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
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.
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.
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.