A Community of Cyber Warriors: An Interview with the Forge Fellowship

In 2021, Forge Institute partnered with DOD SkillBridge to create a unique, one-of-its kind program designed to provide transitioning military members with a work-based cyber learning internship opportunity in the private sector. The Forge Fellowship program was launched with five Fellows.Two years later, I caught up with four of those members to glean their insight into the program and its importance to the state and nation’s security.

Joining us for the interview were Forge Fellows Robert Baker, Wes Nickels, and Dugan Stem and Forge Institute’s Chief External Affairs Officer Scott Anderson. All four are military veterans and active influencers in the cyber community. 

J: Scott, let's start with the basics. Give us a 30,000-foot view of The Forge Fellowship.

SCOTT: The Forge Fellowship is tied to the Department of Defense SkillBridge Program, which allows transitioning military members to seize internship and other work-based learning opportunities in the private sector. Forge Institute is a national SkillBridge Provider, with Fellows all across the United States. 

WES: But what makes the Forge Fellowship different from other SkillBridge providers is that we don’t have a cookie cutter approach. There are dozens of avenues to take in a cyber career. Everybody has a different background. Everybody transitions differently. We identify a Fellow’s interests and strengths and use it to map their journey with us or one of our partners moving forward. 

J: Do you have to have certain requirements to be a Fellow in terms of computer experience or cyber experience?

WES: At Forge? Absolutely not! Now, I will say that computer experience does help. For example, the division I work with is the Arkansas Cyber Defense Center or ACDC. It’s nice to have some people with a background in cyber or analysis, or even some cybersecurity. But it's not mandatory. We have a curriculum built out that we can speed Fellows up as quickly as possible and get them engaged to a level that you couldn't get elsewhere.

DUGAN: What’s ideal about people with military backgrounds is that they are accustomed to training, whether you are learning something new or learning a better process to something you already know. So it doesn’t really matter if you come into the Forge Fellowship with cyber or computer experience. You’re already predisposed to learning something new, something different.

WES: And besides, careers in cyber aren't just about tech. It’s about project management, compliance or auditing. It’s about problem solving. It’s about teamwork and team leading. These are all military assets. 

J: We talked about the Fellowship program and the Fellows themselves. What’s in it for private enterprises looking to fill gaps in their cybersecurity personnel? 

SCOTT: up on time. We’re self-motivated problem solvers. We understand the concepts of teamwork and accountability. 

ROBERT: There’s also a “get the mission done” mentality that the private sector appreciates. We don’t give up. We work the problem and find the solution.

J: We talk about community a lot when we talk about cybersecurity – that cybersecurity isn't confined inside a silo, but is reliant on an exchange of information. How is the Forge Fellowship building a strong cybersecurity and infosec community here in Arkansas? 

WES: I'll take that one. Military people believe that they are strongest when they work together. The men and women who enter the Forge Fellowship bring that concept to the next mission – to stop bad actors on the web cold. Heck, the reason we enlisted was to stop the bad guy! With the Forge Fellowship, you can continue that mission with a community that understands the stakes and is willing to get the job done. 

J: So bottom line, a company’s faith in veterans working the cybersecurity space is well earned?

ROBERT: Absolutely. In my opinion, it’s all about trust. I tell people all the time that if you're gonna give somebody the keys to your house, with all that sensitive material inside, who would you trust most with it? A person who has served his or her country is certainly somebody you can trust, because they’ve spent their entire adult lives put in a position of trust already. 

WES: We’re building a community the private sector can trust with their most sensitive data, and we want to build up that community. We give Fellows the avenues and resources to be successful. In return, they give us their experiences and their background and their knowledge. They help us grow as well. It’s a shared and equal relationship. 

J: In one way or another, you’ve been associated with the Forge Fellowship since day one. How has the program progressed?

DUGAN: Since we joined, we’ve seen about 60 transitioning military members go through the Fellowship program. And they’re all employed or have chosen to go to college. 

SCOTT: What’s great about the Forge Fellowship program is that members essentially have an easy sell when selling themselves. What we do, we create opportunities for them to showcase who they are, and they already come in with everything that they need to be successful. We just present them opportunities to be able to sell themselves.

J: Thanks for the time, guys.