Great New Infographic About Vets and the Top Tech Jos

First of all, let’s thank the team over at www.payscale.com for this awesome infographic. I think it speaks for itself, but here’s the bottom line:

There are still hundreds of thousands of vets seeking employment, and this graphic illustrates some of the top tech skills and top jobs being filled by those vets. Maybe this will give you some ideas for your own career search? Did the military train you in one of these technical fields? If so, how can you leverage that experience to land a job in this challenging economy?

Until next time, in support of you -

Armedzilla: An Exciting New Community for Veterans

We live in a world of social networking… and considering the amount of people on Facebook, Linkedin, and now Google+, we must think it’s pretty cool.

Well, I recently learned about an exciting new community for vets. It’s called Armedzilla, and it seems to share elements from all of these social networks, while creating a unique experience for vets and organizations that provide services and support to vets.

In other words, they are all about vets, and we like that!

Here’s an excerpt from their site:

ArmedZilla is a social network. But it’s more than that. ArmedZilla is a movement around fundamentally changing our connection with America’s armed forces by creating a social platform that’s never existed before. It’s a never-ending conversation you control based on your own unique needs and interests that will help you gain direct access to the opportunities you deserve.

Specifically, ArmedZilla was designed to rally veterans, service members, families, friends and supporters around:

• finally bringing the military community together in one secure place;
• creating a support community to help ease transition from service into civilian life and “mainstream” culture;
• using the power of social media to provide better access to veteran benefits, veteran service organizations (VSOs) and veteran-centric brands and other entities that support them;
• showing pride in and public recognition for military service contributions;
• connecting with people, issues and causes our community deems important.

–

Okay, so I hope you can see why I like this site so much. But I haven’t even told you about my favorite part… it’s called “Keypoints.” You can put in keypoints to create a visual history of your military experiences.

You can populate each keypoint with pictures and text, telling everyone your story from that time in your life. When they hover over the keypoints, they get a preview of what’s in there, or they can click on it to read more. This was so much fun, and I really enjoyed creating my own keypoints. It brought back a lot of good (and some not so good) memories.

Check out my Armedzilla profile and timeline here.

Finally, Armedzilla has a growing number of “channels” from various non-profits and businesses geared toward the veteran community. You can check out our channel and join here.

We’re always looking for great new tools and resources for vets, and I’d say keep your eyes on Armedzilla!

Last thing: I want to remind you about our free online transition training called “Five Steps to Writing Strong Accomplishments.”

Get the free training here …

Until next time,

In support of you -

Free Transition Training to Kick off 2012!

At any given moment, there are so many vets out there, cycling through the process of finishing their military commitments, clearing post, and moving into a civilian career.

With 2012 approaching, where are you in the cycle?

Are you an enlisted service member who is just about to hit your ETS date, or are you an officer who has decided to hang up the uniform?

Have you been out for a few months of a few years, and you are searching the internet for help in landing a job?

It can be a bit overwhelming, we know.

So just let me take this opportunity to tell you that you’re not alone. CareerPro Global has been assisting veterans since 1989, and in 2012 we’re expanding our support to entirely new levels in the form of free training, books, and other exciting products and programs.

Please have a fantastic and safe New Year’s Eve… you’ve earned it!

In the meantime, please enjoy some more free training. It’s called Five Steps for Writing Strong Accomplishments, and the training is adapted from our new book Roadmap to Job Winning Military to Civilian Resumes. At the end of the training, you’ll have a chance to pre-order you own copy, or you can click on any of the images of the book on the blog.

Get the free training here, and when you’re done, please leave us some Facebook comments below the video …

Until 2012, in support of you -

New Radio Interview about Military Transition Resumes!

I was interviewed today on a radio show called “Until You Walk the Path, You Won’t Know Where it Goes” about military transitions and resume writing.

You can check it out here for more great resume writing tips.

Until next time, in support of you -

Joining Forces for Veterans Day

With Veteran’s Day fast approaching, I wanted to give all you fellow vets out there some valuable and FREE training!

Here at CareerPro Global, we have partnered with a great company called Mindflash that offers a powerful e-learning software platform. The reason for the partnership is that we are both offering our services for free as part of a much larger, high-visibility initiative for veterans that is coming soon from the White House.

The link to the free training is below, and it’s really designed to get you thinking about some of the very first steps you should take as you transition out of the military and into the civilian world. With over a million people projected to get out of the military in the next few years, this training is more important than ever.

GET THE TRAINING!

Future courses will cover topics such as resume writing and interviewing, but as you’ll see, we think that the first steps should be all about defining and refining your vision before developing your actual resume and other application materials.

We really value your feedback! This draft of the course is still a work in progress. We are inviting you to watch it today so that we can get your feedback and make the course even better in time for the White House initiative. Please take a look, enjoy, and then provide us with feedback either here or on our facebook pages.

Veterans Transition HQ facebook page

CareerPro Global’s facebook page

And of course, you can always email me directly at lee.kelley@careerprocenter.net.

GET THE TRAINING!

Thank you for your service, and Happy Veterans Day -

Until next time, in support of you -

Soldiers Angels Heroes and Horses

I am always thankful when I see people and organizations reaching out to help vets, and in the case of my friend and fellow blogger Matt Burden, it’s also vets helping other vets.

A little background: I went to college in Montana and it’s one of the most amazing places I’ve ever lived. I also used to be a milblogger while I was in Iraq, and even back then I knew Matt from his long-standing milblog Blackfive.

Matt also coordinated a fantastic book called Blog of War, and I was happy to be one of the contributors. I have a great deal of respect and admiration for Matt, and with the Montana connection I thought this video was an extremely cool idea for vets.

I might try to get out there and do it myself!

Anyway, I just thought I’d share, for your viewing pleasure …

Best Military Conversion Resume 2011!

