BY DAVID MALONEY, CHIEF EDITOR
THE DC VELOCITY Q&A
thoughtleaders
THREE YEARS AGO, LIEUTENANT COLONEL CHRIS ANDREWS RETIRED
from the Army after serving his country for 26 years. Although he has retired
from the military, Andrews has hardly “retired from life,” as he puts it. He’s now
pursuing a second career serving as distribution and logistics manager at the
Mesquite, Texas, distribution center run by Benjamin Moore Paints.
Andrews, who spent much of his time in the Army working in military logistics,
says the Army prepared him well for his current situation. Among other skills, it
taught him leadership, dedication, teamwork, and the nuts and bolts of getting
materials from one place to another on time and in good condition.
Now, Andrews is working to help other veterans make a similar leap. At the
Warehousing Education and Research Council’s (WERC) annual conference earlier this year, he participated in a panel on the “Vets to WERC” program, an initiative aimed at connecting military veterans with employers needing their skills
(and of which DC VELOCITY is a founding partner). As we celebrate Veterans
Day this month, DC VELOCITY Chief Editor David Maloney talked with Andrews
about his transition to the civilian work force, the differences between military
and private-sector logistics, and his advice for other veterans seeking careers in
private industry.
28 DC VELOCITY NOVEMBER 2017 www.dcvelocity.com
INTERVIEW WITH CHRIS ANDREWS
Man on a mission
After two-plus decades
managing military
logistics, Chris Andrews
successfully parlayed
the skills he honed in
the Army into a
management job in
the private sector. Now,
he’s working to help
other vets do the same.
