Is your organization simply “grazing the tip of the iceberg” when it comes to military recruitment? In this insightful segment from the most recent episode of the DE Talk Podcast, Recruit Rooster’s Ruth Toombs and Elliott Obermaier challenge employers to look past the basics of compliance and job board postings. Take a peek as they dive into the tangible steps required to truly connect with veterans and military spouses—from training recruiters to interpret military experience to effectively marketing the support programs that often go unseen by candidates. If you are looking to bridge the gap between having a veteran program and actually connecting with the talent pool, this conversation highlights exactly where to start!

Ruth Toombs:

So, we’ve obviously talked about some of the issues, obviously the benefits of hiring, some of the issues that comes with, and we’re just literally grazing the tip of the iceberg, and I understand that. So, as far as what can organizations do, there’s a ton we can do, but we can dig into a couple of those and we can take a look at this together. So, Elliot, we have these conversations all the time, but organizations I would definitely suggest start at the foundation of your organization. We have great technology. That to me is truly the icing on the cake. You’ve got to have that grassroots in the trenches, people that are really working, do outreach and have conversations with veterans, transitioning veterans in the civilian workforce. And I think it’s important to provide training for recruiters and hiring managers on interpreting military experience. That’s a tough place, as we mentioned earlier.

Elliott Obermaier:

Absolutely. Absolutely. And I think with focusing on all of these, I think one of the most important aspects is how you’re bringing those people in, how you’re recruiting, where you’re posting your jobs, if you’re taking all of the right steps. I don’t think you can take almost a half effort in approach on all of this. I think that you have to really focus on, it’s great if you’re just listing your jobs on different types of job boards. If you’re putting them on military.com that–

Ruth Toombs:

Necessary to diversify. We totally get it, right. We need to do that too…

Elliott Obermaier:

But what are the next steps that actually make your company stand out as someone that is focused on hiring beyond just meeting the requirements? I think when you look at military spouses, the military spousal rate is 21%, which is incredibly high, believe it’s much higher than consistent unemployment rate. And nearly half, 47% of military spouses respond stating that working at a veteran friendly corporation that has a military spouse program that had the veteran recruitment program was one of the most effective ways for them to avoid unemployment strategies. And even if you, I think going beyond from the company perspective, even if you have these spousal programs, that’s awesome. If you don’t market that, spouses aren’t going to find that. Right? And I think that that’s where so many companies fall short. And when I have these conversations with people that are interested in some of our hiring tools, so many of them say, oh, well, we have these veteran programs, we have these ERGs. And I tell them, I’m like, I spent an hour and a half today researching your organization and your jobs–

Ruth Toombs:

Why don’t I see it?

Elliott Obermaier:

Yeah. Why can’t I see any of these anywhere? So, I think that that’s one of the most, if you’re not taking the steps to showcase that you have these types of employment programs for veterans or military spouses, even if you’re meeting the regulations, you’re falling short.

Ruth Toombs:

Oh, absolutely. And like you said from the beginning, it’s not just about req numbers. Technology can help you hit those, but it’s also bringing valuable talent into your workforce. And we have some pretty prominent well-known employers that we work with that everywhere you go on their career site is a call to action: Veterans apply here. Here’s our veteran partners. We have a military skills translation tool, for those of you that have not had conversations with us, that allows transitioning veterans to align the skills that they learn in the armed forces to your open roles.

Also, some base mapping technology that helps military spouses as well as veterans find work within your organization that are near military bases. So, all that stuff. But it’s also about just a dedicated space, not just putting that little logo like military friendly, but also and doing it across all your platforms, providing that information. Let’s think about all the vendors that you work with. If you’re putting it on LinkedIn, on all kinds of social, put it in your job description, put it out there for anytime you’re having events, there’s tons of space available. Just creating that space where they feel valued.

Get tips for optimal veteran hiring strategies, application processes, and more by listening to the full episode! Be sure to follow Recruit Rooster on LinkedIn, X, and Facebook to keep up with the latest news, and stay tuned–we’ve got another great episode coming in just a few weeks!