Military Spouses Transition, Too: A Conversation with Lacey Craig

Episode Show Notes

Military Spouses Transition, Too: A Conversation with Lacey Craig

Episode Summary

In this Military Spouse Appreciation Day episode, Scott Schimmel sits down with Lacey Craig, Senior Program Manager of Military & Partnership Recruiting at T-Mobile, to talk about a part of transition that often gets overlooked: the military spouse experience.

Lacey brings a rare and personal perspective to the conversation. As the daughter of a 38-year Army veteran, she grew up watching her mother carry the weight of deployments, relocations, family responsibilities, and constant adaptation. Today, Lacey has turned that lived experience into a professional mission: helping veterans, transitioning service members, and military spouses access meaningful employment and support.

The conversation explores what military families sacrifice, why military spouses are often forced to rebuild their careers again and again, and how employers can better recognize the resilience, adaptability, leadership, and problem-solving skills spouses bring to the workforce. Lacey also challenges Vector Accelerator to consider how its work around identity, purpose, and transition might also serve military spouses—not just service members.

Key Takeaways

1. Military spouses experience transition, too

Transition is not limited to the person wearing the uniform. Military spouses navigate relocations, employment disruption, shifting family roles, community loss, and constant reinvention alongside the service member.

2. Military spouses are often forced to restart

Lacey describes seeing military spouses enter the workforce saying, “I just moved here, I lost my job, I need another job,” which helped her recognize the systemic employment challenges facing the spouse community.

3. The sacrifices of military families are often invisible

Lacey reflects on her mother’s strength during long deployments, noting that her mom played both parental roles while her father was away. Those sacrifices shaped Lacey’s understanding of service, family, and resilience.

4. Employers should see military spouses as high-value talent

Military spouses bring adaptability, maturity, resourcefulness, emotional intelligence, and the ability to manage complexity. They often operate under pressure, solve problems quickly, and build community wherever they go.

5. Support does not have to be complicated

Lacey’s story shows that serving the military community can start simply: volunteering, hosting resume workshops, opening doors, connecting people, and staying curious about what others need.

6. Vector Accelerator has an opportunity to include spouses in the transition conversation

Scott acknowledges that Vector has not yet focused deeply on military spouses, and Lacey’s perspective opens the door to thinking more intentionally about how spouses also need clarity, identity work, community, and support through transition.

Best Quotes

“Networking is the most important thing that you could ever do because you never know who you’re going to run into or need at some point.” — Lacey Craig

“I was seeing military spouses just come through as a revolving door in terms of trying to find employment. I just moved here, I lost my job, I need another job.” — Lacey Craig

“The things that she sacrificed and gave up that we don’t have to have our military spouses do today is really what drives me to do this work.” — Lacey Craig

“If we can hire one spouse, if we can get one spouse the resources they need, it’s a win in my opinion.” — Lacey Craig

“My mom is a rock star.” — Lacey Craig

“There’s a lot that I missed in this community, just having my own experience, that people are going through.” — Lacey Craig

“We have a responsibility, every single one of us, to support our service members and their families.” — Lacey Craig

“Your kid’s gonna be fine… there’s not going to be a lack of love and support and communication.” — Lacey Craig

“We are not doing a good job as a society in helping our service members be ready for work after the military.” — Lacey Craig

“Military families transition together.” — Suggested episode theme

Guest Bio

Lacey Craig is the Senior Program Manager of Military & Partnership Recruiting at T-Mobile, where she helps drive employment initiatives for veterans, military spouses, and active-duty service members across the organization. In her role, she manages key partnerships with organizations including Hiring Our Heroes and Blue Star Families, while also developing programs that support the military community both within and outside of T-Mobile.

A passionate advocate for military-connected families, Lacey is the daughter of a 38-year serving veteran. She is also the Co-Lead of T-Mobile’s Southern California DEI Council, sits on the Board of Advisors for the Veterans Legal Institute and the University of Arizona, and serves as co-chair of the Military Spouse Employment Advisory Council with Hiring Our Heroes.