Credit to Gareth McBain for this article.
Did you miss our launch event? Don't worry. This is what went down. (and no, we didn't ask Garath to do this)
Take it away, Gareth:
What an evening with Redeployable hosting their first event at Meta HQ in the city of London. The energy in the room was palpable with the enthusiasm of making sure that the service leaver is catered for in the most inspiring way, using technology to lead the way.
The panelists gave a superb account of both their experience as military veterans but also as employers of veterans.
My takeaways from their contribution during their time on stage, excellently hosted by Ellis Greenway I might add, are as follows :
⭐ Making service leavers your competitive advantage
It's the mantra of Redeployable, but a sentiment I think business leaders need to be informed and educated to understand the values on offer.
⭐ Intrinsic business failure leads to recruitment innovation
Service leavers broker a different perspective when looking for a different angle to approach change. They can be the solution.
⭐ 100 years' worth of experience is leaving business in the next 5 years due to attrition
The retraining cycle of service leavers is minimal when you compare it to the training process of new starters. The advantage is clear to see on expediting a ready resource into a business.
⭐ The resilience military personnel is unmatched
From small changes to wide scale transformations, resilience is a strength of service leavers that companies just can’t get from other recruitment avenues.
⭐ Skills gaps can be plugged in short notice
Skills gaps can be an inhibitor to hiring from the military community, but the strength of a service leavers ability to plug these gaps at short notice is hugely under appreciated. A temperament for learning is actually the starting point for the military where adaption is vital in conflict scenarios.
⭐ Junior commanders have already a plethora of different skills
They can pick up and go into almost any career; junior HR manager, welfare manager, junior communications manager, etc. These skills are so transferable where their peers (age, qualifications, but not military) haven't had the exposure to the diverse skills required to be leaders.
⭐ Concern about hiring from the military community is causing stigma
There can sometimes be open concern from employers about hiring a service leaver. This is key driver of the stigma associated with service leavers, and is more often than not fabricated.
⭐ Veterans have a high level of emotional intelligence
EQ proves to be a measure of success for sustainable employment, and service leavers are readily able to deal with change and emotional difficulties. Building relationships constantly in the ever changing landscape of a career is vital, and the ability of service leavers to be able to do this is a clear indicator of their advantage.
⭐ Adding a service leaver can make a team 25% more productive
The latest gov study (here) demonstrates that adding a service leaver can add up to 20-25% productivity. So in a team of 4, that's almost like hiring another person.
⭐ Diversification within the workplace is key for a business or organisation to thrive
Once you have ex-military in your team, the learning journey is for both military and civilian to share. In an ever changing world, perspective is a powerful thing, and hiring from the military community will bring new perspectives to your team.
⭐ Service leavers are not after charity
It is empowerment and responsibility that will focus their needs to succeed.
⭐ Quantifying service leavers abilities is difficult
Their ability to act accordingly when needed (run to the fight) is advantageous beyond measure and actually difficult to communicate without it seeming egregious in nature.
All these points have a base sentiment of the service leaver being a person of trust, integrity, honesty and of structural values which are able to be envisioned to many, but sometimes not necessarily to the leaver themselves.
Their journey is a complicated one, having travelled it myself.
The uncertainty, the language, the people, and many more factors can be overwhelming. But its my belief only bolstered by this evening, that service leavers bring too much to the table to be ignored or overlooked.
