The number of retired military entering the workforce continues to rise.  This presents challenges for both those coming out of the service as well as those doing the interviewing, and for many different reasons.  It seems to me that there is a lot of pressure on veterans to adapt to civilian life but is there any responsibility on HR or hiring managers to bridge the gap?  I don’t know if there is a responsibility per se, but former military have a lot to offer in the workforce and aren’t companies missing the boat if they don’t invest a little effort into learning how to interview ex-military?  I’m not trying to suggest that these folks should get special treatment; I do think it makes sense to keep some things in mind so that companies can reap the rewards of their experience and veterans can have a better chance at employment. 

Here are just a few of the challenges presented when former military personnel interview for new roles.

•  Identifying skills.  Because the interviewees may have little or no experience with civilian jobs it may be difficult for them to see how what they’ve done is relevant to the role they are pursuing.  Asking the right questions or phrasing questions the right way can go a long way in making this experience visible.

• Translating skills.  The interviewee may know that what he/she has done is a good match but lack the vocabulary to explain it.  This is something you can work through together through the course of the interview.

• Assumptions about experiences.  Interviewing someone from the military may make you want to assume certain things, such as the fact that this person has been in combat and may be affected by that.  Fight the urge to interview differently because of these assumptions.  It is generally believed that only about 10% of troops have seen combat.

• Not team players.  Due to the hierarchal structure of the military it is commonly thought that veterans don’t make good team players.  While the structure IS different than in business, there is a lot of teamwork in the military.  From the time they enter basic training, these interviewees do things in groups. 

• They lack technological savvy.  This is not necessarily true.  Think about it this way:  our military spends a lot more money on training and development than corporations do.  In addition, veterans may have global knowledge of technical trends that could be very useful in the corporate world.

Veterans transitioning to corporate America face a unique set of challenges, but so do those doing the hiring.  What have you found challenging when interviewing former military personnel?  What have you found helpful?  Being aware of just a few of these can make it easier to bridge this gap and in a future post I’ll discuss why this is so important.