PODCAST: The Business Case for Hiring Veterans

Veteran recruiting is a top priority for many companies. However, attracting high quality veteran talent and translating their experience into a civilian career can be challenging for Recruiters and Hiring Managers. Alex Jigger, Senior Account Executive at Orion Talent, joined our Hire a Hero, Hire a Vet podcast to discuss the challenges of military hiring from the perspective of both the job seeker and the employer.

Beyond being “the right thing to do,” there’s a strong business case for hiring veterans based on the abilities, attributes, and characteristics they’ve gained by serving in the military. Alex discusses many key benefits of hiring veterans including:

Adaptability
Most military veterans have already been through tough and demanding situations and they are ready to respond to a variety of company needs and challenges. According to Alex, whether a company is hiring entry-level technical jobs or white collar positions, the general consensus is that veterans tend to be more mission-focused than their civilian counterparts. “Almost all of the companies that I work with say that veterans find a way to win and do whatever it takes to accomplish tasks, big or small. They don’t need to ask for a lot of guidance and they are more dependable,” he explains.

Calm Demeanor
Military Veterans tend to perform very well under pressure and they don't run away from a challenge. In fact, they tend to embrace it. “Because they have experience spending months in a desert, on a ship or flightline, their sense of ‘a rough day at the office’ is a whole lot different than their civilian counterparts,” says Alex.

Top Performers
As troubleshooters and problem-solvers, military hires have the potential to outperform industry-experienced hires. “Companies that are successful in hiring military veterans look at it as a long term solution. If you’re willing to hire a veteran without direct industry experience, you’ll likely find that they’ll out perform their counterparts in the long term. Once they’ve learned the basics of their job, the soft skills and experience they’ve gained from the military allow them to shine and positively impact your business,” says Alex.

Listen to the podcast for more of Alex’s insight on challenges veterans face when they transition out of the military, challenges employers face when developing a military hiring initiative, and how Orion plays “matchmaker” between job seekers and employers.

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