Employers! Looking to Hire a Hero: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

As a HR Recruiter or Employer looking to hire new talent, you more than likely have come across organization, news articles, and other entities reaching out to you to hire returning veterans. There is no doubt that we owe the men and women who have served a great deal of gratitude for serving our country, but is that alone a reason to hire one? No; truth is you should be considering hiring a veteran because of the leadership and structured skill they learned while serving in the military. But, how does that translate to your organization?

The purpose of this blog is exactly that, we intend to provide you and your organization the information needed to recruit, educate, retain, and support those returning home from active duty to a civilian career. We realize that every employer is unique and we will do everything to provide you with common practices and resources that employers are using to successfully welcome veterans into their companies. Whether you are starting from scratch or rejuvenating an existing resolution, we encourage you to follow this blog as a reference to find a solution that works for you.

In the up coming weeks/months I will update this blog to educate employers and provide a one stop shop on best practices to Hiring A Hero.

EMPLOYERS PLEASE FOLLOW OUR NEW BLOG @ WANTOHIREVETERANS.ORG!!  (Please pass this on)

Thank you for thinking of our troops!!

Rob Barr- Executive Director- Armed Forces Support Foundation.

Who are YOU? (Part 1)

Now that we have covered the different types of social networks I am hoping that you have found the best social network that will best represent you in your career search. Now comes the tricky part, building your online profile or brand if you will. Who are you? What do you want people to know about you? In today’s job market it is essential that you build an online brand to describe who you are. What do you have to offer to your target market?  What is it about you that stands out within your career field or industry? The ideal goal is for you to create a communication channel so that human resource executives, recruiters and other “industry” peers will want to connect with you. (Remember it’s all about who you know and if you can brand yourself and your knowledge to this group of peers it may be beneficial to you in the long run)

OK so how do you start building your brand? According to executivecareerbrand.com Meg Guisepp, a career coach, wrote an article called 10 steps to an Authentic, Magnetic Personal Brand. Although her site is catered more towards executive level candidates I strongly believe in the message she puts out about building your brand and feel this base will work for everyone. I like it because back when I was interviewing people, when I worked for Helmets to Hardhats, it covers just about everything I would ask an applicant in an interview. Ultimately my goal, when hiring someone, is finding the person that is going to fit within our corporate culture. If social profiles were around when I worked for Helmets to Hardhats in 2005 it would have made my life so much easier and I wouldn’t have had to interview as many people as I did to find the perfect match. So let’s get to know more about you and take a look at Meg’s assessment plan for building your brand.

1. What are your visions and purpose?
2. What are your values and passions?
3. What are your top goals for the next year, 2 years, and 5 years?
4. Do an assessment of your top attributes. (what defines your personality?)
5. What are your core strengths or motivated skills? (What functions or responsibilities do you excel?
6. Get feedback from those who know you best- at work, at home, anywhere
7.  Do a SWOT analysis. (strengths- weaknesses- opportunities- threats) Strengths and weaknesses are internal and speak to your potential value to an employer. Opportunities and threats are external, and can help you foresee what you will be facing in the next career steps.
8. Who is your target audience? (Industry and niche area of expertise)
9. Who is your competition in the marketplace and what differentiates you from them?
10. 3 C’s of personal branding:

i.     Clarity- be clear about who you are and who you are not
ii.    Consistency- firmly express your brand across all communication channels- online and offline.
iii.    Constancy- strong brands are always visible to their target audience.

Unfortunately this is all the time I have to put into this blog this week but I will continue this conversation next week as we will go into the do’s and don’ts on what to put in your profile and much more.

Thank you for reading and as always THANK YOU for serving our country!

Rob