5 Lessons Learned: Holiday Application Season
Last month, we wrote that the holidays actually are a most wonderful time to apply to open positions. The competition is down, budget is up (maybe) and recruiters are bored (not really). There’s to be renewed energy and focus that come with a new year. This is a progress report as to what we are seeing from active duty, reservists (includes Guard), veterans and military spouses applying to posted positions during the holidays.
First of all, if you took advantage of the downtime and applied to job openings, good on you for taking the initiative. As the best learning generally comes from failure and what would you do if you could do it all over again, here are the Top 5 missteps from our population that we’ve seen from a few of our recent holiday campaigns. These examples apply to CORPORATE positions; not federal jobs, not defense, not law enforcement, not medical/healthcare, not sales/entrepreneurial or the like but (generally) to corporate job openings.
Number 5: Not leaving your rank off the application, resume and/or cover letter (this includes military spouses riding their significant servicemember’s grade)
Unless the job description specifically lists, in the corporate world and in general your rank holds no relevance to the position you are applying to. In fact, the higher the rank the more of a turn off it is. So don’t list it. This also includes inferring having greater title, responsibility, accountability, “leadership” experience because one holds a certain rank. All the recruiter/hiring manager wants to know is “Can you do the job (as posted)?” And “Do you want to do the job (as posted)?” That’s it!
When you infer that you held this (high) responsibility or was accountable for this (very high dollar) amount of resources or led this (very large) number of reports, you are giving the vibe that “I deserve…” In a past post remember that, “Deserve’s got nothin’ to do with it.”
We’ve also seen a few military spouse resumes and cover letters listing their servicemembers’ (senior level) rank as if it vicariously translates to the them as applicants. Reminds us when we used to stand post and someone from within the vehicle (usually the driver) yelled out, “You better salute that sticker (insert soldier, marine, sailor, airman, coastie and soon to be heard guardian, here)!” It was a turn off back then and it’s a turn off now. Back then we couldn’t ignore it; this time, you betcha! Also, the higher the rank the more apt to pass, just because. It smacks of entitlement. Thank you, Next!
RECOMMENDATION: Leave your (and/or your spouse’s) rank at home and off your application unless specifically requested
Enough said.
Number 4: Not ensuring you possess the actual job skills listed on the job description
Now that you are wanting to make the transition to the corporate world, you need to be what you want to become, at least on paper. As an example, if you want to become a software developer or a marketing specialist in a civilian company, then somewhere on your resume you must have the skills and preferably the same title of the position for which you are applying. It’s accepted that the military is not known as a training ground for churning out “developers” and “marketers” but that does not mean those skills cannot be acquired, learned or trained. So at the very least, one should have performed the responsibilities of a developer or marketer as a prior experience and/or academically. If not, you are simply not qualified and will be passed over.
Even specialized MOS titles such as machinist mate, armorer, CBRN specialists, security forces, etc. can be trained (educated) to qualify for any occupation. So if you have it, list it. PS – Corporate Recruiters are not Job Finders. They don’t exist to find you a job. Nor is it their obligation to see where else you might fit in the organization.
RECOMMENDATION: Help HR help you by having the actual skills listed on the job description
By having the relevant skills of the posted job allows us to evaluate you fairly against those already doing the job. The reality is that the organization does compare you against those doing the job now at specific (grade) levels; that is what the job requirements are based off. The same could be said if your command was evaluating a civilian applicant; they would check off against the qualifications of your MOS at a certain rank or grade. We are not saying you have to have held the title (it helps) but at the very least show relevant experience that you can do the job with a certain degree of competence and proficiency. If you don’t have the skills, go get them or get trained or go to school and get the degree or cert.
Number 3: Not ensuring you possess or are working towards the degree(s) listed on the job description
Similar to the above, job descriptions list the required/preferred education for the respective role. There is a reason for that; it’s relevant to the successful performance of the job. So to significantly increase your chances, get the degree(s) or at least the relevant certification(s) for the specific position.
A veterans survey lists the three most popular college degrees BEFORE joining the military as: Political Science, History and Criminal Justice. The three most popular degrees AFTER departing the military are: Technical (IT), Business and Engineering. The assumption can be made that the first group generally consists of officer types because a degree (almost any degree) is a requirement for commission. Further assumptions are made that the second group applies mostly to enlisted, specifically first and mid-termers. Why the assumptions? Because if the majority of officers already have their degree(s) before joining the military, it may be assumed that most earning their degrees after separation would come from the enlisted ranks. From an HR standpoint, which group in general is more advantageous to hire at corporate? Our choice is the latter. Not to say that the first group would be unsuccessful; there are many, many examples to the contrary. And from a training stand point, we would rather hire and train a new employee that has at least the academic foundation of a competitive skill than to completely retrain a new employee in a brand new discipline from scratch.
