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Pathfinder Project
A Disability-Forward Analysis of Veteran Employment
Veterans with service-connected disabilities bring leadership, accountability and a mission focus to work, but 65% never ask for support. The Pathfinder Project shows employers how to help this talent thrive by bringing veteran and disability inclusion together, building workplaces that drive engagement, productivity and retention.
Meet the Pathfinders
By the Numbers
In the military, Pathfinders are elite specialists who deploy ahead of their units to make the way safe for those who follow. In this study, the Pathfinders are disabled veterans who have built successful corporate careers. Their experience shows employers what works across recruiting, onboarding, workplace culture and career development, and how to clear the path for the veterans coming next.
+60%
never or rarely talk about their disabilities at work
65%
had never requested a workplace accommodation
72%
say informal support from colleagues helped them more than formal transition programs
88%
of disabled veterans who rate their culture and job satisfaction highly say their leadership skills are used at work
Download the Research
Access the full report to explore the data, business implications, and opportunities shaping the next growth market.
How Leading Companies Are Clearing the Path
Public Consulting Group
Building Pathways for Disabled Veterans: How PCG Connects Military and Disability Inclusion
Public Consulting Group doesn’t split support for veterans, military families and employees with disabilities into separate programs. It started with one employee-led group, MilNet, which now works in tandem with PCG’s disability ERG. Their work runs from shared programming on the veteran and disability experience to a practical guide that helps managers support military-connected employees.
Public Consulting Group doesn’t split support for veterans, military families and employees with disabilities into separate programs. It started with one employee-led group, MilNet, which now works in tandem with PCG’s disability ERG. Their work runs from shared programming on the veteran and disability experience to a practical guide that helps managers support military-connected employees.
Johnson Controls
A Team Built for Veterans: Inside Johnson Controls’ Veterans Engagement Team
Johnson Controls supports veterans across the full employee lifecycle, from recruiting and onboarding through development, mentorship and retention. Its Veterans Engagement Team gives veterans a peer community and educates colleagues on topics veterans often won’t raise themselves, from VA benefits to non-apparent disabilities. That work has built a culture that separates disability from capability.
Johnson Controls supports veterans across the full employee lifecycle, from recruiting and onboarding through development, mentorship and retention. Its Veterans Engagement Team gives veterans a peer community and educates colleagues on topics veterans often won’t raise themselves, from VA benefits to non-apparent disabilities. That work has built a culture that separates disability from capability.
Turn Insights Into Action
Data & Insights
Data-driven trends, benchmarking, and insights to support every stage of your disability inclusion journey.
Speakers & Trainings
Equip your teams to put disability inclusion into practice. Explore expert-led keynotes, trainings, and workshops on accessibility, neuroinclusion, leadership, AI, and workplace accommodations.
Insight Lab
Disability:IN Insight Lab provides market intelligence and research access to one of the world's largest networks of disability-engaged consumers and
professionals, helping organizations make better business, product, and customer experience decisions.
FAQs
The study was designed and executed by the Disability:IN research team, including Louis Olander, Ph.D., Lisa Stern, Ed.D., Reid Jewett Smith, Ph.D., Jacob Wilson, and Hanako Kusumi. An advisory group of disabled veterans contributed feedback throughout the study’s design, data analysis, and narrative development.
This report is intended for:
- Business leaders and employers seeking to recruit, retain, and advance veteran talent
- Talent acquisition, human resources, and workforce development professionals
- Managers and people leaders who supervise veterans with service-connected disabilities
- Veteran and disability employee resource group leaders
- Organizations that provide military-to-civilian transition support
- Researchers and practitioners interested in veteran employment and disability inclusion
The study began with in-depth qualitative interviews with 15 disabled veterans who had established successful careers and well-being in corporate America. Insights from those interviews were converted into a survey circulated among Disability:IN corporate partners and their contacts. The survey received more than 200 responses from disabled veterans, nondisabled veterans, disabled civilians, and nondisabled civilians, allowing the research team to examine the distinct features of the disabled veteran employment journey.
In the military, Pathfinders are specialist soldiers deployed ahead of their units to create safe conditions for others to follow. In this study, “Pathfinders” refers to disabled veterans who have established successful corporate careers. Their experiences help identify conditions that can support other veterans as they transition to civilian employment and navigate work with a service-connected disability.
Peer networks help veterans translate military experience into civilian language, identify realistic career paths, prepare for interviews, and understand which employers may be worth pursuing. The study found that guidance from military peers received the highest average agreement score among the transition supports examined. Formal programs can provide a baseline, while peers often supply practical guidance, honest feedback, and encouragement grounded indirect experience.
The report identifies several actions for employers:
- Train managers on disability inclusion as part of veteran hiring, including VA disability ratings, accommodation requests, military culture around asking for help, veteran employee resource groups, and common service-connected disabilities.
- Embed disability inclusion into veteran onboarding by providing clear information about disclosure, confidentiality, workplace accommodations, benefits, and veteran-focused employee resource groups.
- Take greater responsibility for mapping military skills to open roles rather than leaving veterans to translate their experience alone.
- Include veterans in recruiting, hiring, and interviewing to help identify relevant skill connections and demonstrate understanding of military backgrounds.
- Use veteran employee resource groups as business resources and connect veteran and disability employee resource groups through cross-programming.
- Create roles and career pathways that make meaningful use of veterans’ leadership, service orientation, accountability, teamwork, and technical skills.
The report describes a mixed-method study built from interviews with 15 disabled veterans who had already achieved success and well-being in their career, followed by a survey with more than 200 responses across veteran, disability, and civilian groups. The findings reflect the experiences captured through those participants and should be interpreted within the study’s stated design and sample. They should not be treated as representing every veteran, every person with a service-connected disability, or every workplace.
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Use the ready-to-post copy, graphics, and key statistics in this toolkit on your channels and with your networks, tag @Disability:IN, and link to the full report.