SummitET Receives 2024 HIRE Vets Medallion Award from the U.S. Department of Labor

SummitET Receives 2024 HIRE Vets Medallion Award from the U.S. Department of Labor

by | Oct 31, 2024 | Awards, SummitET News

October 31, 2024 | St. Petersburg, FL

U.S. Acting Secretary of Labor Julie A. Su recognized Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®) as one of 839 recipients of the 2024 HIRE Vets Medallion Award during a virtual award ceremony presented by U.S. Department of Labor. SummitET earned the Gold Medallion award for the fourth time since 2020. The Honoring Investments in Recruiting and Employing American Military Veterans Act (HIRE Vets Act) Medallion Program is the only federal award program that recognizes employers who successfully recruit, hire, and retain veterans.

a gold and a platinum colored medallion on an American flag background
man in suit jacket smiling

John Duda, CEO

“We are honored to receive the HIRE Vets Medallion Award a fourth time, a testament to our dedicated team and unwavering values,” expressed John Duda, CEO of SummitET. “This award embodies our strategic efforts to recruit, retain, and empower veterans, acknowledging their invaluable contributions and unique skill sets that both strengthen our organizational capabilities and set us apart in the preparedness field.”

SummitET joins 838 other companies from 49 states, plus the District of Columbia, who have shown a commitment to hiring veterans and ensuring long-term career and growth plan that utilizes diverse skills acquired through military service. 

Recipients of the 2024 HIRE Vets Medallion Award meet rigorous employment and veteran integration assistance criteria, including veteran hiring and retention percentages; availability of veteran-specific resources; leadership programming for veterans; dedicated human resource efforts; pay compensation and tuition assistance programs for veterans.

About SummitET  

Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®) is a Florida-based, veteran-owned preparedness solutions company that provides proven full spectrum solutions to threats facing U.S. and international government and non-government organizations, as well as private entities through industry-leading experts and impeccable customer service. 

About the HIRE Vets Medallion Program 

The HIRE Vets Medallion Award is earned by businesses that demonstrate unparalleled commitment to attracting, hiring and retaining veterans. The 2025 HIRE Vets Medallion Award application period will open to employers on Jan. 31, 2025. For more information about the program and the application process, visit HIREVets.gov. 

There are different awards for large employers (500-plus employees), medium employers (51-499 employees), and small employers (50 or fewer employees). Additionally, there are two award tiers: platinum and gold.

SummitET News

SummitET Celebrates 10 Years of Success and Innovation

SummitET Celebrates 10 Years of Success and Innovation

by | Dec 11, 2023 | SummitET News

St. Petersburg, FL – Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®), a Preparedness Solutions Company®, is proud to announce the celebration of its 10th anniversary this month. Since 2013, SummitET has been a driving force in the preparedness services industry, consistently delivering excellence and innovation to its customers. 

When founded, the team sought to develop a more flexible model that could be adapted to serve the needs of any organization – large or small. By applying best practices in management and organizational behavior, strategy and planning, together with the latest developments in learning and technology, SummitET has quickly grown its reputation as an industry leader, serving a range of clients. 

“Ten years ago today, when we started SummitET, we had a vision of creating a company that emphasized customer service and cross-functional collaboration to provide our customers with full spectrum preparedness solutions,” said John Duda, CEO of SummitET. “As we embark on 2024 and our 10th year of business, we look to scale this model and reach a broader customer base.” 

Over the last 10 years, SummitET has been named an Inc. 5000 fastest-growing privately held company in the U.S. four years in a row (2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023) and received the HIRE Vets Gold Medallion Award from the U.S. Department of Labor in 2020, 2021, and 2023. This past year, the organization proudly earned its ISO 9001 certification.

Thank You from the SummitET Team 

As we celebrate this milestone, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to our customers, partners, and employees who have been instrumental in our success. Their unwavering support and trust have fueled our growth, and we look forward to continuing these strong partnerships in the years to come.

About SummitET  

Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®) is a Florida-based, veteran-owned preparedness solutions company that provides proven full spectrum solutions to threats facing U.S. and international government and non-government organizations, as well as private entities through industry-leading experts and impeccable customer service. 

SummitET 10 Year Historical Timeline

SummitET News

SummitET Graduates from MissionLink’s 2023 Cohort; Joins Esteemed ‘Trusted Innovation Ecosystem’ in NatSec Tech

SummitET Graduates from MissionLink’s 2023 Cohort; Joins Esteemed ‘Trusted Innovation Ecosystem’ in NatSec Tech

by | Nov 17, 2023 | Awards, SummitET News

November 16, 2023 | St. Petersburg, FL  –  

Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®) a Preparedness Solutions Company®, is proud to announce that John Duda, CEO, has graduated from MissionLink, an exclusive nationwide network that serves as a force-multiplier and gateway to accelerating innovation and advancing solutions to National Security threats.

