This year it seems like Veteran's Day is getting more well deserved publicity. Regardless of your political views and thoughts of what is going on in the world today, I think everyone is unanimous in the importance of supporting our military personnel and their families.

One small way we can help our veterans is assisting them as they matriculate back into civilian life. Assisting them in understanding the labor market, career opportunities and how to find a job opportunity seems to be the least we can do.

Lets face it. While there are some organizations that do a fantastic job employing former military personnel, most organizations struggle with it.

Why?

The simple answer is the age old problem recruiters/hiring managers have always struggled with.

How do you make an assessment decision based on an individual's skills/experience and how do the individual's skills/experience align with those required for a particular position?

Since 95% of military personnel are NOT doing the exact same jobs we are hiring for, they routinely get passed over in favor of someone that is currently doing the exact job and has the skills we're looking for on their resume. Rather than focus on what they currently do (or did when they were in the military), shouldn't we be assessing their personal characteristics/competencies and how they align with positions we are hiring for? Even though their skill set might look different on paper, their skills are very transferable and employers have the added bonus of hiring someone with the discipline to get the job done!

Ok - I know what some of you are thinking right now - "I am all for it, but I can't get my managers to think this way . . . "

Well as recruitment business partners, shouldn't we be challenging the status quo and educating our managers on competency-based assessment?

So my challenge for you today is simple.

As we honor our veterans, I challenge you to spend some time this week to:

• Review all your current open requisitions, identify positions that might be an entry point into your organization for military veterans, and discuss these positions with your hiring managers.
• Review all candidates that have recently applied to current open positions that were/are in the military (do some key word searches). Look at what might be the best opportunities for them within your organization.
• Have an open house for military veterans. Give them an opportunity to meet with hiring managers. Offer workshops on interviewing, writing resumes, and discussing how their military work experiences transfer into civilian positions. We have been doing this for diversity candidates for years!

It is difficult today for anyone to find a job, let alone someone that has been working 5000 miles away in a foriegn country doing something that for most of us - - is unimaginable! We truly have the opportunity each and every day to "change people's lives".

I challenge you today to do just that!