RECOMMENDATION: Help HR help you by “connecting the dots” for us and having the listed education
By having the requisite education allows us not only to qualify you but also project your success and long term potential in a specific career path. To all you poli-sci, (art) history and CJ majors, do yourself a service and get the requisite degree and/or certification. For your benefit as well as corporate’s. Of course, if you have the relevant job skills and experience then those would be considered acceptable “in lieu of education.” Or apply to the industry that actually values your (Uncle Sam’s) investment in your education.
Number 2: Not following instructions defined in the process
Consider yourself lucky if you receive a communication from the company advising what to do next in the process. Congratulations, HR knows you exist. Basically what they are telling you is, if you wish to be considered further, “Please do A, B and C within certain time period.” Whether that message comes as an email, text, phone call or notification on your profile/account, we cannot believe the scores of applicants that fail to acknowledge and/or respond back and follow the directions as stated.
First, it is a positive sign that you made it past the initial “gatekeeper” and there is further interest. Not every applicant will receive this “follow on” communication.
Next, that fact that you have been contacted puts you in a smaller pool of “eligible” applicants. Thus your chances increase…unless you blow it.
By “blowing it,” you either didn’t follow directions or didn’t meet the deadline or your communication response back to the organization was poor (for various reasons). We’ve seen everything from unprofessional grammatical errors, misspellings of the company’s name or citing an opening that wasn’t linked to the communication. This actually is common way for HR to whittle down an applicant pool even further.
RECOMMENDATION: Follow the process!
Follow the process, simple. Much like requesting leave at your unit, there is a process to follow. Doesn’t matter the branch or the unit or the personnel, if you want the leave whatever the process is, follow it…and in a timely manner. Applicants always complain about not hearing from the company or falling into the infamous “HR Black Hole.” Well, the same can be said of the “Candidate BH.” Much like you don’t like to get ignored by any company, there are some professionals that don’t appreciate getting blown off by applicants especially when trying to move them in an advantageous direction through the process. Keep in mind, at every stage in the process that you progress to, your competition decreases which in turn may improve your chances to get the job.
Number 1: Not tailoring your resume to the individual job description
The Number 1 biggest lesson learned this past holiday by our demographic of applicants: Not tailoring your resume to the individual job description. This is a bit different than Number 3 above as this pertains to actually reading the job description and applying to the position posted. Hundreds of times this past season, we’ve come across examples of applicants using the same exact resume across several different openings. Not only were the resumes unspecific to the description but if specific to one description, the same exact resume was uploaded to other positions even those with different titles (at the same company).
Believe it or not, there are differences between Project Managers, Program Managers and Product Managers. Just like there are differences in developers, programmers and engineers. This is like bucketing that all Nukes or Infantry or pilots are alike. If you didn’t know that, then you need to do your homework. This sometimes however, can be over looked for the above Project, Program and Product or developer, programmer and engineer examples if the applicant’s skillset meets qualifications. But generally these are seasoned, established professionals with years of well rounded experience.
Where this cannot be overlooked is when the applicant uses the same exact resume when for example concurrently applying to a developer and a marketing and a project management openings all at the same at the same company. Rather than increasing your chances, this is simply seen as throwing it against the wall and hoping it sticks. Guess what? It doesn’t stick and it’s a mess. It does the complete opposite. What it does accomplish is it provides great examples of your lack of attention to detail and not knowing “what you want to be when you grow up” so much that we are likely to pass on you altogether even with roles you may be eligible for. We can “see” what you have applied to so it’s simple to track your applications to “Rejected.”
RECOMMENDATION: Tailor your resume to each job opening you apply to; even at the same company
As mundane as rewriting your resume is for every opening, it is a proven formula for potential success navigating the corporate recruitment process! It starts with actually reading each job description. As with any practice, the more you do it, the better you get at it. The benefits are: you get a good feeling of the various job requirements especially those in your chosen (soon to be) career field; you’ll understand the skillsets, experiences and educational requirements companies are looking for in a certain position(s); after you get the hang of it, you’ll also have a better understanding of your own professional profile, strengths, talents, relevant accomplishments and also areas where you fall short and must improve. We promise you, it gets easier and less of a time suck once you get it down pat. Good luck!
So what are some of your lessons learned when you applied to your first few positions?
Welcome to this blog. In this series, we will reminisce about that we did not think we would ever miss before we got out; hopefully with a good dose of healthy humor. With tips, tricks and secrets to reintegrating back to the civilian workforce and with the proper mindset. And we welcome positive feedback from those of us who have already made the transition to the real world. xUSAmp is a group of determined veterans, allies and family members who have worked in corporate HR and specialize in preparing veterans and military spouses to transition to corporate America.