Would you hire someone from special forces (like GROM)?

Let’s face it! Most companies do not seek military veterans when recruiting personnel to meet their recruiting objectives. That is a fact.

Because of the intense training and high levels of responsibility that veterans are accustomed to, they tend to be reliable, efficient, and focused workers with a strong work ethic. They have been tested under very rigorous conditions, either during wartime duty or peacetime protection roles. ?

But when you look a bit deeper, and think about it for a second, they’re often exactly what you’re looking to hire. The characteristic of a former spec ops professionals are: significant leadership and life experience, dedication to the organization and country, a proven track record of overcoming challenges, and the ability to make sound decisions in a fast-paced, often stressful environment.

Veterans are loyal, resilient, possess a strong work ethic and are masters of teamwork. Some companies know that veterans bring advanced experience in meeting mission objectives and will adapt those skills into their jobs.

So why hire them?

-Companies realize what when you hire a veteran, you get someone who is more mature, someone who has had to be uncomfortable at different points during their service

-When you hire a veteran, you get someone who is not a quitter

-Whatever the challenges are, they stay in the game. Veterans are reliable and mature. They have had to operate sophisticated and sometimes dangerous equipment. They have led people in stressful circumstances.?

-Veterans are loyal: they bring a solid work ethics and loyalty to any job they take on. They aren’t likely to quit a job just because they encounter a tough situation.

-Veterans are team players: both athletes and veterans are in situations that you can’t win by yourself: you have to win as a team. Another commonality is that both endeavors involve very competitive, highly demanding, challenging work.

-Veterans are self-disciplined: they eventually develop strong discipline that allows them to push themselves well beyond previous achievements. They know what hard work is. Their dais often being around 5:00a.m. and end at 10:00p.m. or later. Military personnel are taught to solve problems quickly and efficiently in life-or-death situations, build their physical strength so they can make it through difficult exercises, always be prepared for combat, and work together as a team. This preparation makes them a wonderful talent pool for most companies-in particular, those companies that need exceptional employees and leaders.

-Veterans can manage situations that are much larger than just themselves. ?

-Veterans often had to face and manager life-or-death situations, they are incredibly reliable and trustworthy. Not only do veterans understand and respect the concept of trust, they expect to extend trust to the people they work with- and earn their trust in return. They would not have survived a week in their services if the weren’t trustworthy.

Here are ten (research based) compelling reasons to hire individuals with a military background, from a business-case perspective:

1.???Veterans are entrepreneurial

2.???Veterans assume high level of trust

3.???Veterans are adept at skills transfer across context/tasks.

4.???Veterans have and leverage advanced technical training

5.???Veterans are comfortable/adept in discontinuous environments

6.???Veterans exhibit high level of resilience

7.???Veterans exhibit advanced team-building skills.

8.???Veterans exhibit strong organizational commitment.

9.???Veterans have and leverage cross—cultural experience.

10.Veterans have experience/skill in diverse work settings.

So why some companies DON’T HIRE Veterans? ?

-??????Because of the lack of understanding by HR people about military life. Some assume that most of them suffer from PTSD. That is true for some of them, but not most of them.

-??????HR personnel does not understand Veterans’ resumes.

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Some VP HRs mention at least three reasons why veterans often have a difficult time making favorable impressions on employers:

1.???They struggle to talk about themselves and their successes. Veterans often say “we” instead of “I”.

2.???They speak in general terms instead of citing specific skills and goals. Military service trains for adaptability and resourcefulness.

3.???The military resume looks much different from what a civilian hiring manager is used to. Military terms, jargon, acronyms, certifications, and accomplishments often don’t translate well from a military role to a corporate life.

Few months ago, I called a friend, who is a CEO of a listed company on Warsaw Stock Exchange. He employs an ex-operator from special forces (GROM). I asked him why he hired him? He said: “A big chunk of our business comes from public tenders (military, coast guard, police, other). I know every few people out there, who is able to assess risks better than him. He is great at what he is doing. Not to mention his obvious skills when it comes to VIP protection during our frequent travels”.

There are quite a few companies that focus on hiring ex. Military personnel: Amazon, Boeing, General Motors, Home Depot, Lockheed Martin, Oracle, Starbucks to name a few.

Perhaps it’s time for CEOs and VP HRs to broaden their horizons and think about the value and benefit of hiring such amazingly trained and experienced professionals.

Questions:

-So would you hire (or not) to your organization some who had served in special forces? Someone from GROM, Formoza, Nil, Agat, JWK, BOA, SOP, others?

-Do you think they would add value to your management team?

Please share your opinion in the comments down below.