Getting that interview

Most Service leavers are self-motivated, confident, able people, with personal qualities, skills and experience that they rightly believe should be attractive to their first civilian employer. Many are just waiting for the chance to sell themselves at interview. The problem is how to get there.

Some have a spouse or other close relative or friend who can point them in the right direction for employment or give them professional advice about the job-finding process. A very few may purchase outplacement help from a commercial organisation. Most, however, will use the MoD-funded resettlement service available to them at whatever level their length of service qualifies them.

So the first thing to do is to find out about the Career Transition Partnership (see ‘Factfile’). It offers two levels of assistance – full service and job-finding only – with the time allowed for the former varying according to years served. Nevertheless, it is a comprehensive package and Service leavers should take full advantage of everything that it offers. Leavers should not just pick the bits that they think they would like or need – few people know enough to make that judgement until months or years after the transition.

Quest will not repeat the advice available free from CTP consultants. However, it may be worth making some points about the process from the employer’s view.

The first is that all employers are a little bit different, with larger differences between different employment fields and sizes of organisation. It is obvious that a financial services sales person is in a radically different job to that of a nurse, but it may not be so clear that employment as an IT expert may vary enormously from a major plc to a small local company. The larger the employer, the more standardised and formal the employment procedures. Indeed, major employers may have a whole department involved in a strictly controlled recruitment process.

The specialist Service leaver who meets all the criteria in an advertised job description may well be called forward to interview with any employer. However, generalist Service leavers may not have the necessary profile to pass a major employer’s CV sift because the system does not recognise their qualifications and experience. So, they might well wish to look at small to medium-sized enterprises. These firms often want multi-hatted managers, and may be more flexible in their recruitment.

Alongside advertised vacancies, most Service leavers should approach the unadvertised market through speculative approaches and networking. Both these skills are taught by the CTP, and Service leavers should not be shy about using them. Selling yourself and cold-calling are two skills that should rapidly be acquired by the newly minted civilian, because they are used in the job as well as while seeking employment.

Another way is to approach recruitment agencies, particularly those that specialise in the appropriate employment field. Quite apart from the possibility of them finding a job, they offer Service leavers excellent ‘for real’ interview training, and they do not cost anything because the employer pays their fees.

Employers generally are looking for people who will ‘add value’ to their business. As well as well-publicised skills shortages, organisations want reliable, trustworthy employees who can think for themselves and act unselfishly in a team environment. They value motivated self-starters who can solve problems before they impact on the job and who work hard to achieve results.

These qualities, as well as formal skills and qualifications, must be communicated during the job search because they are rarer than many Service people think. The language used in the letter, follow-up phone calls, thorough research on the organisation, planned networking and a follow-up campaign all play their part in this. It should come as no surprise that determination, hard work and the ‘will to win’ will succeed in this field just the same as in any other.

The interview with Director Resettlement published on pages 10 provides an insight into the impact of some of the changes in the new contract and some possible future developments. The extraordinary success rate (96 per cent) reported by Service leavers in the career transition should provide confidence for future generations and inspire people to use learning credits to the full as well as the Career Transition Partnership.

Elsewhere we cover two old employment sector favourites: sport and fitness, and diving. Both attract Service leavers and we plan a series of features for future editions called ‘All about adrenaline’, looking at extreme sports. Computing and IT, and telecommunications are inextricable linked but we manage to separate them into more digestible chunks, while the security industry is expanding and demanding qualified people. Franchising continues to offer a variety of routes for the budding entrepreneur, while most Service people are capable administrators who may just need to transfer their skills into new areas.

Anyone wanting to learn more about learning credits – the scheme that offers Service people financial help towards the costs of their studies – should get hold of a copy of Courses4Forces, our sister publication. Look for it in your education centre or contact Bulldog Publishing for a copy.