Military Spouse Appreciation Day is a time to spotlight just how much people sacrifice in support of their military partners—and the resilience that makes them great colleagues. At Oracle, we’re committed to empowering these remarkable individuals to thrive personally and professionally.
Knowledge Leader
We spoke to Leesa Henderson, a senior federal knowledge leader at Oracle Health and doctor of physical therapy, about what brought her to Oracle and how she’s risen to the challenges being a military spouse can bring.
Leesa, you’ve had a remarkable career transition from physical therapy to consulting at Oracle. What inspired your move?
Well, as a hospital-based healthcare provider moving around the country, I saw numerous electronic health record (EHR) systems and how they impact patient care. I was always the clinician supporting the analysts with these projects and decided to make the jump to use my clinical background to positively impact more people than I could by seeing a single patient at a time.
Speaking as a military spouse, how has your experience been different from other professionals?
I’ve certainly had my share of starts and stops due to my spouse’s service! I had to leave jobs that I didn’t want to leave, where I had fought for every inch of experience and responsibility, to move to an unfamiliar place and start over. On the upside, patients give you grace when you say you are new to the area and share their recommendations, it was my favorite conversation starter.
Professionally, I focused on mastering the art of establishing myself. Walking into a new job with all this experience at my back and figuring out how to fit in with the culture while standing out to leadership. I found small ways to use knowledge or skills from a previous position, I volunteered for extra responsibilities and asked my peers for advice and guidance… And just like that, it is like you have been there all along.
You’ve played an important part in 4+1 at Oracle. Can you tell us more?
Last year, Blue Star Families and Hiring Our Heroes released the 4+1 Commitment which aims to reduce military spouse unemployment which typically hovers around 20-25%. It asks companies to engage in evidence-based methods for attracting and retaining military spouse talent (remote work opportunities, job transferability, flexible work hours, and permissive or paid leave for military moves) as well as encouraging companies to be open to hiring military spouses. Oracle was already doing this, so it made sense to let people know.
You’ve already mentioned that being a military spouse can involve frequent relocations. How has this impacted your career development?
The great thing about healthcare is that everyone needs it no matter where you go. While my career wasn’t growing in terms of titles or promotions, the skills I gained serving populations in numerous regions and collaborating with other clinical professionals cannot be overstated.
I truly believe that my range of experience, and that of other military spouses, is a superpower. I poured my personal time into supporting national work with emphasis on the Academy of Acute Care Physical Therapy. This allowed me to get other leadership and project management experience that I was not getting in the workplace due to shorter tenures.
Lastly, I didn’t wait for growth to find me, I made opportunities. As a new graduate at my first hospital system, I developed and implemented an emergency department physical therapy program. At my next hospital system, I volunteered for my role as the EHR liaison which led to my role as the lead therapist in a standardization of care project.
Even though I have always been the new person, I have also always been the person who steps up for clinicians and patients.
It sounds like you need to be a strong relationship builder to thrive in these situations.
I’ve always been a people person. I love meeting new people, learning about their lives, and making connections. Obviously, this looks different depending on who you are talking to, but the fundamental principle is the same.
In one of my workshops, we listened to a talk by inspirational speaker Simon Sinek and the message was that if you don’t know people, you don’t know business, and I know this to be undeniably true.
What are some other valuable lessons you’ve learned from your experiences?
Be flexible. Stay calm. Remain confident in your abilities but know when to use your team. Prioritize things over which you have control. I feel the best thing I ever did was marry a military member! It shattered everything I thought I knew about preparation and order and replaced it with a much more dynamic way of thinking.
What do you think makes Oracle stand out in its support for military spouses and veterans?
Oracle’s commitment to the military community through their work with defense and intelligence agencies is what drew me to the company in the first place. Now, as an employee, I have seen another side of this support through programs like the Military Affiliated Veteran Employee Network (MAVEN) employee resource group.
Oracle’s support for military-affiliated talent keeps the mission at the forefront of everything we do.
You already have a strong presence within MAVEN as its first military spouse liaison. How do you support and empower others?
Research has demonstrated that military spouses tend not to disclose their status due to concerns over discrimination. Sadly, these concerns are based on too many real-life examples. That said, that is not the reality at Oracle. I recently connected with an Oracle employee whose spouse is stationed 20 minutes from me and of course, they are moving next month. We bemoaned that we had not met before that day, and I want to prevent instances like that from happening again.
By cultivating the military spouse community, we can not only support each other through military life, we can also improve the customer experience. Oracle is also open to developing programs to make this an even better place for military spouses to work and I want to spearhead that effort.
How do you manage to keep things balanced with so many competing commitments?
I’m not going to pretend that it is something I have perfectly figured out, but every year and duty station brings a new level of refinement. Also, with frequent relocations, military life emphasizes that there are seasons to everything. Sometimes, one of those things needs to take a back seat and that is okay because you know it isn’t forever, and you will prioritize it again soon.
Having a career has always been very important to me. I like helping others and contributing to something larger than myself so that purpose has always served as my north star when it comes to decisions. My spouse understands that I cannot be there for every event but that I will be there for the important ones that mark a milestone or foster the community that is so important in military life.
As for self-care, I set hard stop times when I can, never skip lunch, and take my paid time off so I can focus on family.
Thanks for sharing. What advice would you give to others trying to balance the demands of being a military spouse and striving for a fulfilling career?
Take advantage of the resources at your disposal! The biggest miss I see is people trying to do it all on their own. I am all for being self-reliant, but there are so many organizations and programs at your disposal.
I also think you need to decide which sacrifices you are willing to make. My spouse put all continental United States bases on his first ‘dream sheet’ since I was finishing grad school, and he wanted me to be able to start my career rather than immediately moving out of the country.
I know a lot of spouses with fulfilling careers that look nothing like they pictured. This is because, in addition to a strong sense of purpose and a mountain of hard work, they accepted a certain level of sacrifice and opened themselves to the possibility that just because things didn’t go as planned doesn’t make the result any less incredible.
Join an employer that empowers military spouses and veterans to succeed. Explore our latest career opportunities for veterans and military spouses now and join the Oracle Veteran Talent Network for advice, insights, and more. Plus, check out our resume tips for military spouses.