What can a Diverse/Ex-Forces Workforce Bring to Your Business?
Let’s not beat around the bush - employing ex-forces worries you.
You want office skills; they have military expertise. You want commercial acumen; they have field experience. You want flexibility; they’re used to regiment. You want mental stability; they’ve seen stuff you can’t even imagine.
But what if we told you an ex-forces employee could be your best employee yet?
Why employers are reluctant to hire ex-forces
Half of employers are reluctant to hire ex-military personnel, despite many businesses promoting inclusive recruitment practices while looking for hard-to-find skills.
The top reasons employers are reluctant to hire ex-forces? Misconceptions.
There’s a worry among employers that someone from a military background comes with:
Untransferable skills
Mental health issues
Aggression
Short tempers.
And this isn’t just unfair labelling. It’s resulting in businesses missing out on a rich pool of talent.
The benefits of recruiting an ex-forces workforce
As an ex-forces recruitment consultancy, you might think us a little biased. But we’re well placed to see the undeniable benefits that an ex-forces workforce brings businesses and corporations.
Benefits including:
An ever-expanding talent pool
Over 14,000 service leaders enter the civilian job market each year, and these aren’t just entry-level candidates. These people are qualified professionals that can fill some pretty significant skill gaps in the recruitment market. Professionals including:
Engineers
Operations managers, C-suite executives and key decision makers.
Project managers
Aviation experts
Nuclear experts
Communication professionals.
Professional and technical abilities
Ex-forces personnel have worked with the world’s most advanced systems, cutting-edge technologies and innovative teams.
They’re also used to working in high-pressured situations, handling extreme responsibilities and adapting to new situations. Fitting into your business culture and immediately delivering business results will be a walk in the park.
Cross-functional skills
If you read our recent blog on the top transferable skills from a military career, you already know ex-forces personnel have a bucket-full of transferable skills.
From teamwork and leadership through to motivation, problem-solving, even negotiations, a career in the armed forces will have provided unmatched, world-class training, meaning that these people are some of your most qualified candidates - albeit with transferable skills. And, they might be eligible to expand their skills and qualifications for free (and for the benefit of your organisation) through Enhanced Learning Credits.
Diversity
We all know the business benefits of a diverse workforce - better performance, higher morale, enhanced innovation, candidate attraction and employee retention.
Recruiting an ex-forces workforce means recruiting a diverse workforce - one that isn’t disadvantaged because of their background or current situation.
In a nutshell, ex-forces bring unique experiences and skills to your business - but it’s these differences that bring substantial business benefits.
How to encourage applications from ex-forces
One of the most significant barriers to recruiting an ex-forces workforce is knowing how to find and attract ex-forces talent. The best ways to do this are:
Adapting your job advertisements to welcome applications from ex-forces personnel with transferable skills.
Providing employee benefits that help ex-forces resettle into civilian life, such as EAP, flexible working patterns, and ongoing development.
Working with an ex-forces recruitment partner to find the best talent coming out of the forces.
Final thoughts
The question isn’t what can an ex-forces workforce bring to your business; it’s how do you attract world-class ex-forces to your business. Want to know more?