Updated April 21, 2023
Introduction to Best Job Candidate
In this topic, we will learn about the best Job candidate. Several corporate recruiters, as well as hiring managers, are not sure about the ways that should be used for assessing a veteran job candidate. It is significant for all job candidates and not only the veterans first. It should also be determined whether the person is willing to work, is ready, and can do the assigned task in the required way. Besides this, it is also vital to determine whether the job candidate will fit well into the organization’s culture. The veterans, particularly the military veterans, are not an exception. However, a few tips and tactics can be helpful, which can assist in evaluating a veteran candidate for the position. We can describe the hiring version of the veterans in terms of three A’s: Achievement, Attitude, and Ambition.
Achievement of the Best Job Candidate
Out of the above three A’s, assessing the military or other achievements of the individual in the past is considered the most confusing for the people deciding to hire the veterans. Similar to other best job candidates, the past performance of the veterans will be a good indicator of results that the person can achieve in the future. The most challenging part for the recruiters, however, is to understand the nature of the achievements of the best job candidate regarding their past experience, like in the military. It is important to review five categories which are –
1. Rank Achievement
As the military is supposed to be not only a very large but also a bureaucratic organization most of the time, most of the aspects related to rank promotion happen to be a function of the guidelines about “time in grade”. In certain services, for instance, in the Navy, the eligible and enlisted persons can show their initiative by studying for the examinations and then qualifying for these examinations to get a promotion. For assessing a veteran job candidate, you need to begin with the best job candidate questions like “Tell me about your promotion history in the service. Is your promotion on track or ahead of your peers?” You need to listen for responses that might consist of phrases like “sat for the examination,” or “meritorious promotion,” and so on.
Promotions for commissioned officers tend to be more time-based. However, one may ask job candidate questions such as “What did your official evaluation reports say regarding your performance?” every service might have a different name for all the reports, but they all have them.
2. Awards
Every service, especially the military service, like issuing medals, ribbons, and badges or any other award, is important and should be assessed. Certain prizes may be given for identifying the holder as a genuine combat hero, for instance, the “Silver Star” or the “Navy Cross”. Others may denote garrison or administrative accomplishments such as the “Army Achievement Medal”. Other awards may go to entire units or individuals participating in certain deployments and campaigns. Ultimately, some awards, such as the “Good Conduct or National Defence Medals”, might be given for either remaining out of trouble or for showing up. In case you are not sure regarding the meaning of the decorations that have been mentioned on the resume, you have got three alternatives –
- Request another veteran to assist you in interpreting.
- Carry out online research to gain more knowledge.
- Directly ask the applicant.
Most veterans will be very honest regarding the relative significance of some of the awards. It will share the true meanings of such awards very honestly with you.
However, you should be careful not to hold the absence of some of the recognition as a fact that will go against the veterans. You need to try and understand the context which led to the granting of the credit to the veteran. For instance, a sergeant on the staff of a General has more probability of having earned formal awards than a squad leader of the front line.
Selection in the military schools, as well as completion of the military course in themselves, are more impressive compared to any awards or decorations. Most military schools feature selection and completion criteria that are very rigorous. Most hiring managers are completely aware that service academies are very selective colleges. Still, many are unaware that only about half of those selected can complete the training course successfully. In the same manner, other schools of the Army, Navy, and Air Force routinely screened out many of the participants who had begun the course with them after being selected. You can ask the veteran colleagues or inquire about the best job candidate himself or conduct online research regarding the courses that the candidate has completed successfully.
3. Extracurricular Activities
The schedules for training, as well as deployment and the very nature of military life, make such kinds of activities difficult for those veterans who work in units and roles that are extremely challenging. Even when on duty, some veterans may take time out to complete certain civilian degrees, certifications, and community service, and some might even moonlight in their jobs. People deciding to hire veterans should gain a favorable impression from such types of achievements. On the contrary, you should be criticizing those who do not possess such degrees and certifications.
4. Civilian Achievements
A skilled interviewer will try to understand the other achievements along with the socialization which might have been experienced by the candidates either prior to or after their military service. It might be possible that a veteran belongs to a family having salespeople or may be helped with a retail store of the family or would have worked in an industry of a similar kind after leaving the service.
