Project Vanguard Podcast

About Project Vanguard Podcast

A podcast about leadership, energy, and service — told by the veterans shaping America’s Energy Dominance. Project Vanguard brings raw, mission-first conversations with those who’ve led in the military and continue to serve their country, building our energy future. Real stories. Clear insight. Focused on an All of the Above energy strategy where Energy Security is National Security. media.projectvanguard.com (https://media.projectvanguard.com?utm_medium=podcast)

Publisher

Kevin Doffing

Category

business · news

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

7 May 2025

Latest episode

14 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

43 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   14 Oct 2026

   Power Is the New Supply Line

   I sat down with Ryan Lamke, who runs the Atlantic Council’s Veterans Advanced Energy Fellowship, a program that helps mid-career veterans in energy navigate federal policy. Ryan enlisted as a Marine infantryman and was in Fallujah within six months of leaving for boot camp. Years later, six months into his first job at the Department of Energy, he got back from his honeymoon and found out he was the new senior advisor on China. Ryan says military tech keeps demanding more power. When he was in Iraq, Blue Force Trackers and IED jammers were the high-tech gear. Now ISR assets are directing the rounds and AI systems are working through the data, and all of it draws power. Battery weight comes straight out of a drone’s payload. He got a close look at Ukraine through a classmate at the National War College, a Ukrainian Special Forces colonel. Jamming got so good that fighters went to fiber-optic tethers, and he says forests in the Donbas are now crisscrossed with cable. This year’s fellows are working on energy at bases outside the continental US and how NATO allies structure their 1.5% infrastructure commitment. Ryan’s advice for veterans who want a career like his is simple: say yes, then own what you don’t know. “Everyone wants to pretend to be an expert,” he says. If you’ve been treating the bases here at home as the safe rear area, give this one a listen. Chapters * 00:00 - Introduction * 01:45 - Ryan’s Role and the Veterans Advanced Energy Fellowship * 07:23 - Expert vs. Practitioner in a Changing Energy Space * 09:46 - From Military School to Marine Infantry in Fallujah * 13:40 - Getting Out: Wounded Warrior Project, Georgetown, and NASCAR * 17:31 - Into Energy: Ethanol to the Department of Energy * 19:29 - At DOE: From the Southeast Asia Desk to China * 22:53 - Energy Security and Defense Tech’s Growing Power Demand * 25:15 - The Battlefield Then and Now: Batteries, Drones, and Ukraine * 29:49 - How to Get Involved: The Fellowship and Atlantic Council Events * 33:17 - Advice: Say Yes, and Say “I Don’t Know” Resources People & Organizations * Kevin Doffing (LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevindoffing)) * Project Vanguard (Website (https://projectvanguard.com) - Newsletter (https://media.projectvanguard.com) - Podcast (https://media.projectvanguard.com/podcast) - LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/project-vanguard) - Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61582528685159)) * Ryan J. Lamke (Atlantic Council (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/expert/ryan-j-lamke/)) * ELMS Advisory (Website (https://elmsadvisory.com)) * Atlantic Council Global Energy Center (Website (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/programs/global-energy-center/) - Energy & Defense (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/programs/global-energy-center/energy-defense/)) Veteran & Transition Resources * Veterans Advanced Energy Fellowship (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/programs/global-energy-center/veterans-advanced-energy-fellowship/) * Wounded Warrior Project (https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org) * Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program (MECEP) (https://www.iimef.marines.mil/Staff-Offices/Adjutant/Enlisted-Officer-Program) Mentioned in the Episode * Landon Derentz (Atlantic Council (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/expert/landon-derentz/)) * Dan Misch (Atlantic Council (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/expert/dan-misch/)) * Greg Douquet (Atlantic Council (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/expert/greg-douquet/)) * Rick Stockburger, Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation (DOE (https://www.energy.gov/articles/energy-department-appoints-inaugural-ceo-lead-energy-security-and-innovation-foundation)) * 2026 Energy & Defense Summit (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/2026-energy-defense-summit/) * Growth Energy (https://growthenergy.org) * Executive Order: Declaring a National Emergency to Secure the United States Bulk-Power System (https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/08/declaring-a-national-emergency-to-secure-the-united-states-bulk-power-system/) * The Hague Summit Declaration (https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/official_texts_236705.htm) * DOE Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) (https://www.energy.gov/ceser) * Dissolving the Fence: Improving Utility Privatization for Defense Installations’ Resiliency (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/issue-brief/dissolving-the-fence-improving-utility-privatization-for-defense-installations-resiliency/) * Enhancing NATO’s Operational Readiness Through Energy Interoperability (https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/issue-brief/enhancing-natos-operational-readiness-through-energy-interoperability/) * War: Watt Is It Good For? (https://warontherocks.com/cogs-of-war/war-watt-is-it-good-for/) More from Project Vanguard * Veterans, Policy, and the Hidden Energy Battlefield with Michael Dunn (https://media.projectvanguard.com/p/veterans-policy-and-the-hidden-energy) * Securing Energy, Securing America (https://media.projectvanguard.com/p/securing-energy-securing-america) Get full access to Project Vanguard at media.projectvanguard.com/subscribe (https://media.projectvanguard.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)

2. 

