Founded in 1636 as a citizen force organized to protect the U.S., the National Guard is dispersed in over 3,000 communities across the country. Typically, members of the National Guard live at home with their families and hold civilian jobs. Only about 15 percent of the Army National Guard is full time.
“Civilian employment is so important,” said Brigadier Gen. Marianne Watson, who serves as director of Manpower and Personnel, (J-1), at the National Guard Bureau in Arlington, Virginia. “National Guard members are a diverse talent pool, providing an added bonus of skills in regard to leadership, team building and reliability based on military training and experience.”
Watson, along with Corporate America Supports You (CASY) and Military Spouse Corporate Career Network COO Stacy Bayton, recently participated in a webinar titled “How to Achieve Greater Success in Hiring Veterans, National Guard Members and Reservists.” AFPM, in coordination with American Jobs for America’s Heroes (AJAH), hosted the webinar.
“National Guard members bring more than just combat skills,” said Watson. “Officers must have a baccalaureate before being promoted to captain, and most have a master’s degree when they reach the rank of major and/or lieutenant colonel. Members must maintain civilian and military careers simultaneously.”
The problem is most young adults in local communities don’t know what is available to them. To bring awareness to available opportunities, CASY co-founded AJAH, which provides job postings for employment counselors to match with candidates.
“It’s a way to ensure not only do our service members see these jobs but they understand them,” said Bayton. “There are 2,700 companies we work with directly in placements. In addition to that, we have 176 trade associations involved. For 2014, within this particular campaign, we had over 5,000 placements.”
Bayton believes companies should utilize organizations that will help translate military experience to civilian language.
“Don’t be afraid to reach out,” she said. “It’s important to work with local military and organizations that work inside the military and veteran communities. As you’re communicating with organizations and saying, ‘We’re looking for 17 fuel mechanics,’ we’re going back in and saying, ‘We have to find X number of you to send over.’ We can help source, screen, find those folks and push them back to your human resources department.”
Look to current employees for assistance
Companies should poll current employees to learn if there are National Guard members or veterans on staff who would like to help.
“You may have a great asset sitting within your company you never even knew about,” said Bayton. “Ask employees what you could have done better when bringing them in. Ask what things they wished they would have seen.”
Actively participating in local military and veteran events is also beneficial.
“Find out what is going on in your community from a military standpoint,” said Bayton. “Anytime you can talk about what your company has to offer, that is a benefit to you.
“Ultimately, the top thing we see companies struggle with is the job posting. Successful companies include they are looking for veterans in certain types of military jobs, and they list the jobs. I’ve also seen companies say they will accept a certain number of years of military experience in lieu of a bachelor’s degree.”
Automated tools, one-size-fits-all interviews
Relying too heavily on automated tools can present problems. “It’s almost like you’re putting people into a box,” said Bayton. “These tools are only focusing on the military occupational specialty. You’re missing out on the whole range of cross skills veterans may have.”
It is also important to make sure interviewers understand their audiences.
“Use performance-based interview questions to uncover the qualities and potential the veteran has,” said Bayton. “If your company gives preference points to veterans, let them know. If you have hiring initiatives, talk about them. Be proud of those things.”
For more information and to register to post jobs at no cost, visit www.CenterForAmerica.org or call (770) 317-2423.
