Posted on Nov 8, 2017
What are the most common road blocks Veterans face when transitioning to civilian employment?
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Posted 8 y ago
Responses: 12
Susan Foster
Adjusting to the culture of civilian life, or that civilians who are hiring don't understand what you did?
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The biggest problem most suffer from is a lack of marketable skills or at least an inability to explain the merits of your skills. Civilian employers don't give a damn about your tactical proficiency. They don't care about most of your certifications. This is partly because they don't know what they are. Instead of saying squadleader, I gave an approximate number of subordinates I managed. I indicated that I also managed 2 subordinate managers. I gave a very summarized overview of my responsibilities and added a dollar amount for the equipment I was trusted with. At the very least it shows a quantifiable level of your service in terms that a civilian employer can understand.
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A lot of people will say that it is the employers don't understand the Vets or they will say it is a different culture that doesn't fit what a Veteran is used to and these are true. I also think it is the responsibility of the Vet and the Military to prepare for that change rather than the responsibility of the employer. When entering the military the first thing you do is boot camp so that you can adjust and adhere to the lifestyle of the military... when leaving you must do the same thing. When transitioning back into the civilian world you must learn to adjust and adhere to the lifestyle of a civilian. It is the responsibility of the Veteran first to adjust to the market. After all it is our career and life changing not the employers. That's why programs that have leadership sessions, team building sessions, work place training, resume training, job board training, social media (LinkedIn) training, interview training etc. in their programs are essential. This is the training that is the most valuable. This is the training that will make or break the job search.
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Suspended Profile
Where do I begin!?
1. Transferable skills (or knowing how to demonstrate in interview).
2. documented credentials (no, no one wamts to see your SMART transcript)
3. dealing with levels of discipline that are disparate to say the least.
....Im sure I can think of plenty more later
1. Transferable skills (or knowing how to demonstrate in interview).
2. documented credentials (no, no one wamts to see your SMART transcript)
3. dealing with levels of discipline that are disparate to say the least.
....Im sure I can think of plenty more later
Sgt Darrin Momsen
Biggest hurdle would be a resume that is well written. Finding jobs that actually pay you what you are worth. Your supervisor experience doesn't count because it is military. Oh and then like my current job, they either mess up my pay or lie to me constantly. I was promised a supervisor position last month. My manager goes on vacation and someone's nephew got my promotion. The number one problem is that the civilian sector truly is a who you know world. Very few jobs are based on merit. I have yet to find one of those.
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Sgt Darrin Momsen - I agree. Regarding resume - that is something I collected articles, hit people up for feedback, and practiced with rewording/trimming/explaining differently....it is tedious, but just lile anything ya gotta practice. If you need an extra set of eyes I could look at it
Suspended Profile
Roadblocks internally or from civilians?
These are completely separate ideas and can be segregated as such. I'm assuming you mean in general and internally?
From my personal experience the biggest challenges was and still is learning to slow down. Civilians have no urgency or concept of, "time now." I've painfully learned to create specific and deliberate time hacks for peers and subordinate leaders. Asking someone for a status and waiting for a response is common unless you specifically and clearly say RIGHT NOW.
Second was terminology. Nobody cares what rank or positions you had in the military. You were either a 9,999,999 million star general (which doesn't mean anything to anyone) or a soldier. Either way it means nothing so figure out what the EQUIVALENT is and consider what you are applying for. Were you a Platoon Sergeant? Then perhaps team leader of supervisor. Have some college then you were a supervisor or manager... Just do not lie. You are translating military jargon into daily language. You were not stations at Fort Lewis you worked in Tacoma, WA... (Sorry, Army terms not AF but you get the point).
Roadblocks from civilians is firstly the lack of understanding on what exactly we do and what are true skill sets are. It's wasteful trying to educate your co-workers or HR department because their priorities have nothing to do with larger and bigger pictures. Learn the little bubbles they operate in and you'll be fine. Just do not take any of this to mean that civilians are not good, honest, or hard-working people. Quite the contrary, just confused and lost ;)
These are completely separate ideas and can be segregated as such. I'm assuming you mean in general and internally?
From my personal experience the biggest challenges was and still is learning to slow down. Civilians have no urgency or concept of, "time now." I've painfully learned to create specific and deliberate time hacks for peers and subordinate leaders. Asking someone for a status and waiting for a response is common unless you specifically and clearly say RIGHT NOW.
Second was terminology. Nobody cares what rank or positions you had in the military. You were either a 9,999,999 million star general (which doesn't mean anything to anyone) or a soldier. Either way it means nothing so figure out what the EQUIVALENT is and consider what you are applying for. Were you a Platoon Sergeant? Then perhaps team leader of supervisor. Have some college then you were a supervisor or manager... Just do not lie. You are translating military jargon into daily language. You were not stations at Fort Lewis you worked in Tacoma, WA... (Sorry, Army terms not AF but you get the point).
Roadblocks from civilians is firstly the lack of understanding on what exactly we do and what are true skill sets are. It's wasteful trying to educate your co-workers or HR department because their priorities have nothing to do with larger and bigger pictures. Learn the little bubbles they operate in and you'll be fine. Just do not take any of this to mean that civilians are not good, honest, or hard-working people. Quite the contrary, just confused and lost ;)
A common road block is simple Supply and Demand. If you depart the military for whatever reason and there is no demand for your skill set then you have a couple of options: Learn a new trade or move to where there is a demand for your skill set. // Military members will have to conduct their own Mission Analysis on themselves, their environment and make some decisions from there.
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civilians who dont understand us our concerns they should realize it's new start for all of us !!!
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