Not every defense contractor can absorb dozens of transitioning service members each year. HX5, a company of roughly 1,000 employees, has instead settled on a smaller but steady commitment: two fellows annually through the Hiring Our Heroes Corporate Fellowship Program since 2021.

Large contractors such as Lockheed Martin and Booz Allen Hamilton maintain dedicated military recruiting teams capable of hosting far larger fellowship cohorts. Technology companies including Microsoft and Amazon also participate in the broader program, which has produced more than 500 graduates since 2015 with an 80 percent hire rate and average starting salaries near $70,000 per fellow.

A DELIBERATE, MANAGEABLE APPROACH

For HX5, eight fellows since 2021 reflects a deliberate balance between operational capacity and integration requirements, according to CEO Margarita Howard. Rather than scaling participation to match larger competitors, HX5 has kept its commitment consistent year over year without exception.

Margarita Howard, an Air Force veteran, has said her own military background shapes how she approaches fellowship hiring at HX5. She has pointed to the value of steady participation over sporadic hiring tied to immediate staffing needs, arguing that consistency signals a sustained commitment to veteran transition rather than a reactive one driven by short term openings.

HX5 operates across more than 20 states and over 70 government locations, supporting Department of Defense and NASA missions in research, engineering, and mission operations. For a company its size, maintaining even a modest fellowship commitment requires ongoing planning, and Howard’s continued involvement suggests HX5 intends to keep that pace steady well beyond its first five years in the program.

Margarita Howard has framed the two-fellow annual pace less as a limitation and more as a way to give each participant meaningful attention during the twelve week program. That closer level of engagement, she suggests, can matter as much to a transitioning service member as the raw number of fellowship slots a company offers each year. Read this article for additional information.

Find more information about Margarita Howard on https://www.youngupstarts.com/2025/01/10/how-hx5-and-margarita-howard-stay-ahead-in-government-contracting-as-a-women-owned-firm/