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November 20, 2025
DETROIT, Mich. - The Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency (MVAA) awarded Mettle Ops with the Gold-level Veteran-Friendly Employer (VFE) award, at the Mettle Ops office on Tuesday, Nov. 18. This honor recognizes their commitment to veteran recruitment, training and retention in their hiring process. Mettle Ops, a woman-owned and service-disabled veteran-owned small business, specializes in enhancing legacy systems with innovative technology in the national defense industry.
"We are warfighters," said Jonathan Harms, executive officer at Mettle Ops and U.S. Navy veteran. "We incubate innovation to improve soldier lives. We have a high obligation to the American warfighter, our people and our place on this earth."
In March 2018, Mettle Ops joined the VFE program at the Bronze-level and achieved Silver in Sept. 2025. Since then, Mettle Ops has established a tailored onboarding process of U.S. military veterans that provides translation of military experience to company roles, introductions to veteran support programs and connection to internal veteran mentors. The healthcare coverage Mettle Ops offers includes continues benefits for employees activated for Michigan National Guard and Reserve service, giving them and their families the peace of mind that they will be supported during military duty. Mettle Ops maintains an 83% veteran retention rate through affinity groups, veteran-to-veteran mentorship and regular recognition to foster community, support and career growth. In Aug. 2025, Mettle Ops joined the MVAA's Veteran Connector program to actively connect veterans to resources, benefits and opportunities within the company and through trusted partners. The dedication Mettle Ops has for its veteran and service member employees and the initiatives they have implemented earned them the VFE Gold-level status in Oct. 2025.
Erik Schreur, MVAA employment analyst; Katie Bigelow, Mettle Ops president and chief executive officer; and Brian L. Love, MVAA director
Veteran-Friendly Employer program:
MVAA recognizes employers that commit to military veteran recruitment, training and retention practices by awarding those employers Gold, Silver and Bronze-level status as Veteran-Friendly Employers. MVAA's Veteran-Friendly Employer program helps qualified organizations recruit and retain top veteran talent while providing others a road map to improve their recruitment efforts.
MVAA will assist employers as they develop and improve their efforts to recruit and retain high-quality veteran candidates. Employers who meet the criteria will be publicly recognized and allowed to use the Gold, Silver and Bronze Michigan Veteran-Friendly Employer logo to market themselves to potential veteran applicants.
If your organization would like to be recognized as a Veteran-Friendly Employer, please review the criteria and fill out the Veteran-Friendly Employer Application and submit it. For more information, email MVAAstrategy@michigan.gov.
Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency - The MVAA is the central coordinating agency, providing support, care, advocacy and service to veterans and their families. As a state agency, MVAA works to identify and break down barriers veterans face in employment, education, healthcare and quality of life, to make Michigan a great place for veterans and their families to call home. More information about MVAA is available at Michigan.gov/MVAA or by reading our FY24 Annual Report.