On June 26, 2020, Michael J. Penney joined The Veterans Show for a live episode titled “Applying The Military OPS Order To Business.” The stream ran about 33 minutes.
About the show
The episode description places it with the Veterans Chamber Radio Show and its mission:
The Veterans Chamber Radio Show features military veterans, spouses, and community leaders making an impact in business, non-profit, or the government for the veteran community.
The Veterans Show episode description
What the episode covered
The title says it plainly. Every Marine operation starts with an operations order, and Michael’s 5 Paragraph Business Plan uses that same order to plan a business. The episode notes put it this way: he is “the creator of the ‘5 Paragraph Business Plan’ – – taking the military operations order format and applying it to business.”
His service record: eight-plus years in Marine Corps infantry and three combat tours: two to Ramadi, Iraq, with 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines (2005-06 and 2007), and one to Kajaki and Sangin, Afghanistan, with 1st Battalion, 5th Marines in 2011, where he led a section of advisors. Between those tours he served at Quantico as a weapons instructor. He left the Corps as a Sergeant with an honorable discharge.
The notes describe his work at the time:
He currently works as an advisor to business leaders around the globe, calling upon his military experience to assess, train, advise, and assist businesses in the implementation of the 5 Paragraph Business Plan.
The Veterans Show episode description
Why it mattered then
This was the summer of 2020. Many businesses had been forced to rethink their plans in a matter of weeks. A planning method built for situations that change fast, with a clear mission, clear roles and a way to communicate, was an easy case to make that year.
It was one of several veteran shows Michael joined in 2020 to explain the method, and the short format kept it focused on the core idea.
Looking back
The phrase “assess, train, advise, and assist” comes up again and again in his bios from this time. It is the work of a military advisor team, the job he did in Afghanistan, now aimed at business leaders.
The episode is still on The Veterans Show YouTube channel.
This post is part of the From the Archive series, which collects Michael’s past media appearances in one place. See the full media archive.
Work with Michael
Marine veteran, TEDx speaker and author of the 5 Paragraph Business Plan. Bring him to your stage, wear the gear, or catch him live.