A challenging year

Patriot Group International weathers Afghanistan pullout

Published February 3, 2023 by Sydney Lake

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The last couple years have been a trying time for many businesses, but probably not for the same reasons as Patriot Group International Inc.

When the U.S. Armed Forces withdrew the last troops from Afghanistan in August 2021, ending a 20-year war, the Warrenton-based federal contractor lost nearly 20% of its revenue and had to let go more than 75 employees practically overnight, says Greg Craddock, CEO of Patriot Group, which provides mission support security and risk management services to federal intelligence and defense clients as well as private sector clients. This often includes high-risk work overseas.

The pullout from the war happened quickly, resulting in more than 100,000 people leaving the country in just a few days. Even President Joe Biden called the withdrawal “messy.”

“Unfortunately, with the way things transpired, we lost a lot of valued team members just simply because the work disappeared,” Craddock says. “That’s something that we obviously don’t like doing — making those phone calls and letting people know that they have to look for another way to support their family.”

While suddenly losing a significant revenue stream forced Patriot Group to examine how to streamline its business and remain competitive, that was secondary to taking care of personnel, Craddock says. This meant that company leadership needed to be clear and direct in its communication with workers.

“Within our industry, one of the keys to success or failure is good or bad communication,” he adds. “There’s some uncomfortable conversations that went down but being forthright and honest and upfront with the personnel was just the key to success.”

As a result of the 2021 Afghanistan pullout and the subsequent hit to Patriot Group’s business, 2022 was a challenging year for the company. A key part of showing commitment to its employees was maintaining or even improving upon worker benefits and opportunities, Craddock says.

This includes allowing new hires to immediately enroll in the company’s health care plan and start contributing to their retirement plans. Patriot Group provides matching 401(k) accounts, matching 100% of the first 3% of an employee’s contribution, and 50% on the next 2%. Flexible work hours can also be used to accommodate family events. Personnel can also get tuition reimbursement for advanced or postgraduate degrees as well as certifications and business education workshops.

Patriot Group also fosters a culture of mentorship and support. The company prioritizes promoting current employees to higher-ranking positions.

“Our primary goal is to promote within when opportunities present themselves,” Craddock says. “One of the key components to that is making sure that our junior employees get the opportunity to not only perform without someone looking over their shoulder and develop their own leadership style, but also we’re there to help them learn more about effective leadership traits and best practices.”

The resilience Patriot Group has shown following an unexpected business challenge looks like it’s going to pay off. Today, the company employs 228 people in the U.S., about 70 of whom are in Virginia. Since 2020, its U.S. workforce has grown by about 80 people, including 30 in Virginia. PGI also participates in the state’s Virginia Values Veterans (V3) program, through which companies commit to hiring military veterans.

“2022 … [was] a challenge in terms of our overall business success, but we … [saw] real positive growth indicators for the back half of the year,” Craddock says, “and we think 2023 could be potentially one of our best ever.”

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