Founded in 2010, MissionLink’s mission is to connect passionate problem solvers with next-gen, mission-critical capabilities in NatSec tech to the right resources, customers, investors, advisors and partners to solve the rapidly evolving national security concerns across commercial and federal sectors. For more than 10 years, MissionLink has been on the cutting edge of National Security and is recognized as the organization that has most captured the timeliness and immediacy of the latest security developments, discoveries and breakthroughs.

“We are proud to welcome John Duda into MissionLink’s esteemed alumni network,” said Andy Lustig, cofounder and Organizing Board member of MissionLink. “Our objective is to seed and accelerate innovation across the country, from Washington D.C. to Silicon Valley, and bridge enterprise and national security missions with dual-use commercial capabilities – and the 2023 cohort is certainly representative of the innovation and momentum happening in NatSec tech.”

John Duda, Chief Executive Officer and founding partner at SummitET

John Duda

Chief Executive Officer

Expert Feature

SummitET was selected by world class technologists and thought leaders that serve on MissionLink’s Board of Advisors, such as Will Grannis, CTO of Google; Tim Newberry of Ten Eleven Ventures and former founder of Blackhorse Solutions; Tim Estes of Authentic Capital and former founder of Digital Reasoning; Bill Crowell of Alsop Louie Ventures and former NSA; Alan Wade, former CIA; and Ron Gula of Gula Tech Adventures and former cofounder of Tenable. Throughout the program, cohort members attended a series of events, led by notable speakers such as Matt Devost, OODA Network; Jennifer Ewbank, CIA; Scott Frederick, Sands Capital; Lt Gen (ret.) Scott Howell, former JSOC Commander; Brian MacCarthy, Booz Allen Ventures; Tim Gillespie, In-Q-Tel; and Amit Yoran, Chairman & CEO of Tenable.  

Upon completion, SummitET now joins a powerful alumni network of more than 600 CXOs, including the founders and CEOs of Rapid7, MAG Aerospace, Cofense, Altamira, Cloudera, Cylance, Crowdstrike, Novetta, Cleversafe and Dovel Technologies; many of which credit MissionLink with providing their company with the game changing access, insight and opportunity needed to drive meaningful growth and impact to their industry and customers.

Jeremy King, MissionLink cofounder and Organizing Board member, also commented, “National security’s mission has become much broader and is rapidly evolving, and the need for collaboration between the government and commercial sector is critical now more than ever. For decades, the answer was ‘public-private partnership’ – we believe it is now time to empower industry innovation and facilitate ‘private-public partnership.’ MissionLink has become the most exclusive room in the country to learn, share and contribute to the thought leadership and innovative technologies for what happens Next.”

MissionLink logo

The MissionLink Organizing Board includes Jeremy King of Benchmark Executive Search; Matt Devost of OODA Inc.; and Andy Lustig and Katherine Ferguson of Cooley LLP. MissionLink is backed by an elite advisory board comprised of the best and brightest minds from the defense, Intelligence and NatSec tech sectors who are deeply committed to building a strong ecosystem for success – including Lt Gen (ret.) Scott Howell, former JSOC Commander; Chris Gladwin, CEO of Ocient and former founder/CEO of Cleversafe; Dawn Meyerriecks, former CIA, DNI and DISA; Maj Gen (ret.) Aaron Prupas, former Project MAVEN; Sue Gordon, former NGA and CIA; Bill Crowell, former NSA; Charlene Leubecker, former CIA; Bob Gourley, former CTO at DIA; Bryan Ware, former DHS; Jonathan Moneymaker, CEO Blue Halo and former President of Altamira; Ellen McCarthy, former Department of State; Fran Landolf, former NSA; Cyndi Gula and Ron Gula of Gula Tech Adventures; Will Grannis, CTO of Google; Jen Sovada, President of Sandbox AQ; Lt Gen Rhett Hernandez, former Chief of Army Cyber Command; Peggy Styer and Jack Kerrigan of Razor’s Edge Ventures; Tim Newberry, Ten Eleven Ventures; Wes Blackwell, Partner at Booz Allen Ventures; Constantine Saab, Partner at Valor Equity; and Jim Hunt, Managing Partner of Lavrock Ventures. 

About SummitET  

Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®) is a Florida-based, veteran-owned preparedness solutions company that provides proven full spectrum solutions to threats facing U.S. and international government and non-government organizations, as well as private entities through industry-leading experts and impeccable customer service. 

About MissionLink  

MissionLink is a non-profit trade association and exclusive network that includes decision makers, government leaders, top founders and CEOs from across the US who are building the most cutting-edge mission critical capabilities in cyber, AI, virtual reality, IoT, space and quantum science. MissionLink companies are addressing the next generation of threats across national security, healthcare, financial services, ecommerce, social media, life sciences, automotive and transportation, logistics, supply chain, manufacturing and critical infrastructure. Backed by an elite advisory board comprised of the best and brightest minds from defense, Intel and homeland security sectors, MissionLink’s trusted innovation ecosystem fosters access, insight and opportunity to bridge enterprise and national security missions with dual-use commercial capabilities. For more information, please visit the MissionLink website. 

