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As a construction mechanic in the Navy, Brandon Overton and his fellow Seabees specialized in quickly building things that would stand the test of time. His favorite deployment was on the remote Pacific island of Tinian, where Overton and his team built an advanced base and airfield runway. 

The island didn’t have many modern conveniences, and Overton recalls being hot and covered in mud most of the time. But he looks back on the experience with pride and fondness for what his team built together — both the physical structures and the bonds of friendship.

“Deployments are strange, because everyone is working 16-hour days and away from their families for nine to 10 months,” he said. “But it’s some of the best times you’ll have.”

As his five-year Navy stint wound down in 2022, Overton was eager to find a civilian career with an employer that would value his military service and provide opportunities for rapid advancement so he could support his wife and two young daughters. Overton found that opportunity at ɫɫ�о��� with the help of the Department of Defense’s .

ɫɫ�о��� partners with SkillBridge to provide internships to military members in the last six months of their service. The program gives interns a chance to learn and prove themselves on the job, which often leads to full-time work. 

“With SkillBridge, I could go see what opportunities were out there while still being employed by the Navy,” Overton said. “Then when I got to ɫɫ�о���, I loved the company and loved what we were doing. I think they saw the value in how hard I was working, and I saw the way the company was growing, so I thought this is the place I wanted to be.”

Because of the company’s rapid growth — it has added more than 1,000 employees every year since 2021 — high-achievers can quickly advance. Overton is a perfect example. 

• He spent the majority of his internship as a shop technician at the Core Solutions branch in his hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio. Overton’s work ethic and experience in the Navy repairing heavy equipment made him an immediate asset and an obvious choice for a job offer. 
• He accepted a full-time job at the branch as a field tech and spent seven months repairing and maintaining equipment on jobsites. ɫɫ�о��� techs benefit from the use of the , which provides detailed insights on the health and performance of each piece of equipment to help diagnose issues.
• When Cincinnati opened a new Tooling Solutions branch, which serves mostly industrial customers and trade-specific contractors, Overton was named the general manager. After two years in that role, he was promoted again.
• Now, he is a regional manager for Tooling Solutions, supporting and supervising the teams at all the Midwest branches. 

His climb from intern to regional manager took just three years. 

Shane Adams, who hired Overton for the Cincinnati GM position and then recommended him for the regional manager job, said he was initially impressed with Overton’s enthusiasm and attention to detail. Adams said when Overton took over the Cincinnati branch, he was willing to be a team player.

“When another store needed an extra hand, he was the first to offer to help,” Adams said. “Multiple times, he stepped away from his own store to help another store.” 

Many of the attributes that have helped Overton climb the career ladder were honed during his military service. With the help of SkillBridge, he found the place where he can quickly build a career that lasts. 

“We have leadership that recognizes and wants to build from the inside instead of always pulling from the outside when they need to fill roles,” Overton said. “So the opportunities are here. To make it happen, you just have to come with the competitiveness to be the best.”