Army, Guard Offer Transferable Skills
CINCINNATI – Baseball was his first love, but when his father passed away after his senior year in high school the game didn’t seem as important.
So instead of pursing a scholarship opportunity at Charleston Southern, LAE Joe Ball took his father’s advice and enlisted in the United States Army.
He served from 2007 to 2011, including a 14-month deployment in Iraq and a nine-month tour in Afghanistan. He came out a staff sergeant and – among other jobs – was a crew chief on Blackhawk helicopters.
From there, he spent three years in the Kentucky National Guard, continuing his work on helicopters and teaming with various state and federal agencies to fight the war on drugs.
A lot of what he learned in the service, he brought with him to TQL in 2014.
“The resiliency and perseverance, being able to take a no for answer and still go on,” he said.
Public speaking, actually. I was briefing a lot of higher-ups and having to communicate what they were saying to my team.
“Everything the military instills is something you can transfer into a civilian career.”
As TQL celebrates Military Month this July, Ball said he’s grateful the company values his time in uniform.
“It gives me a sense of respect this company has for me and what I’ve done to serve my country,” he said. “Not just me. A lot of us. It’s not forgotten. It’s nice to get that recognition and that respect.”
TQL definitely respects and values its military team members.
“We hire veterans and active duty members of the military because they possess the skills and values we are looking for – an outstanding work ethic, the ability to learn new skills quickly, and the tenacity for creating success in any situation,” said TQL President Kerry Byrne.
Total Quality Logistics is the second largest freight brokerage firm in the nation. TQL connects customers needing to move truckload freight shipments with carriers having capacity to move them. TQL is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Its 2015 sales topped $2.2 billion and it employs more than 3,800 people nationwide. Connect with TQL on the web at TQL.com, on Facebook at Total Quality Logistics or on Twitter @TQLogistics.