The VTF Team
Our management team is comprised of veterans with 80 years’ business experience in sales, employment, business start-ups, operations, and marketing. We have established strong, collaborative relationships with subject experts and industry leaders whose extended capabilities, resources, and skills supplement our own.
Management Team
Phillip Trigg
Executive Director
Phil is a retired Army Officer and a Vietnam veteran. His military career includes assignments in intelligence at the Continental Army Command Intelligence Center, National Security Agency and as a Corps level intelligence officer in Vietnam. Also his military career featured managing recruiting programs, developing training curriculum, and conducting race relations seminars.
Upon leaving active duty, Phil held senior management positions with national advertising agencies; W.B. Doner, DDB Needham Worldwide, Ketchum, and Salter and Associates. He was responsible for developing and implementing marketing strategies and plans that accomplished the goals of his clients which features work for the National Guard Bureau (recruiting and retention programs for the Air and Army National Guard), Cellular One, Bell Atlantic and defense contractors including Boeing Vertol, and several franchise companies.
For more than twenty years Phil has developed marketing programs and managed franchise recruiting programs at the corporate level and provided consultative services franchise companies. While serving national corporations and the National Guard Bureau, Phil enjoyed developing local market guerilla advertising and marketing programs that acquire and keep new customers while building the local brand.
During his franchise career Phil confirmed his doubts that while veterans had the potential to become quality franchisees there were no programs that specifically educated them on available opportunities. Most veterans did not know that entrepreneur opportunities were accessible. Phil developed a franchise recruitment program and presented the concept to military installations in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington DC. The first seminars were conducted at Andrews AFB. He discussed the concept of franchise seminars with a long-time colleague and best friend, Tim Labus. Together they developed a formal business plan for a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization which became Veterans’ Transition Forum (VTF). VTF educates veterans and transitioning service members on the benefits of franchising as their next career opportunity. Additional mentors, who are veterans themselves and experienced having worked in the franchise industry and/or successfully operated a franchise business have been added to the staff. Today, VTF’s mentors guide veterans through the entire acquisition process including financing a business.
Tim Labus
Vice President Operations and Marketing
Tim has 40 plus years of progressive marketing communications, military advertising and franchise experience. His skills include hands-on program oversight and leadership through tactical assessments, oral presentations, written technical/cost proposals and contract administration for federal and state governments, trade associations and private sector companies. Tim has held senior management positions with Crosby Marketing Communications, Low + Associates, Campbell-Ewald, DDB Needham Worldwide, BBDO New York, as well as President/CEO of his own communications company, Abramson Labus Van De Velde in Washington DC. Tim’s expertise features 25 years of successful youth branding and military recruitment programs for the National Guard Bureau, United States Army and the Navy.
He is past chairman of the United Negro College Fund Sports Gala and Fundraising Program. His long-term business relationships with several consumer and business-to-business clients include GEICO Auto Insurance, The Society of Plastics Industry, United States Life Insurance, Children’s Miracle Network, and Associated Press Broadcast Services.
Michael Steele
Senior Member
Michael has over 35 years of successful, diversified, marketing, management, decision - making and leadership experience, including executive level positions with franchise organizations and owning and operating his own franchise business. He serves the Veterans’ Transition Forum as a Senior Mentor. He has been able to contribute significantly to the growth and profitability of a number of organizations. Some highlights of that experience are his extensive “hands-on” leadership in executive, technical, business and personnel intensive environments; development and management of multi-state, multi-discipline sales forces; concept development and management of unique, innovative marketing and logistic supply chain management approaches and his success through subordinate training and development.Michael holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY, and served in leadership, command and staff positions as an Infantry officer including as a combat company commander in Vietnam.
Mark Dewhurst
Senior Member
Mark is a Senior Mentor with the Veterans’ Transition Forum assisting veterans as they transition from military service to the civilian sector. After serving 33 years in the United States Army, Mark and his wife became franchisee operator/owners of Zoup! in Virginia Beach, a fast casual restaurant. In addition to operating their restaurant, Mark served as a member of the Zoup! Franchisee Advisory Council (FAC) for 3 years. He has personal experience in researching franchises, selecting, acquiring, operating and successfully selling a franchise.
Board of Directors
Michael Steele
Senior Member
Michael has over 35 years of successful, diversified, marketing, management, decision - making and leadership experience, including executive level positions with franchise organizations and owning and operating his own franchise business. He serves the Veterans’ Transition Forum as a Senior Mentor. He has been able to contribute significantly to the growth and profitability of a number of organizations. Some highlights of that experience are his extensive “hands-on” leadership in executive, technical, business and personnel intensive environments; development and management of multi-state, multi-discipline sales forces; concept development and management of unique, innovative marketing and logistic supply chain management approaches and his success through subordinate training and development.Michael holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY, and served in leadership, command and staff positions as an Infantry officer including as a combat company commander in Vietnam.
Donna Ettenson
Vice President, Operations America's SBDC (ASBDC)
Donna Ettenson recently retired as the Vice President of Operations for the America's Small Business Development Centers (ASBDC), where she served for 24 years. The association representing 63 state and regional small business management and technical assistance programs located in all 50 states and the US territories.
Ms. Ettenson joined ASBDC in July 1999 after relocating from NC where she served a business development consultant for the North Carolina Small Business and Technology Development Center network. There, she was responsible for assisting pre-venture clients to start their businesses, and existing small businesses to grow, through one-on-one consulting engagements and training.
Ms. Ettenson is certified by the Franklin Covey organization as a facilitator for The 7 Habits for Managers and Focus workshops.
She received her Bachelor of Science degree from George Mason University and holds a Master's of Business Administration from the University of West Florida.
Donna is married to an Air Force officer. She brings the experience and perspective of being a military spouse to the Veterans’ Transition Forum.
James M. Wilson
James M. Wilson (CDR, USN, et.) has 20 years experience with the US Navy on active duty and in the Naval Reserves. He flow the EA-6B for fifteen of those years, including deployments in support of the US strikes in Libya (1986) and NATO operations over Bosnia (1997). Leaving active duty in 1989, Mr. Wilson went to law school at the University of Richmond School of Law. Upon graduation, he began practicing in the area of business law, developing a practice centered on start-ups, business acquisitions, business financing, franchise acquisition, and private security offerings. Mr. Wilson has made presentations to veterans in Virginia on the topics of starting and financing a business for the Small Business Administration and as part of Boots2Business for the SBA. Mr. Wilson is currently self-employed in Richmond, VA.
Brian Morgan
Brian brings over forty years of challenging business development, corporate management, planning and strategic leadership expertise to the VTF team. He is a PMI Certified Associate Project Manager (CAPM). He holds the Shipley Associates Business Development Certification and the IACET-accredited Grant Proposal certificate. Brian retired from the United States Marine Corps in 2013 after 30 years of service. After retirement he was employed as the Senior Vice President of a Veteran Owned small business where he won $45M in Federal contracts over three years. He then started a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) to help other small businesses and nonprofit firms grow and meet their business goals.
Brian earned a Doctorate in Education (EdD) degree from the George Washington University in 2016, a Master of Strategic Studies degree from the US Army War College in 2009, and a Master of Human Resources Management degree from National University in 1994. He is active as a volunteer in his community and is passionate about helping our Veterans succeed in their post-military careers.