Posted on Nov 2, 2016
Report: Civilian hiring managers love veterans, but don't always understand them
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Hiring managers see veterans as valuable recruits for civilian companies but still struggle with how to handle their concerns and professional development, according to a new survey released by the Hiring Our Heroes initiative on Wednesday.
The study, which included interviews with 400 hiring professionals and 1,000 veterans, found that business leaders have helped make their corporate culture more welcoming to transitioning troops in recent years. They’re actively looking to hire veterans, and see them as ideal employees.
Managers interviewed listed military experience as a top three recruiting priority for their firms, with 77 percent calling their skills an important addition to the work force. Eighty percent ranked finding employees with higher education degrees that same level of importance.
Hiring Our Heroes graphic
A new survey from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Hiring Our Heroes program found abundant respect for veterans experience and skills among hiring managers.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Hiring Our Heroes
The survey found human resource managers overwhelmingly see veterans as more disciplined (86 percent), collaborative (67 percent) and hard working (61 percent) than their civilian peers.
"They also express few concerns about hiring veterans," the report states.
But more than half of the hiring managers surveyed said they had little to no understanding of military rank and structure, making it difficult to match veterans' experience with appropriate jobs.
"There is still a civilian/military divide," said Eric Eversole, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Hiring Our Heroes program. "There is still a cultural divide ... and veterans still don't know what they don't know about civilian jobs."
Fewer than one in four managers think their workplaces have negative biases against veterans. But nearly half of the veterans surveyed for the report said they have faced negative attitudes and treatment in civilian jobs.
Of the 44 percent of veterans who left a job within a year of being hired, 16 percent said they had difficulty relating to colleagues, and 14 percent said they had trouble relating to their company’s operations and culture.
Post-9/11 veteran unemployment down again in September
“To retain these veterans, employers must do more to help their non-veteran employees — especially human resources professionals and hiring managers — understand military service and structure,” the report notes.
The study also found that female veterans tend to struggle more with finding a post-military job than men.
Roughly 56 percent of male veterans said they found employment within four months of separation. Only 45 percent of female veterans said they did.
Program officials said they hope the findings can redirect veterans employment efforts to more focused results, given the success of broader initiatives in recent years. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated roughly 7 percent of veterans were unemployed in 2014, but recent months’ estimates have fallen below 5 percent.
The study, which included interviews with 400 hiring professionals and 1,000 veterans, found that business leaders have helped make their corporate culture more welcoming to transitioning troops in recent years. They’re actively looking to hire veterans, and see them as ideal employees.
Managers interviewed listed military experience as a top three recruiting priority for their firms, with 77 percent calling their skills an important addition to the work force. Eighty percent ranked finding employees with higher education degrees that same level of importance.
Hiring Our Heroes graphic
A new survey from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Hiring Our Heroes program found abundant respect for veterans experience and skills among hiring managers.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Hiring Our Heroes
The survey found human resource managers overwhelmingly see veterans as more disciplined (86 percent), collaborative (67 percent) and hard working (61 percent) than their civilian peers.
"They also express few concerns about hiring veterans," the report states.
But more than half of the hiring managers surveyed said they had little to no understanding of military rank and structure, making it difficult to match veterans' experience with appropriate jobs.
"There is still a civilian/military divide," said Eric Eversole, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Hiring Our Heroes program. "There is still a cultural divide ... and veterans still don't know what they don't know about civilian jobs."
Fewer than one in four managers think their workplaces have negative biases against veterans. But nearly half of the veterans surveyed for the report said they have faced negative attitudes and treatment in civilian jobs.
Of the 44 percent of veterans who left a job within a year of being hired, 16 percent said they had difficulty relating to colleagues, and 14 percent said they had trouble relating to their company’s operations and culture.
Post-9/11 veteran unemployment down again in September
“To retain these veterans, employers must do more to help their non-veteran employees — especially human resources professionals and hiring managers — understand military service and structure,” the report notes.
The study also found that female veterans tend to struggle more with finding a post-military job than men.
Roughly 56 percent of male veterans said they found employment within four months of separation. Only 45 percent of female veterans said they did.
Program officials said they hope the findings can redirect veterans employment efforts to more focused results, given the success of broader initiatives in recent years. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated roughly 7 percent of veterans were unemployed in 2014, but recent months’ estimates have fallen below 5 percent.
Report: Civilian hiring managers love veterans, but don't always understand them
Posted from militarytimes.comPosted in these groups: Hiring Manager
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Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 4
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Hopefully we can get enough of "Our Kind" in there. that Understand Our Language and Background. Always good to Understand though that even in the Military we don't speak the same language. Had this discussion with an Army Vet recently and were discussing the differences between Army and Navy Culture.
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I feel the more vets companies hire the better it will help them understand vets I think the way it could help companies understand vets is to is to have people from HR and CEOs to attend a symposium conference on how vets think and why they are so focused on tasks at work once thees company see this it will be a win win for all
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I had to chuckle at the headline because the same could be said about virtually any hiring manager including hiring managers who are military veterans themselves SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL
Hiring managers for firms tend to be good at identifying potential talent and not necessarily familiar with the work being accomplished.
People who have spent much time in the military tend to be comfortable in unfamiliar circumstances because that happens so frequently in the military :-)
Hiring managers for firms tend to be good at identifying potential talent and not necessarily familiar with the work being accomplished.
People who have spent much time in the military tend to be comfortable in unfamiliar circumstances because that happens so frequently in the military :-)
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