SummitET News

SummitET Receives 2024 HIRE Vets Medallion Award from the U.S. Department of Labor

SummitET Receives 2023 Hire Vets Medallion Award from the U.S. Department of Labor

by | Nov 9, 2023 | Awards, SummitET News

November 8, 2023 | St. Petersburg, FL  –  

U.S. Acting Secretary of Labor Julie A. Su recognized Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®) as one of the 859 recipients of the 2023 HIRE Vets Medallion Award during a virtual award ceremony presented by U.S. Department of Labor. SummitET earned the Gold award for the third time since 2020, after applying earlier this year. The Honoring Investments in Recruiting and Employing American Military Veterans Act (HIRE Vets Act) Medallion Program is the only federal award program that recognizes employers who successfully recruit, hire, and retain veterans. 

HIRE Vets Medallion Gold Award 2023

“Earning the HIRE Vets Medallion Award is significant to our organization because it fully represents our people, culture, and values,” said John Duda, CEO of SummitET. “This award demonstrates our commitment both internally – to our staff – as well as to our customers in the public and private sectors, including in the Department of Defense.”

SummitET joins 858 other companies from 49 states, plus the District of Columbia, who have shown a commitment to hiring veterans, but also ensuring that they have a long-term career and growth plan that uses the diverse skills they acquired through their military service.

Recipients of the 2023 HIRE Vets Medallion Award meet rigorous employment and veteran integration assistance criteria, including veteran hiring and retention percentages; availability of veteran-specific resources; leadership programming for veterans; dedicated human resource efforts; pay compensation and tuition assistance programs for veterans. More than 1,600 employers have earned a HIRE Vets Medallion Award since 2018. 

About SummitET  

Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®) is a Florida-based, veteran-owned preparedness solutions company that provides proven full spectrum solutions to threats facing U.S. and international government and non-government organizations, as well as private entities through industry-leading experts and impeccable customer service. 

About the HIRE Vets Medallion Program 

The HIRE Vets Medallion Award is earned by businesses that demonstrate unparalleled commitment to attracting, hiring and retaining veterans. The 2024 HIRE Vets Medallion Award application period will open to employers on Jan. 31, 2024. For more information about the program and the application process, visit HIREVets.gov. 

There are different awards for large employers (500-plus employees), medium employers (51-499 employees), and small employers (50 or fewer employees). Additionally, there are two award tiers: platinum and gold. 

SummitET News

SummitET Ranks Fourth Year in a Row in Inc. Magazine’s Annual List of America’s Fastest-Growing Private Companies

SummitET Ranks Fourth Year in a Row in Inc. Magazine’s Annual List of America’s Fastest-Growing Private Companies

by | Aug 15, 2023 | Awards, SummitET News

August 15, 2023 - St. Petersburg, FL  – Today, Inc. magazine released its annual list of the nation’s 5000 fastest growing companies. Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET®) made the data-driven list for the fourth year since 2020, with SummitET’s ranking occurring as a result of a three year revenue growth. This prestigious list provides a unique look at the top performing companies within the American economy’s most dynamic segment—its independent small businesses.  

“We are honored to be recognized for our support to our nation’s economy and security though our unique preparedness services.” said John Duda, SummitET CEO. “Our growth is driven by client confidence in achieving their preparedness goals and objectives through industry-knowledge and impeccable customer service. Our emphasis on our customer is what continues to put us out in front of the competition.”  

The Inc. 5000 encompasses nearly every industry and realm of business, proving that incredible growth is possible with solid foundations and tenacity. Complete results including company profiles can be found at 2023’s Inc. 5000, and the interactive database can be sorted by industry, region, and other criteria.

The annual Inc. 5000 Conference and Gala honoring the companies on the list will take place in San Antonio, Texas October 31 – November 2, 2023. Speakers will include some of the greatest innovators and business leaders of our generation.

 

About SummitET®

Summit Exercises and Training LLC (SummitET) is a veteran-owned small business that offers innovative preparedness solutions. When founded, our team sought to develop a flexible model that could be adapted to serve the needs of any organization, large or small. Drawing from a diverse base of experience in emergency management and response, as well as communications within the government, military, and private sectors, the SummitET team offers a comprehensive approach to the management and mitigation of risk. By combining the latest developments in learning and technology with the application of best practices in organizational behavior, strategy, and planning, SummitET has become an industry leader who serves a broad range of clients.

 

More about Inc. and the Inc. 5000

The world’s most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community to build great companies. Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including websites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print. Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. The global recognition that comes with inclusion in the 5000 gives the founders of the best businesses an opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and the credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent. The associated Inc. 5000 Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit www.inc.com.

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