Where Do Veterans Belong in the Civilian Workforce?

So I spent a considerable amount of my adult life in the military. Then I operated a couple of small businesses in a major US market. Where do I go now? Do I seek out the "C" level suite or the entry-level employee? Those are pretty drastic differences in positions in American business. As a veteran and entrepreneur, I find it difficult to identify where I would fit in the corporate world. I obviously have extensive leadership experience, both in the military and in the business world. I also have extensive experience operating a company, but no corporate experience. Where does that place me in the rung of civilian employment? Well, to be honest, I haven't a clue.

I have read, courtesy of the fantastic LinkedIn network, that there are over 45,000 veteran organizations. Many of them focus on getting veterans civilian employment. Some focus on the recently separated or retired veteran, while others focus on any veteran. There are so many to choose from when searching. What kind of jobs are they finding for these veterans? My exploration has shown me that the vast majority of these organizations are connecting veterans to entry-level positions. A small number of veteran organizations are finding mid-level management positions, and I would dare to say, there are few if any that offer veterans an opportunity to get into a senior level management position. So why is that the status quo? Where do we determine an average veteran's place in the civilian workforce? 

I have a few ideas about where or how we could look at the placement issue. I have a general belief that three different types of veterans that enter the civilian workforce. There are the first level veterans; these folks spent somewhere under ten years in the military. They had some leadership roles, but most likely something similar to a supervisory position in a civilian job. There are the second level veterans. These are folks that have 10 to 20 years of military time, and they most likely had a much more influential managerial position, equivalent to store manager or district manager civilian position. Then the final group, the third level veterans. These folks have a bit more experience. They may have anywhere from 18-30 plus years of military time. I feel that these folks had a significant level of leadership experience. They were leading small highly skilled specialized personnel, such as special operations or intelligence personnel, or they were leading large numbers of staff, such as battalion level commanders or greater. While my descriptions are not all-inclusive, the idea here is simple. Where do you place yourself or another veteran in the civilian workforce? What level should a veteran expect to find employment?