As U.S. military veterans make the transition from serving in the armed forces to securing new employment in the civilian workforce, employers need to pay attention to how skills learned in the military can best translate into civilian jobs including those in the IT and cybersecurity fields, a senior Labor Department official said this week.
James Rodriguez, assistant secretary for Veteran’s Employment and Training Service at the Labor Department, discussed those requirements during a panel discussion at the Workday Federal Forum event in Washington on May 22.
“We don’t know how to take those skills, translate them, and put them to use in the corporate space and vice versa,” Rodriquez said. “Corporations have to have a better understanding of how we utilize those skill sets.”
As an example, Rodriguez talked about a military veteran he had previously hired who eventually succeeded in his own career by connecting existing skill sets to the needs of a modern workforce.
“They had no college degree, and he got out of the military due to service-connected injuries. When I was in a defense aerospace company, I hired him because I knew what he could bring to the workplace,” said Rodriguez.
“We hired him on our electronic systems business … He came there, he flourished because we knew what he could contribute,” he said. “Five years later … he is a patent holder on three specific patents.”
Rodriguez also emphasized the need for corporations to put a premium on managers who understand veterans and what they are looking for in a new work environment.
“Getting managers to understand that transition process is also important,” said Rodriguez.
“They’re looking for that individual who can help mentor them in the process and teach them to utilize professional development to help them be more successful in their next role because that’s what they’re accustomed to,” the Labor Department official said. “That’s where that individualized human approach comes in handy.”
