Veterans: More U.S. businesses want you

Employers are recognizing a talented and untapped pool of labor that is easy to train and can adapt to challenges.

By VICKI LEE PARKER

RALEIGH NEWS & OBSERVER

Kenneth Williams attended a job fair for ex-military workers in August. The Navy vet was braced for a long job search.

After all, the bulk of his work experience included six years in the service: He had helped run nuclear-powered ships, a job that was not in high demand in this market.

But within days, Williams had gotten calls from three companies, including industrial manufacturer Eaton and auto parts maker AW North Carolina. In less than a month, he was developing engineering strategies at Cormetech of Durham, N.C., which makes pollution-control devices.

For Williams and thousands of other veterans slated to leave active duty over the next few years, the job market could be a scary place, particularly for those with job experience that don’t easily transfer to the civilian market.

But more employers are shaking off stereotypes about hiring veterans and recognizing a talented and untapped pool of labor that is easy to train and can adapt to challenges.

The low unemployment rate and efforts by government agencies and private placement firms are helping to make ex-military workers more attractive. Some veterans complain that many available jobs are entry-level; employers say there are opportunities for quick promotion.

Centex Homes has hired several veterans to manage its home-building projects, said Mick Michael, vice president of operations in Raleigh, N.C.. He likes veterans’ ability to multitask, which makes them ideal project managers.

“The military teaches you a lot of skills you can use in the civilian world,” Michael said. “They have to monitor the performance schedule, work with the buyer and the customer and handle budgetary needs.”

That’s why he hired Michael Wall, an 11-year Navy veteran, as a field manager.

After attending a veterans’ job fair in Raleigh two years ago, Wall got interviews with more than a dozen companies: Most offered him a job within weeks.

“I found that people were interested in my capacity to learn,” said Wall, 30. He took a job with Centex, even though he didn’t know anything about the home construction business.

“I put my learning hat on for the first two or three months until I figured out what was going on,” said Wall, who has since been promoted to lead field manager.

RecruitMilitary, an Ohio company that organizes job fairs for veterans, is getting more requests from companies seeking help in finding highly skilled workers, said Mike Francomb, senior vice president and partner.

This year, Francomb’s company hosted 45 military job fairs in 23 cities. He has already scheduled 104 fairs in 44 cities for next year.

But there is lingering skepticism among some employers about working with ex-military members.

Robert Lang retired from the Marines in June after serving for 21 years. He got a great reception when he applied for government jobs, but some companies were a little less welcoming.

“A lot of civilian agencies I interviewed with asked questions about my background,” Lang said. “They would say, ’This is a more relaxed organization,’ “ or ’We don’t do it that way in the civilian world.’

“It kind of hurt,” said Lang, who last month moved to start a job at the Social Security Administration in Washington, D.C. “They don’t know that we actually work with civilian companies a lot.”

Francomb said that some employers still cling to stereotypes.

Veterans’ “inability to adapt to change is one we have to debunk quite often,” Francomb said. “The military does have rules and processes that are set up to bring about success, but that’s exactly what a business does -- particularly industries using lean processes to improve their operations.”

Another myth is that ex-military people think they can bark orders and things are going to happen, Francomb said.

“That’s not really how the military is today,” he said. “You have to sell people on your idea and get them to believe in what you are doing.”

Occasionally, Francomb still hears from companies that are concerned that ex-military people will be explosive or hot tempered.

Some bosses worry that ex-service members will have difficulty managing underlings in the corporate world.

“Sometimes we have to explain away that stereotype of General Patton,” said Patrick McDougald of the Lucas Group, a veteran recruiting firm based in Atlanta. “Basically any (military) leader will tell you they can’t be effective if they don’t listen to others and win buy-in to their plan.”

Many companies get over such misgivings. “A company will hire one or two and quickly see the value of a military veteran and continue to hire them,” McDougald said.