Lee Kirby, Salute Co-Founder, and retired Army colonel interviewed Chris Schager, Marine Corps and Mechanical Commissioning Engineer at Iconicx Critical Solutions.
Before we dig in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood “backstory”?
I grew up in Southern California (Garden Grove). It was such an amazing place to be a kid in the 70’s and 80’s. I was raised in suburbia by parents with strong dairy and beef cattle ranching backgrounds and spent most of my summers around livestock on the ranch. As a kid, I dreamed of being a dairy cattle veterinarian, and I enjoy taking care of animals to this day. When at home in SoCal, I was on my bike or skateboard nearly every day from preschool to high school graduation and explored the wild hills from Silverado Canyon to Ortega Highway (and beyond) once I had my own car. I really enjoyed the music of the time, from jazz to the blues to new wave, but was most enthralled by the local SoCal punk rock scene. I was captain of my HS football team and developed dreams of the NFL. However, I was not much of a student and not a top-caliber athlete either. So, I determined that I could spend four years in the Marine Corps, play on a base football team, and go straight to the LA Raiders as an undrafted free agent after I got out. What an idiot…
And what are you doing today?
I am responsible for global commissioning standards for the Iconicx service line with Salute Mission Critical. We specialize mainly in new construction data center commissioning, but we also help clients solve problems in their existing facilities. I get to work with the best team ever on the latest technologies in the mission-critical industry. I really enjoy what I do at work, and our industry is truly booming.
Can you tell us a bit about your military background?
I was a parachute rigger in the USMC for 4 years. Best job in the Marine Corps. Nobody messes with the riggers, and everyone wants to buy you a beer at the bar. To ensure we pack a good chute, there must always be at least one rigger on every jump manifest. I jumped from every fixed wing and rotary wing troop carrying air platform in all four branches of the military from 87’ – 91’. I was not a fan of the military lifestyle or the core culture, but it was the experience of a lifetime, and 34 years after getting out, I still maintain true friendships that mean a lot to me. I wouldn’t be where I am today without my military experience.
MCRD San Diego Company and Series Honor Man graduate – October 1987, 0451 – Parachute Rigger. Assigned to 3rd Recon Bn for 3+ years – May 1988 – June 1991. Camp Schwab, Okinawa, Japan. “C” Company Rigger – deployed to Guam, Thailand, Korea, and the Philippines numerous times to support field training. Honorably discharged as E-4 (Corporal) in June 1991.
I joined the active reserve in September of 1994 as a rigger at the 3rd Landing Support Battalion (Long Beach, CA). Promoted to E-5 (Seargent) December 1994. Released from active reserve in June of 1995
Do you think your experience in the military helped prepare you for business or leadership? Can you explain?
Yes. I was a natural leader in high school, but I didn’t understand the concept of dealing with authority figures, I had no respect for. The USMC taught me how to deal with “certain types of leaders” and not get myself in too much trouble or miss out on amazing opportunities. I’ve carried that ability with me for over 34 years now. I’ve worked with some amazing leaders and some real morons in charge of me over the years and managed to continue to succeed and improve myself and those around me efficiently, no matter who I was reporting to.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
Corporal Cliff Grant was my first NCOIC at 3rd Recon. He was from Stanton, CA (very close to where I grew up), and we had a lot in common. He was good at what he did and deeply respected by everyone in the Recon community, but above everything else, he looked out for those of us who reported to him. He taught me to not sweat the idiots and stay focused on what mattered. He never once cut me any slack on my duties and always held me accountable for what I was responsible for. However, any time anyone outside of our group came at any of the riggers in his charge, he was a fierce defender of us in every way. He also kept us totally informed on everything he knew ALL THE TIME. He always was there for those he was responsible for and always led by example in everything he did. He earned my respect immediately and has never lost it to this day.
You are part of the Salute Veterans Community, which shares a common passion for helping veterans get into this industry. This community is “Veterans helping veterans.” Why is this important to you?
I feel that I had zero veteran community support when I separated from the USMC. In fact, I didn’t even know I qualified to be considered a veteran (I had always assumed that was just for combat veterans). I was alone when it came to job skills and job searching when I got out. My first job out of the Marines was as a dishwasher at a restaurant. I know there are many very motivated and hardworking veterans coming out of the military who just need an opportunity to show what they are capable of and want to help in whatever way I can.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
I would love to see a true third-party political movement in the US. The current two-party system is completely broken and serves nobody other than the elite and powerful. Our constitution is currently being dismantled right before our eyes, and our Congress appears incapable of defending our most basic rights due to their political allegiances. If we had a true third-party political movement that represented the people and was closer to centrist than the existing two extremist parties, we could all focus on all the things we have in common instead of constantly being fed the propaganda about our differences that fuels the two-party system and keeps us all so divided.
How can our readers follow you online?
I’m not very active on social media, but I am on LinkedIn!