   30 Sept 2026

   From Artillery Officer to Business Owner

   I sat down with Dan Maxwell, one of four Army veterans who own Summit Point Leadership. Most of their work is training frontline leaders at rural electric co-ops, and Dan says you couldn’t ask for a better customer. I met Dan at Rice and pushed him into Al Danto’s acquisition class. Dan doesn’t sugarcoat what buying a company takes. He signed a personal guarantee, and he’ll tell you you’re “essentially buying a job.” Be convinced of the company and its cash flow before you talk price, and expect even a business that already makes money to dip before it climbs. Pay off the debt and pay yourself a reasonable salary, and he counts that as a real success. In the Army, every time an NCO moves up, there’s a leadership school waiting. At a co-op, the best lineman gets promoted to foreman and is left to figure it out, and Dan thinks that first-line leader is the biggest lever a utility has. Veterans bringing that training to the crews who keep the lights on is exactly what I want more of in this industry. Dan also helps teach a veteran transition lab at Rice, built around a question I’d put to anyone weighing an MBA or a business of their own: how do you actually want to create value 10 years from now? Chapters * 00:00 Introduction * 02:30 Why Buy a Business, and How the Deal Came Together * 07:22 Why Rural Electric Co-ops Make Great Customers * 10:56 Why Dan Joined the Army * 13:56 Getting Out: Med Device Sales and the Road to Rice * 17:57 The T1 Energy Award and the J Curve * 20:33 How Organizations Work with Summit Point * 23:15 Why the First-Line Leader Is the Biggest Lever * 27:04 Running the Veterans Business Battle at Rice * 30:20 The Veteran Transition Lab (was 30:01) * 33:21 Advice for Veterans Weighing an MBA or an Acquisition * 37:46 Everyone’s Your Boss, and Closing Resources People & Organizations * Kevin Doffing (LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevindoffing)) * Project Vanguard (Website (https://projectvanguard.com) - Newsletter (https://media.projectvanguard.com) - Podcast (https://media.projectvanguard.com/podcast)) * Dan Maxwell (LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/danmaxwell1991/)) * Summit Point Leadership (Website (https://www.spleadership.com/) - LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/summit-point-leadership)) Veteran & Transition Resources * Veterans Business Battle, Rice Business (https://business.rice.edu/veterans-business-battle) * Rice Business Veterans Association (https://business.rice.edu/military/rice-business-veterans-association) * Military Scholars Program, Rice Business Veterans Association (https://jones.campusgroups.com/rbva/military-scholars-program/) * Rice Business MBA for Military (https://business.rice.edu/military) * Rice Business Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition Conference (https://business.rice.edu/eta-conference/agenda) Company & Industry News * Veteran-Led Team Formed in Rice Entrepreneurship Program Acquires National Leadership Development Firm (https://news.rice.edu/news/2026/veteran-led-team-formed-rice-entrepreneurship-program-acquires-national-leadership) Books & Articles Discussed * Acquiring Minds, Podcast for Acquisition Entrepreneurs (https://acquiringminds.co/) Related Project Vanguard Episodes * The Sitreps Guys on Hiring Done Right (https://media.projectvanguard.com/p/the-sitreps-guys-on-hiring-done-right) * Take a Risk on Yourself with Laura Gardner (https://media.projectvanguard.com/p/take-a-risk-on-yourself-with-laura) Get full access to Project Vanguard at media.projectvanguard.com/subscribe (https://media.projectvanguard.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)

3. 

