My Husband Is a Vet, I Work in Corporate Hiring – Here’s the Advice I Gave Him When He Transitioned

It’s been seven years since my husband transitioned out of the Marine Corps. He spent nine years serving in the military, where he held several different roles and titles, lived in two states, and served in four overseas deployments. Along the way, he gained many useful skills and had many achievements, ones that are valuable to employers.

After nine years, he was ready to make the transition to the civilian world. This meant big preparations as he started looking for a new career path. Since I have spent the last ten years in talent acquisition at various corporate organizations, I was able to share my professional advice and insights as he embarked on this change.

Exiting the military is hard enough. Add to that looking for a civilian job while having to explain to the civilian world what you did, the skills you have, and why you are worthy of this job can make this transition even harder.

It has been great to be able to offer my husband tips and tricks during his transition -- and even now, years later. But not everyone has a direct line to a hiring manager during their job search. That’s why I wanted to share some of the tips I have been able to give my husband to help minimize the challenge of transitioning into the corporate world:

Learn how to translate your military experience and skills. Most people in the civilian world struggle to understand what someone in the armed forces does so it is important to know how to properly translate your role, skills and rank to them. The job description you are applying for can be a very helpful tool. Make connections to what is listed in the job description between what you did in the military. Take each job duty listed line by line and align your military experience with it when speaking with a hiring manager. Make sure your rank includes more than title and explain leadership responsibilities associated with your job duties.

Build your resume to fit the job description. Resumes should be geared towards jobs or industries you are applying to. Don’t be intimidated by job postings or job posting titles. If you’re unsure if you qualify, it’s ok to apply or even find people at that company you can make connections with on LinkedIn or here on RallyPoint.

Advocate for yourself. Serving in the military comes with invaluable skills and tools that are relatable to so many jobs. Be proud and confident of the things you gained and sell yourself. For example, my husband’s main job in the Marines was Supply/Admin. The specific duties of this role may be hard for a hiring manager to understand. I worked with my husband to help him translate what he did and what it means for a corporate role. His position included skills such as being very analytical and detail-oriented, handling sensitive information, maintaining budgets, possessing a strong understanding of procurement and inventory, working in a leadership role and even some accounting. Those are valuable skills to be proud of and only a portion of what he could offer to the civilian world.

Remember interviews are two-sided. What a lot of people don’t realize, and not just Veterans, is that it’s ok to interview a company as much as they are interviewing you. Not every position, company, or company culture is going to be a great fit for you and that’s ok. The best way to find out whether they are a fit is during the interview process and that comes from asking questions. Good questions to ask are: “What are the long-term opportunities for this position?” and “What is the company culture like?”

Evaluate the company culture. As you prepare to start a new job, prepare for a culture shift. Civilian jobs have very a different culture than the military. Find out if there is an opportunity to job shadow during the interview process or if you can speak to potential peers to feel out the culture ahead of time. Ask about the onboarding process, training, and what is provided to help set new hires up for success during this culture shift.

Review the benefits package offered. In the military, benefits are a standard. That is not the case in the civilian world. Companies use benefits, time off, bonuses and total rewards packages to be competitive, and it’s important to understand those early during the process. Evaluate which part of the ‘extras’ are important to you and your family and understand how the company will support you.

Most importantly, know that there are companies out there that understand the value Veterans bring to their organization and culture.

If you would like to join the Delta Dental team, we would love to have you! Check out our career page: https://www1.deltadentalins.com/careers.html