Today's Officer - Winter 2007 - (Page 32) OVATION FORMER MARINE CORPS MAJ. MATT “BOOM” DANIEL AGE: 44 HOMETOWN: Coopersburg, Pa. POSITION: Founder and president of a management consulting service, Business Battlefield Inc. (BizBatt) You graduated from Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in Lexington, Va., in 1985, so obviously you knew early on you wanted to serve. What was it about the U.S. Marine Corps that attracted you? Well, my dad was an Army Ranger in Vietnam, and I have an older brother in the Army, but the Corps is a bit different. The whole “the few, the proud” thing caught my eye — they actually say no to people. It looked the most challenging, and I really wanted to see if I could be a part of that. You were a Top Gun graduate and a pilot for 12 years. Is that what you wanted to do going into the Corps? No, actually I had no intention of flying. When I was at VMI, I was asked to take the flight test, and I thought, “Sure, it will get me out of a few classes.” I did pretty well, so then I thought maybe I could be a helicopter pilot and still be close to the troops on the ground. But then the week I graduated they only needed jet pilots, so that’s what I did. So what do you think the military can offer the business world? In the military, the mission comes first, and we’re more concerned with that than individual accolades. It sounds so clichéd, but you’re only as strong as your weakest link. If you’re a successful military leader, you can be a successful civilian leader. “ A little more knowledge about the business world would make a big difference.” How do you think the military prepared you for launching such an ambitious consulting business? Actually, I wasn’t all that prepared. I could have used a little more business speak before I got out. I’m not sure if any of the services really know how to prepare their people for what happens after the military. It’s getting better, but I think a little more knowledge about the business world would make a big difference for a lot of [military] people. So all your friends and business associates call you “Boom,” right? What does your wife call you? Oh, um … Matthew. For more information about Business Battlefield, visit www.businessbattlefield.com. 32 TODAY’S OFFICER Winter 2007/08 PHOTO: GARY SPECTOR http://www.businessbattlefield.com
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