Tips - Successful Military Transition

Here are several tips and ideas for a successful military transition:

Network, Network, Network

Applying for jobs online may seem like an efficiency way to get jobs, but the reality is it doesn’t work well. For any given job opening, recruiters are bombarded with hundreds, possibly thousands of openings. To rise above the noise, you’ll have to network.

Start with veterans who are now in the corporate world. Don’t rush to ask for a job. If there’s no job available, the remaining time becomes one big letdown. Instead, take time to know the person. Ask how they approached the transition from a military to civilian career. Only at the end of the conversation is it ok for you to ask whether or not they are aware of any job openings.

Look For Military-Friendly Employers

Several employers appreciate the qualities ex-military personnel bring to a civilian job. Furthermore, you’re likely to find co-workers who formerly served in the military. They can mentor you as you ease into a new working environment. - CONNECT WITH RECRUITERS AND HEADHUNTERS WHO FOCUS ON MILITARY TO CIVILIAN TRANSITIONS.

Play up Your Strengths As An Ex-Militray Candidate

Military veterans are known for precise communication, individual accountability, impeccable execution and natural leadership. Don’t forget to showcase this during the interview. All four skills are in high demand, regardless of position. Give yourself credit for strengths that many non-military job candidates lack. Other key skills to play up: poise, ingenuity, and ability to handle stressful situations well.

Translate Your Skills

The military’s highly specific job codes and titles (often filled with acronyms) don’t help hiring managers in the civilian sector understand what you can do for them. So, at a minimum, it’s important to translate your resume out of military jargon and into language that shows your transferrable skills.

Working in the R-14 shop of a deployed battalion doesn’t help your interviewer understand what you can do. Turn this into something that can be easily understood and applied to the civilian world, for example: “Created a unified plan of action, ensured coordination between cross-functional teams, and provided feedback to improve the process.”

Termonolgy - Adjust From Military To Corporate Lingo

A key to getting the job is fitting in -- not only do you have to demonstrate the right skills, but you also need to adopt the right body language and speech. Here are a few examples:

1. Be wary of military jargon. Rather than say you were the “red raven” expert, explain that you developed contingency plans for rare events.

2. Rather than use military time, use civilian time. That is, instead of confirming an interview for 15-hundred hours, use 3 pm.

3. No need to address your professional contacts as Sir or Ma’am. You can typically address them by their first name.

Transitioning Veterans & Law Enforcement – A Natural Fit

Police officers and military veterans are kindred spirits. Both wear their uniforms with pride. Both don their uniforms to be part of a larger team of professionals protecting those who can’t protect themselves at great personal risk. And both operate within a rigid command structure.

So it’s natural that many military veterans seek employment in police ranks when they rejoin the civilian workforce. That’s what is happening right now in numbers unseen since the closing days of the Vietnam War. The result is a job market flooded with well-qualified police officer candidates who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Going Back to School After Transitioning

Many military veterans, after service, opt to go to college or university to complete or advance their education. This can prove an excellent decision in cases where advanced education makes you more competitive in the civilian job market.

Some schools are better for military veterans than others. With that said, seek out a few schools that have a reputation for being extra helpful to active duty soldiers and veterans. Military friendly schools will make it no secret that they offer additional benefits, flexibility, and special programs for current military personnel or recent veterans. Another benefit is that you’ll have quite a bit in common with lots of other students.

High-performing companies in many industries recognize the value of veteran employees

You were once in the military; your performance and capabilities were tested. Now you should bank on those to get the job you want. You can market yourself on those effectively and focus on how your military skills and abilities can contribute with any company.

Veterans bring distinctive capabilities to civilian employers…

Teamwork & Leadership

Accountability:

Superior personal and team accountability. Veterans understand how policies and procedures help an organization function

Adaptability:

Experience operating in ambiguous situations, exhibiting flexibility in fluid environments.

Team players:

Ability to understand the capabilities and motivations of each individual, regardless of background, to maximize team effectiveness

Experienced leadership:

Battle-tested leadership, from the front and by example. Ability to inspire devoted followership and lead groups to accomplish unusually high aspirations

Discipline

Self-reliance:

Demonstrated initiative, ownership, and personal responsibility while leveraging all available assets and team members to ensure success

Perseverance:

Proven resilience getting things done despite difficult conditions, tight deadlines, and limited resources

Strong work ethic:

belief in the value of hard work and taking initiativeB

Values-driven:

Proven experience dedicating themselves to a cause. Veterans take pride in the mission, values and success of the organization

Solving Problems

Objective-focused:

Ability to organize and structure resources to accomplish the mission, regardless of roadblocks

Quick learners:

Proven ability to learn new skills quickly and efficiently

High impact decision-makers: strong situational awareness, ability to understand complex interdependencies and make decisions using practical judgment and creativity

Diverse perspectives: experience having impact and influencing people across the boundaries of culture, language, ethnicity and personal motivation

Today’s veterans are civic assets. They’re starting businesses, protecting our communities, running for office, and taking on leadership roles in their communities. And like the great generations who’ve gone before them, they’re poised to lift our country to new heights.