   23 Sept 2026

   Where Veteran Policy Gets Written

   I sat down with Zach Federico, who runs the veterans task force at ALEC. He got there sideways. A commander walked into his rehearsal at Liberty University and offered to pay him to play music, which is how he wound up in the Virginia National Guard Band. He was a brand new executive assistant when a barely advertised roundtable packed out, and he turned that room into the first new ALEC task force in over 15 years. ALEC is a nonprofit where state legislators trade what worked. The process is more mechanical than it sounds. A legislator brings a bill that passed at home, the room argues it out with nothing on the record and industry in the chairs, then two votes, legislators first and the private sector second. What survives becomes a model the other states can run. The Military Crosswalk Act came through that way, from a Utah senator, and it keeps a plumber with 10 years in uniform from starting over on a civilian license. Utah was the 37th state to pass one. We also get into the Veterans Justice Act, why slim-majority states like Arizona out-function the supermajorities, and the referral mess a veteran hits the week they get out. Zach was blunt about where the policy comes from: “We don’t just hire PhDs to tell legislators what to think.” What I keep chewing on is whether our industry shows up, because Zach has never had a veterans bill sent to the energy task force. His 50-state ranking on veteran policy drops Veterans Day, and he would not spoil where the states land. Chapters * 00:00 - Introduction * 02:04 - How Zach Built ALEC's Veterans Task Force * 05:11 - What ALEC Is, and the Coming 50-State Ranking * 09:56 - Statehouses, Slim Majorities, and Why State Policy Moves * 15:45 - Cross-Referrals and Veteran Pathways into Energy * 17:47 - The Virginia Guard Band, and a Year Without a Break * 23:06 - The Military Crosswalk Act and How Model Policy Gets Made * 27:10 - Dual Referrals and Why Industry Should Be in the Room * 30:49 - Advice for Veterans Who Want into Policy * 32:52 - Rapid Fire * 33:28 - The Veterans Justice Act and Veteran Treatment Courts * 36:17 - What the Military Taught Him, and How to Join ALEC * 38:20 - The Referral Problem and the Peer Network * 42:56 - Closing Thoughts Resources People & Organizations * Kevin Doffing (LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevindoffing)) * Project Vanguard (Website (https://projectvanguard.com) - Newsletter (https://media.projectvanguard.com) - Podcast (https://media.projectvanguard.com/podcast)) * Zach Federico (LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/zacharyfederico/) - ALEC Profile (https://alec.org/person/zachary-federico/)) * American Legislative Exchange Council (Website (https://alec.org) - LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/american-legislative-exchange-council) - X (https://x.com/ALEC_states)) * ALEC Veterans and Military Affairs Task Force (Task Force Page (https://alec.org/task-force/veterans-and-military-affairs/)) * Other Orgs & People * Mike Hutchings (LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/mbhutch/)) * Combined Arms (Website (https://www.combinedarms.us) - Team (https://www.combinedarms.us/our-people)) * John Wills (ALEC Profile (https://alec.org/person/representative-john-wills/)) Veteran & Transition Resources * DoD SkillBridge (https://skillbridge.osd.mil/) * Center for Energy Workforce Development (https://cewd.org/) * Veterans in Energy (https://www.veteransinenergy.org/) * Justice for Vets (https://allrise.org/about/division/justice-for-vets/) * Veterans Treatment Court Program, Bureau of Justice Assistance (https://bja.ojp.gov/program/veterans-treatment-court-program/overview) * Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program, George W. Bush Institute (https://www.bushcenter.org/newsroom/bush-institute-announces-2026-stand-to-veteran-leadership-program-class) Policy & Programs * Military Crosswalk Act (https://alec.org/model-policy/military-crosswalk-act/) * Utah S.B. 90, Occupational Licenses for Veterans and Service Members (https://le.utah.gov/~2026/bills/static/SB0090.html) * Veterans Justice Act (https://alec.org/model-policy/veterans-justice-act/) * Veterans Treatment Court Act (https://alec.org/model-policy/veterans-treatment-court-act/) * Election Workforce Expansion Act (https://alec.org/model-policy/election-workforce-expansion-act/) * Statement of Principles on Veteran Referral Networks (https://alec.org/model-policy/statement-of-principles-on-veteran-referral-networks/) Company & Industry News * Combined Arms CEO Mike Hutchings to Lead as Private Sector Chair of Inaugural ALEC Task Force (https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/combined-arms-ceo-mike-hutchings-to-lead-as-private-sector-chair-of-inaugural-alec-task-force-302365558.html) * ALEC Veterans and Military Affairs Task Force Charts Path for State-Level Policy Solutions (https://alec.org/article/alec-veterans-and-military-affairs-task-force-charts-path-for-state-level-policy-solutions/) * Texas Veterans Network Powered by Combined Arms Surpasses 100,000 Veterans Served Statewide (https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/08/25/3350573/0/en/texas-veterans-network-powered-by-combined-arms-surpasses-100-000-veterans-served-statewide.html) Books & Articles Discussed * Federal Programs to Assist Military-to-Civilian Employment Transitions (https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1363-12.html) * Rich States, Poor States (https://alec.org/periodical/rich-states/) Related Project Vanguard Episodes * Veterans, Policy, and the Hidden Energy Battlefield with Michael Dunn (https://media.projectvanguard.com/p/veterans-policy-and-the-hidden-energy) * How a Marine Lands in Energy Policy (https://media.projectvanguard.com/p/how-a-marine-lands-in-energy-policy) * The Network After Service with Ken Webre (https://media.projectvanguard.com/p/the-network-after-service-with-ken) * The Super ERG: Turning Veteran Networks Into Real Jobs and Real Power (https://media.projectvanguard.com/p/the-super-erg-turning-veteran-networks) Get full access to Project Vanguard at media.projectvanguard.com/subscribe (https://media.projectvanguard.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)

Who has been a guest on Project Vanguard Podcast

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Larry Perry
• Bryan Reed
• Barrett Thomas
• Kyle

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

4 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 39 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

65

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

32

Contact Project Vanguard Podcast

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.