You should never assume that the veteran only possesses experience in the military. You might have to take out this information from the veteran candidate during an interview.
Attitude
An area where most veterans can be seen to shine is attitude. Most veterans possess the best job candidate qualities of mission orientation, leadership, and teamwork. However, the skilled interviewer must probe this out. You need to learn to make a differentiation between confidence as well as hubris, self-effacement, gratefulness as well as an entitlement.
The process of an interview for the veteran candidates needs to be the same as for any other best job candidate. It is essential that you be sensitive to the context by which several of the service members experience the job market of civilians. Right from enlisting, doses of conflicting messages are served to that military personnel. At times, they might be told to expect “to be embraced by a grateful nation” that has the eagerness to bestow jobs that are high paying to any of the veterans. At other times, they might be told that veterans’ unemployment is chronic and overwhelming for the strongest among their peers. The reality lies somewhere between the two ends. It is up to the skilled interviewer to interpret their conversations with the veterans accordingly.
Ambition
Finally, the interviewer needs to conduct a best job candidate assessment of the candidate’s relative ambition. “Is the 25-year retiring veteran eager to build a second career at your company, or is he content to kick back and coast?”
However, before the process of job candidate assessment, the veteran candidates must be sourced from the organizations. The majority of the veterans have aspirations to continue with the development of their skills of leadership. Usually, they will talk about “making a difference” and “getting a seat at the head table.” You should not be concerned that such a candidate is very aggressive. No doubt, fitting into the culture is a critical aspect. Remember that for most veterans, every advancement is mainly a function of the exercise of leadership. They might not understand that civilians value salesmanship, administrative competence, or operational efficiency equally. Be compassionate and patient but also have to carefully listen for the motivating ambitions of the best job candidate and the extent to which it matches the culture and needs of your organization.
Mistakes in Evaluating The Best Job Candidate
Most organizations have tried to ramp up hiring practices related to veterans in the past few years. However, challenges still exist on the sides of both the employers and the candidates that prevent the complete realization of the goals. Therefore, it is vital to look at a few mistakes in relation to veteran hiring. It prevents companies from creating diverse organizations. These consist of the following –
Not being able to move ahead of the “Veteran Friendly” Labels.
Even though it is a starting place, identifying your organization as “Veteran Friendly” need not be a mark of the extent of your recruiting strategy for veterans in case you are looking for significant outcomes. Companies need to go beyond such labels and then come out with a statement backed by action that resonates best with the veterans and turns out to be a true commitment. The organization needs to think locally as well as for the long term. It needs to participate in the community’s veteran events or host its own veteran event.
Not knowing the way to target veteran military candidates.
There are several ways that an organization can make use of the purpose of targeting veterans. The growing social network and the correct online communities can be useful for getting information regarding the military veterans whom the organization can target for hiring.
Not tailoring the process of hiring to the Veteran Candidates.
An instance of how veteran hiring can go through a breakdown in the process of sourcing and hiring is the struggle to translate the skills of the military to the occupational vocabulary of a civilian. The organizations can tailor their career site for candidates who are veterans by integrating an “AT&T MOS Translator Search bar” inside the site, which helps in translating the “Military Occupational Code” into a language that the civilian working world will be able to understand.
Besides this, there are several other methods through which companies can improve their process of hiring veteran candidates. The veteran program integrates into your organization’s referral program. You need to reach out to current employees who are military veterans for referrals. They might already be engaged in the local communities and groups you hope to engage in. You can also designate a “Veteran Officer” for the organization. Thus, interested parties can contact you with job candidate questions regarding your Veteran Hiring Program and for serving as a liaison for prospective and onboard employees.
Veterans are a true representation of the finest talent any country can offer. All types of organizations thrive when the initiatives of veteran hires are in the best of the human resource strategies of their organizations. The prospect of having job candidate questions for veterans can be intimidating. All you need to do is follow the three A’s, which will take you closer to identifying and attracting high-quality veteran talent.
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