This November 11^th we will officially observe Veteran’s Day, a time set aside to honor and thank the men and women who have served in our military. Observing Veteran’s Day and thanking them for their service is the least that we can do for these individuals who sacrifice so much for our freedom and protection. There is more especially, that we as business owners, hiring managers and HR professionals can do to return the favor – hire them.

About a year ago, I had the honor of volunteering my time at a local Veteran’s job fair. I sat in at a booth for 4 hours, and in reality we were so busy that it probably should have been for an entire day. As I talked to people and reviewed resumes, it became clear that there is a disconnect between assignments and duties in the military and their translation to the civilian world. The disconnect is not necessarily in the knowledge, skills and abilities – they definitely have highly sought-after talent, but the way it’s presented on the resume can be difficult for recruiters to decipher. Recruiters spend a matter of seconds reviewing a resume, so skills and qualifications have to jump out from the page.

While at that job fair, I talked to enough people to realize that some Veteran’s really weren’t set on what they wanted to do, they wanted to work but they themselves were having a hard time relating military skills to civilian skills. This is where the fun began for me. I had to play detective in order to get a clear picture of how their skills would transfer, so I started asking questions – lots of questions. My strategy, due to truly not having any real clue as to what some of the resumes were telling me, was to ask whatever question popped into my head about what they did in their day to day duties. If I didn’t understand the answer, I’d ask more detailed questions until I had broken things down to where I could see a skill that would transfer. What became apparent was there were lots of roles where organization, project management, maintaining confidentiality, decision making, communication and many more sought-after skills were found throughout their resumes, but they were just not that evident to the civilian eye.

Through the process of asking questions to get down to the heart of their transferrable skills, we naturally segued into career and job ideas that would be a match for them. It was really fun to help them come up with some ideas they hadn’t thought of, and literally watch their energy change! It felt really good to think I’d been of some help to them, and it made me realize that there is a gap to fill between military and civilian life with regard to employment.

Spending the morning at this job fair made me realize too that Veterans are undoubtedly a greatly untapped source of talent. In some cases, it really took some effort to figure out how those skills were translatable simply due to my own lack of military experience and understanding. I shudder to think of how many resumes are passed over due to that same thing. Veterans want to work and they deserve to be able to continue to support themselves and their families. 

In order to make this happen with more ease, some work needs to be done on both sides of the equation. For starters, more employers and hiring managers must be open-minded about hiring Veterans. No one will say they avoid hiring them, but I’ve witnessed some closed mindedness on this topic and it is typically due to stereotypical thinking that is just not a truth. What is true is that Veterans can be some of the best hires because they typically bring with them a strong work ethic, the ability to think critically, the ability to lead, dedication, they follow directions, are organized and so much more. Why wouldn’t you want someone with all those skills on your team?

Employers that are interested in tapping this pool of talent need to be willing to familiarize themselves with some of the military roles. It might be beneficial to consider consulting a military “interpreter” of sorts for some insight. You could talk with a local military recruiting office for assistance or you may even have a Veteran within your company now that could assist with this – that could spend some time with your recruiter and hiring managers to educate them on the skills within those military positions that directly relate to the roles within your organization. Having a baseline understanding will definitely facilitate a higher number of interviews and hires for Veterans. When this works for you, you begin to forge a relationship and develop a good reputation in the Veteran community – this can continue to be a great resource for your talent pool and potentially customer base as well.

For Veterans, there need to be some steps taken to prepare to enter the workforce. I can’t speak to whether or not there is any assistance provided by the military for this, but if not, it’s really important to take some time to plan for civilian employment. Take the time to research jobs that you’re interested in, see what the requirements are and then see how well your skills match. If you really don’t have anything in mind, you should definitely work with someone, like a career coach that can help you put those pieces together. It’s much easier to find a job when you have a target. You’ll also need a resume that translates to civilian jobs so you may want to enlist a career coach or resume writer to assist you. Depending on what line of work you pursue, you may need to establish or update your LinkedIn profile. You’ll need an appropriate email address to use too, so if you use one for your personal life that is funny, clever, or could be misinterpreted in any way, open up a separate Gmail account with a professional looking handle just for your job search.

Another point I need to make for Veterans is you need to be self-aware. I’ll explain. I interviewed a gentleman once that was fresh out of the service. He had spent the last 15 or so years recruiting and so he wanted to continue in recruiting and/or HR. He was dressed professionally and was very respectful – all ma’ams and sirs. During the interview, he seemed very assertive and on several occasions explained how he would “turn things around” and “whip things into shape” and “change attitudes”. It wasn’t really in context either. These were offerings he gave, I guess because he thought that’s what we would want to hear. The worst part was when I walked him to the door. As we walked down the hall, he hung his head and was shaking it back and forth and I heard him say “I blew it, I know I blew it.” I felt so bad for him – he was right, he had blown it, at least as far as our organization was concerned. The culture was not that direct, in a word, and it would have driven him crazy to be there where there was so much “gray area” as opposed to the “black and white” kind of guy he portrayed. He seemed to be a take-charge type, a little too much. 

Those qualities that caused him to excel in his military career did not translate to the corporate world. The politics are so very different and it’s critical to mentally prepare for that as Veteran’s move forward. Research the culture of the businesses that you apply to. Practice interview with someone – hire a career coach or tap a friend that works in HR or is a manager who hires for their team. Their constructive criticism and tips will be invaluable to you.

In conclusion, Veterans are so deserving of a great career when returning to civilian life. Employers need to seriously consider their resumes and take the time to explore their skills and talents. Veterans need to prepare themselves for their new future and take steps to make that transition as smooth as possible by taking advantage of job fairs, coaches and other resources whenever possible. To all Veterans – thank you for your service and sacrifice.

J