway. They derived from my uncertainty as to audience expectations. I was entering a world of which I knew absolutely nothing. My executive clients were always exposed to my F.E.A.R. exercise, as part of my coaching methodology. F.E.A.R. is an acronym for “False Evidence Appearing Real.”

As I drove through the gates of Andrews Air Force Base, I said to myself, “Fred, how many One to Four Star General Officers do you know on a personal basis?” I quickly answered, “NONE.” At that moment, my concern meter rose.

All my career successes were due to a clear understanding of my objective, intelligence about my target, a well-developed approach strategy, selecting what I felt were the proper engagement tactics, and what corrections were required in mid=stream, to perpetuate a successful engagement. Defeat could not be found on my record. It was then I said to myself, “what was thinking?” Here I was, getting ready to stand before an extremely critical audience and I had no intelligence, nor any of the other tools I needed to make sure I could succeed. My anxiety was increasing by the minute. All my rules seemed to fly out of the window. Proportionally my confidence in myself was decreasing. It was not a good winning formula. And one I had never experienced before.

I walked up to the podium with no blazing ideas screaming at me “say this” or “do this” thoughts racing across my brain. Here I was, staring at 25 One- to Four-Star Generals, who were well-known for their zero-inefficiency tolerance, total rejection of bad research to support bad advice, and an intense disdain for anyone who they felt was wasting their valuable time.

Yes, they had all come from the Pentagon or had flown from across the United States or from overseas to attend my session. Yes, they were staring back at me and sizing me up too. We stared at each other and the pause of silence was deafening. For the first time in my entire career, I was at a complete loss for words.

Somewhere, in the movies or on television, I remembered hearing words spoken during the Great Depression by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. “The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.” Sounds great, doesn’t it? Remember my acronym, F.E.A.R.? Now, how was I to put that into action for myself. Tick Tock, Tick Tock. Nothing! As I looked at Sharon McCone sitting in the back of the room, she simply smiled and gently nodded her head. From somewhere within, the words came. The rest is history. Thanks Sharon.

During the next five years we were told our team achieved higher course scores than any previous vendor that had preceded us. I also kept score. Our 5-year overall satisfaction scores exceeded 95+ percent. The score for, “did the Generals wish this course to be repeated?” exceeded 98%. These scores included the year when the Covid-19 Pandemic presented itself. This altered all plans. We had to quickly revise our content and presentation timing to deliver the course material virtually worldwide. This is a pioneering skill story for another time.

After teaching the first class I was tired, I was inspired, and because of their acceptance of me, and eventually my wonderful team, all we wanted to do was to continue to exceed their expectations. This team has consistently achieved that. When I retired, I had the best team anyone could possibly want. I would like to express my gratitude to Sharon, “Rev,” and Conne.

F.E.A.R. is truly, false evidence appearing real.

Triple Shock

At lunch in one GO-TAP training session, sitting at the table with me were the Provost (Dean of Faculty) at the United States Air Force Academy, a one-star General Officer and the Superintendent of the Academy, a 3-Star reporting directly to the Chief of Staff of the Air Force. As we were chatting the conversation got around to my sister, Carol, who lives in Colorado Springs, CO (The Springs). The AF Academy is in The Springs. I said, “I wonder what it would be like to be a fly on the wall in one of the classes. I can’t imagine how wonderful that must be to experience that level of instruction. They nodded and the conversation moved on to course related homework I had given them.

Don’t you know that three weeks later I received an email inviting me to visit the Academy to receive a personal tour and have lunch, time permitting. It so happens I was a member of a professional national organization focusing on Job and Career Transition and their annual meeting was scheduled for the following month in the Springs. The conference became a chance to see Caroland attend the annual meeting and visit the Academy. A win-win-win.

I responded to the Provost, expressing my thanks for the invitation. Four weeks later I was staying with my wonderful sister, Carol. The next day I was scheduled to leave my conference and arrive at the Academy around 11:00 am for my tour. I was welcomed, shown around, and watched the cadet corps march to the dining hall. This is a time-honored tradition. As one of the company units passed, my guide leaned over to me and said, “that’s my daughter in front. She’s the company commander and graduating this year.” I immediately felt his pride and thought to myself, “how would I feel is that were one of my children?” His daughter presented herself well. Her company of cadets was sharp, and they could have passed any inspection.

FIRST SHOCK. At lunch they told me that I had been scheduled to attend the law school Negotiation class. In each GO-TAP class I devoted one whole afternoon to interviewing and negotiation tactics. I wasn’t told what the class subject was for that day. I love mysteries.

As I entered the classroom, I was welcomed by the instructor, an Air Force Major. I took my assigned seat. As a teacher, many decades ago, I taught by letting my students do something. I felt that hand’s on learning was better than just reading something and moving on. You can imagine how pleased I was watching their hands-on exercise where a two-cadet team must ask for and negotiate the receipt of resources that the “listening” party did not want to provide. This was hand’s on learning by doing.

What I loved was this. As a two-person cadet team presented their “pitch,” if their approach were not well constructed the “client” would throw them out of his office. The client was played by another instructor at the Academy. The next team was standing immediately behind the presenting team. Each succeeding cadet team could see the previous presenters’ mistakes. However, they only had 10 seconds to confer on any changes they wished to make to their pitch and then they presented. Overall, the process lasted 25 minutes.

SECOND SHOCK. The Major asked me to come to the front of the class and share my critique of their performance. Bottom line, I complimented them on how quickly they adapted, learned, and applied that learning. I told them I was extremely impressed with their short learning curve and ability to adapt.

THIRD SHOCK. Before I could return to my seat the instructor said “Mr. Coon, would you talk to the cadets about how to approach and manage negotiations?” Honestly, you could have knocked me over with a feather. There I was, Fred Coon, standing in an Air Force Academy classroom, teaching a possible, future, Air Force General.

Much later, I realized that my teaching career had come full circle – Teaching Current Generals and potential future Generals. This was pure ironic Karma. For me, it doesn’t get any better than this! Among the many unexpected items that have fallen into my “unintended bucket list” over the span of my lengthy career, this one became one of the most cherished.