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RP Members what are your thoughts on this article?
It was published on LinkedIn by John J. Henderson, MPA, SPHR, VHA-CM
Human Resources Officer at Department of Veterans Affairs
Veteran applicants-A call to Wake-UP (Part 1)!
"Glad you stopped to read this. If you are a US Military Veteran, I want to use this post to clarify expectations for you when seeking employment with the US Government. While I cannot speak for all veterans, I have served and was honorably discharged after 4 years active duty Air Force and 3 years Army National Guard. While, I cannot speak for all government Human Resources professionals or Veterans--I am a qualified member of both groups."
It was published on LinkedIn by John J. Henderson, MPA, SPHR, VHA-CM
Human Resources Officer at Department of Veterans Affairs
Veteran applicants-A call to Wake-UP (Part 1)!
"Glad you stopped to read this. If you are a US Military Veteran, I want to use this post to clarify expectations for you when seeking employment with the US Government. While I cannot speak for all veterans, I have served and was honorably discharged after 4 years active duty Air Force and 3 years Army National Guard. While, I cannot speak for all government Human Resources professionals or Veterans--I am a qualified member of both groups."
Posted from linkedin.com
Jobs
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Employment
Transition
Posted 9 y ago
Responses: 7
Suspended Profile
Truth hurts sometimes......as retirees some folks to think they should be able to walk in and say "I retired after 20 years as a 2TX0X blah blah blah.....and yeah we need to get over it......the reality is unless it's a military company no one cares about your 20 years of previous "work experience" unless it fits into the position they are trying to fill and unless they also were a 2TX0X blah blah blah they will have no idea what you did or did not do...the bottom line is with only roughly 6% of people having been in the military or exposed to the military WE (the retiree) need to adapt to them (the civilians) not them to us. Unless of course you are one of the folks who are fortunate to have be able to covert your job from mil to civ and just changed uniforms and came to work. Anyway was a good article.
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I have discussed with transition specialists and this is one of the areas that they emphasize in their presentations. The author of this article is correct. The best way to get a job is to read and understand the job description which lists the duties and requirements of the job before filling out the application. If your experiences are a fit, ensure what you write in the application fits what they want and use key words from the job description to describe what you did. A one-size fits all resume is old school. Consider writing a different resume for each employer/job you want, which only includes those experiences that fit what the employer wants. Just my $.02.
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COL Mikel J. Burroughs
Can you cut and paste the text and send it to me? Shaw AFB doesn't let us see Linked In.
Can you cut and paste the text and send it to me? Shaw AFB doesn't let us see Linked In.
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COL Mikel J. Burroughs
MAJ (Join to see) Here you go!
Veteran applicants-A call to Wake-UP (Part 1)!
Dec 29, 2015155 views8 Likes7 CommentsShare on LinkedInShare on FacebookShare on Twitter
Glad you stopped to read this. If you are a US Military Veteran, I want to use this post to clarify expectations for you when seeking employment with the US Government. While I cannot speak for all veterans, I have served and was honorably discharged after 4 years active duty Air Force and 3 years Army National Guard. While, I cannot speak for all government Human Resources professionals or Veterans--I am a qualified member of both groups.
I am bothered by many veterans who expect me or other Federal HR Professionals to work HR miracles for them and "find" them a job or position. That is not our job. Our job is to find the most highly qualified person for the position we have to fill. This is done by reviewing your resume or application and supporting documents as required by the vacancy announcement. While many Federal agencies have a specific goal to meet to include the successful placement of veterans (The Department of Veterans Affairs goal is 40% veterans), we are not required to find a "warm body" to occupy our vacancies.
HR staffing specialists are not mind readers. They cannot ASSUME you are qualified for the job that you applied for, if your qualifications do not stand out on your submitted information. One of my best examples in a prior role as a staffing specialist (intern) many years ago--was this: I had a motor vehicle operator job to fill. One of my applicants back in the day filled out their SF-171 (the old Federal job application) and failed to indicate they were a licensed driver in the my state or any other state. I could not refer them for the position because they were not qualified as indicated on their application. Maybe it was inattention to detail or maybe they had their license revoked or suspended. I didn't know, could not speculate and could not make the referral because the information was not there. I was not authorized to call the individual after the announcement had closed to ask them if they were qualified---(or even before), I or any other HR specialist cannot favor one applicant over another and give them special treatment.
