EdgeConneX and Salute Mission Critical: Veterans Initiatives Go Green

Over the past decade, Salute Mission Critical has empowered veterans and military spouses with training, connections, and opportunities that can help them launch into thriving careers within the data center sector. Success stems partly from Salutes’ multi-skilled operator model, which leverages technology and processes to deliver expert support and services, and its core operating model, which improves resource utilization, drives workflow efficiency and reduces costs.

In a recent article, ‘Red, White, and Green: The EdgeConneX Eco-Friendly Veteran’s Initiative,‘ EdgeConneX celebrates the unique partnership, which brings together a proven data center services company whose model has disrupted the industry with a proven resource dedicated to recruiting eager technicians with some already skilled in data center processes and environments.

With this winning global operating structure, Salute has 12 global offices and works in 102+ countries. By building on its workforce development strategy, which takes new hires from their current level of competency to ever-changing and increasing levels throughout their career, and its sustainable operations approach, it has become a recognized leader in innovative service offerings.

Noting their long-standing partnership, which started in 2014, Lee Kirby, Chairman and Co-Founder of Salute Mission Critical credits EdgeConneX as the anchor that helped pave the way for its current and future growth. By collaborating with EdgeConneX across its global data center footprint, Salute has been able to drive high impact for veterans and their families and provide EdgeConneX with a highly skilled veteran workforce.

Five-Star Mission Accomplished:

81 Salute personnel are currently dedicated to services contracts at EdgeConneX data centers in Europe, North America, and South America — representing military veterans from 14 countries. An extra good news story is that an additional 12 Salute alumni are now direct EdgeConneX employees.
Salute has introduced over 3,000 military personnel and their families to the industry – genuinely changing lives while bringing military precision and innovation to the data center industry.
Salute’s efforts have helped solve personnel shortages within the industry through its lean and green model marked by an incredible growth rate (0 – 800 employees placed in 12 countries over the past ten years).
Focused on ecological stewardship, both companies have grown individually and collaboratively to become greener and build out their respective environmental sustainability practices.
Operating within an inclusive culture comprising a highly diverse workforce, the companies fuel even more innovation by bringing every perspective to the table.

“Salute Mission Critical’s veterans training and placement programs change lives daily. The EdgeConneX team is honored to work alongside them as they apply their critical skills, high integrity, and military precision to support our world-class data centers globally. Our mutual collaboration is even more impactful as we both share a dedication to environmental sustainability. It’s a winning combination and a partnership we deeply value.” – Randy Brouckman, CEO for EdgeConneX

Ingrained into the EdgeConneX DNA is the company’s deep commitment to its Customers People Planet mission encompassing: The data center solutions and tools its customers need, the vision to develop a diverse, inclusive, empowered workforce, and the commitment to improve the impacts of its facilities have on the land, the resources, and communities. It’s a disruption with a purpose on a global scale.

As the article noted, although both organizations charted their sustainability courses independently, both companies share a similar vision of being good stewards of our environment. “EdgeConneX’s Customers People Planet mission truly resonates with Salute’s sustainable data center operations mission.” – Lee Kirby, Chairman, and Co-Founder of Salute Mission Critical