Veteran Business Project Welcomes Raymond Jakubiak as Executive Vice President Chief Financial Officer

Decorated combat veteran and Fortune 500 finance executive joins VBP to strengthen its organizational foundation and expand impact for veterans across the region.

Veteran Business Project is proud to announce the appointment of Raymond Jakubiak as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. A decorated Green Beret, CPA, and 40-year finance executive with experience spanning Fortune 500 corporations and global consulting, Jakubiak brings the strategic and operational depth to accelerate VBP’s growth and deepen its impact for veterans pursuing business ownership.

Credentials Built Over a Lifetime of Service

Jakubiak’s background spans military service, corporate finance, and community leadership. He served in Vietnam from 1969 to 1970 as a Green Beret with the Army’s Special Forces, earning three Bronze Stars (one for Valor), the Air Medal for Valor, the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, and the Combat Infantryman Badge. After the Army, he built a career that took him from public accounting at Touche Ross to corporate controller and sector CFO roles at Motorola, to senior consulting work at Price Waterhouse and Deloitte, where he partnered with CFOs across the globe on finance transformation, process redesign, and technology enablement. He holds a CPA and completed Northwestern’s Kellogg executive management program.

His nonprofit record is equally substantial. He has served on numerous 501(c)(3) boards, co-founded the Illinois Aviation Museum, and helped sustain his hometown high school through years of board service and fundraising.

He knows firsthand what veterans carry when they leave the military. Separated from the Army after Vietnam with no clear path forward, he found his footing through discipline, mentorship, and hard work, and that experience gives him direct insight into what VBP’s veterans are navigating.

“We’re here to help guide veterans, give them direction and a home, and give them hope,” Jakubiak says.

The opportunity is real. After World War II, roughly half of all veterans started small businesses. After 9/11, that number fell to the low single digits. VBP believes today’s veterans and today’s small businesses, particularly second- and third-generation family businesses ready for new ownership, are a natural match, and that connecting them strengthens both veterans and local economies.