When you enlisted or went through a recruiter or MEPS, you took at least one test---the ASVAB. That test score determined in part what you were "qualified" for. The military contracted with you to send you to training for the occupational specialty. If you got a lower score or failed your training, they would either discharge you or send you to a direct duty assignment. In other words, all you had to have was an aptitude. You were ordered to attend school to obtain the necessary qualification for your MOS, Rate or AFSC
In the world of civilian employment, the majority of the time---you must already be qualified. Let that sink in. You must ALREADY BE QUALIFIED. How does a Human Resources Specialist know this--by your resume or application as required. If you assume that all you have to do is list a job with the dates you performed that job and a minuscule description of the duties--this is not sufficient in most cases. You cannot assume that the HR specialist will know what that is...
You must provide sufficient detail on each job you have performed on your resume to indicate you have the requisite skills to perform the job for which you are applying. If applying for a US Government Job Announcement, please, please use the USA Jobs Resume Builder to organize your employment history and other job information (http://www.usajobs.gov) It is an easy to follow guide and if you take the time to include all relevant information, dates, references, education and specialized skills and experience, you have the recipe for what an HR Specialist needs to determine your qualification for a specific job--also SPELL CHECK IT. A federal resume or application is not limited to one page like some in the private sector--actually "more is better" in terms of information and sufficient explanations of what you have done rather than less.
More in Part II.
Veteran applicants-A call to Wake-UP (Part 1)!
Dec 29, 2015155 views8 Likes7 CommentsShare on LinkedInShare on FacebookShare on Twitter
Glad you stopped to read this. If you are a US Military Veteran, I want to use this post to clarify expectations for you when seeking employment with the US Government. While I cannot speak for all veterans, I have served and was honorably discharged after 4 years active duty Air Force and 3 years Army National Guard. While, I cannot speak for all government Human Resources professionals or Veterans--I am a qualified member of both groups.
I am bothered by many veterans who expect me or other Federal HR Professionals to work HR miracles for them and "find" them a job or position. That is not our job. Our job is to find the most highly qualified person for the position we have to fill. This is done by reviewing your resume or application and supporting documents as required by the vacancy announcement. While many Federal agencies have a specific goal to meet to include the successful placement of veterans (The Department of Veterans Affairs goal is 40% veterans), we are not required to find a "warm body" to occupy our vacancies.
HR staffing specialists are not mind readers. They cannot ASSUME you are qualified for the job that you applied for, if your qualifications do not stand out on your submitted information. One of my best examples in a prior role as a staffing specialist (intern) many years ago--was this: I had a motor vehicle operator job to fill. One of my applicants back in the day filled out their SF-171 (the old Federal job application) and failed to indicate they were a licensed driver in the my state or any other state. I could not refer them for the position because they were not qualified as indicated on their application. Maybe it was inattention to detail or maybe they had their license revoked or suspended. I didn't know, could not speculate and could not make the referral because the information was not there. I was not authorized to call the individual after the announcement had closed to ask them if they were qualified---(or even before), I or any other HR specialist cannot favor one applicant over another and give them special treatment.
When you enlisted or went through a recruiter or MEPS, you took at least one test---the ASVAB. That test score determined in part what you were "qualified" for. The military contracted with you to send you to training for the occupational specialty. If you got a lower score or failed your training, they would either discharge you or send you to a direct duty assignment. In other words, all you had to have was an aptitude. You were ordered to attend school to obtain the necessary qualification for your MOS, Rate or AFSC
In the world of civilian employment, the majority of the time---you must already be qualified. Let that sink in. You must ALREADY BE QUALIFIED. How does a Human Resources Specialist know this--by your resume or application as required. If you assume that all you have to do is list a job with the dates you performed that job and a minuscule description of the duties--this is not sufficient in most cases. You cannot assume that the HR specialist will know what that is...
You must provide sufficient detail on each job you have performed on your resume to indicate you have the requisite skills to perform the job for which you are applying. If applying for a US Government Job Announcement, please, please use the USA Jobs Resume Builder to organize your employment history and other job information (http://www.usajobs.gov) It is an easy to follow guide and if you take the time to include all relevant information, dates, references, education and specialized skills and experience, you have the recipe for what an HR Specialist needs to determine your qualification for a specific job--also SPELL CHECK IT. A federal resume or application is not limited to one page like some in the private sector--actually "more is better" in terms of information and sufficient explanations of what you have done rather than less.
More in Part II.
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