Patty Montes-Barron

President of PMB Consulting

Service Member's Branch - Army

Service Member's Status - Retired - 30 years

What has been your military spouse career/entrepreneur journey so far?

From 2005-2010 I worked for the National Military Family Association. From 2010-2011 i was an Outreach Director with Zero to Three, a nonprofit focused on early childhood support. From 2012-2021 I served as Family Readiness Director with AUSA. In 2021 I became a day one political appointee as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Military Community and Family Policy. I served in that role until 2025 when I started my own business, PMB Consulting.

Tell us about yourself.

Hi, I'm Patty. I have been a military family advocate for more than 20 years! Besides working, I love to cook, garden, and spend time with my family. My happy days are when I visit my granddaughters who are currently in Germany with their parents; an Army Officer and a military spouse.

Tell us about a "typical" day in your professional life.

I spend time reading emails, reading articles, staying current on family issues, accepting invitations to speak, and seeking opportunities for my company PMB Consulting.

If you've been stationed overseas, how did this affect your career and or business?

I was not able to pursue a nursing career since our first assignment was Germany. I learned to be flexible and creative.

What has been your biggest military spouse career struggle and how did you overcome it?

Moving and constantly restarting. I accepted positions that helped me learn and grow for any opportunities that might pop up unexpectedly.

What role did mentors and sponsors play in your journey?

Not many mentors early on and learned to lean on folks as I progressed in my career. It was essential for my self esteem and professional development.

How does your career path differ from what you imagined for yourself?

Totally not the way I imagined - it was actually better!

How did military life (PCSing, deployments, trainings, etc) factor into your career decisions?

As a brand new bride and a new graduate RN I thought my career would mesh nicely with my husband's. I was wrong. Our first assignment was overseas and I could not work in the German economy and had no experience working in a military hospital. Returning to the US three years later was no better. At that point I was a mom of a toddler and a newborn. Mike was in Company Command in the infantry and was never home. So I learned… to be flexible, adaptable, and throw ego out of the window. All the skills I acquired through my hodgepodge employment journey stretched my idea of “the art of the possible” and I learned that taking risks leads to better opportunities.

What resources have you found to be useful in your career/entrepreneur journey?

Networking has been the best resource of all. In the early years of my husband's career there was no Military OneSource or Spouse education career opportunities. No Hiring Our Heroes or NMSN—so I also volunteered—a lot. Volunteering got my name out in the community and increased my reputation as reliable and hard working. The first 20 years of my husband's career were focused on local work or volunteer opportunities—it wasn't until we were stationed in the National Capital Region that I started to work for national organizations.

If you and/or your spouse have transitioned from active duty to your current status, what resource or tool did you find to be the most helpful?

Staying current through military service organization studies and with currently serving spouses

Final word: what are your top tips for other military spouses about navigating a career within the military lifestyle?

Network and build a reputation of collaboration and trustworthiness. Take risks, work hard, and understand your role—what do you bring to the table and bring it.

For retirees/transitioning—understand that it is hard. You might not land well at first and that's ok. Have a firm idea of where to want to start, be willing to adapt or change to the situation, try staying positive, don't undersell yourself.

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