Last week I was lucky enough to go to Savannah, Georgia for a business conference called the Career Empowerment Summit. It was hosted by Career Director’s International, and each year the organization holds a contest called the Toast of the Resume Industry.

I’m happy to announce that I took First Place for Best Military Conversion Resume of 2011!

Please stay tuned for more great career and resume writing tips as we turn the final corner of 2011 and begin leaning into 2012 …

Until then, in support of you -

New Book on Writing Military to Civilian Resumes

Okay, we don’t do this often here on Vets Transition HQ, but we have a new book coming out and it’s time for a shameless plug!

Look. You’re part of a special group – the millions of Iraq and Afghanistan vets flooding the workforce, and there are lots of things we can teach you to be better prepared for your transition from military to civilian life … such as having the right attitude, positioning yourself in the right ways, and having an effective resume.

Yes, the resume is only one part of the puzzle, but it’s an extremely important part, and can be the only first impression you get to make.  Imagine trying to solve a puzzle without all the pieces!

We’ll have many more training opportunities in 2012 and beyond, but for now we are proud to release the third title in our 21st Century Career Series. You can pre-order our new book, Roadmap to Job-Winning Military to Civilian Resumes at this link.

Over the past several decades, CareerPro Global has helped over 30,000 veterans from all branches to develop their resumes and achieve their career goals. Now we’ve leveraged all of our collective knowledge in a current, 5-check point format that will educate and empower you to take the next steps.   You will learn about writing military to federal, defense contractor, and corporate resumes that are proven to earn job interviews. We’ve also included a Vet’s Toolbox, which contains tons of useful        information and resources, including resume samples and easy to use templates.

So again, please follow this link and pre-order your copy now, or click on the book below!

We’d also like to share just a couple of heartfelt testimonials from other veterans about our services:

I’ve reviewed the resume  several times, and the best feedback I can come up with is, “Wow”.  I know
that’s so useful and eloquent.  Awe is not something I usually struck with,  but that is where I find myself.

So, to close the business end of this: I think this resume is perfect.  I accept it.

Thank you!

If you’ll allow me to shift gears for a minute, I’d like to tell you what this means to me.

I’m told by some that transition is supposed to be a joyful time: they’re wrong.  It’s terrifying, confusing, and painful.  I’m a firm believer in defining the moments in my life, but I cannot deny that Master Sergeant Harvey, United States Air Force defines me.  Just contemplating laying aside the uniform taps a well of emotion that is indescribable.  For so long that is seems
like forever, the mantle “Airman” has informed my thoughts, my actions, my speech, and my being.  Therein lies the rub.

When I look at all my EPRs and whatnot, I just can’t think, “let’s translate these experiences into KSAs”.  When I look at those documents I think about laughter and tears, friends found and friends lost, good times and the suck.  I know there’s
some skills in there, there has to be, but right now, all it is to me is visions of dear friends, family really, and a life.  That’s not
particularly helpful in writing a resume.

So, thank you for doing such a great job of translating all of the gibberish into something useful for an organization.  I couldn’t have done this.  I think this will open many doors for me.

With appreciation,

–Paul

**

This is the “GO TO” company if you want the best military transition resume that lands interviews. I received four requests for interviews the 1st week after sending out my new resume. Thanks again.”

–M.G.

**

As you could imagine, after 30 years in the military, numerous deployments, many headaches and heartaches, turning that experience over to a person that I have not met, was not easy. His prose was magnificent. He took all of the
gibberish that I provided and turned it into a world class product. I have used other resume companies and have not received the same results, or trust. My many thanks as I begin this new chapter in my life. I feel greatly prepared with his product.”

D. Wood

**

Until next time, in support of you!

Time Magazine Honors New Generation of Vets

President Ronald Reagan once said, “Some people live an entire lifetime and wonder if they have ever made a difference in the world, but the Marines don’t have that problem.”

I’m sure, like me, he would feel the same way about the estimated 23 million Iraq and Afghanistan vets from all branches of the US military.

On that note, TIME magazine recently honored the new generation of vets that I alluded to in the last post.

Click here to view the video.

Good News for a New Generation of Vets!

This is the 21^st century, and the world (and workplace) is changing.  We’ve been a country at war for most of the last decade. As a result, we have veterans that every age, from teens to senior citizens, and many of these are combat veterans with the multiple tours in the Middle east.

While our Vietnam and WWII vets are watching the evening news, they are witnessing an entire new generation of vets emerge right before their eyes. This new generation is highly skilled, adaptive, educated, and poised to lead us into the future, and you’re part of it!

We are in a new era with almost unlimited new opportunities. The millions of “new” veterans will continue to thrive and prosper at virtually every level of society and the modern workplace. For example, in the last 10 years numerous veterans have left the military and used their military skill sets to land jobs with defense contractor agencies such as Kellogg Brown and Root. In 2009, President Obama passed legislation to create Veterans Program offices in every federal agency, and to promote hiring more vets. For more information, check out the Department of State’s veterans website here. Finally, more and more private organizations are realizing the benefits of hiring veterans as well.

As you know if you’ve been reading this blog, I’m a vet myself and I’ve been out of the Army for only a few years. The unit I went to Iraq with in 2005 (God Bless the Triple Deuce!), just got back to the sandbox for a second tour. I’m not with them because  I made my own transition a couple of years ago. The longer I’m on the outside looking in, the more proud I am of what I did, and what so many of you have done and continue to do. On top of that, I work closely with veterans (from E1 to 3-star Generals) on their career transition goals, and I am both humbled and inspired on a daily basis.

Here at CareerPro, we’re always looking for more ways to help, inform, and empower veterans, so here’s the latest …

An estimated one million veterans are currently unemployed, with another million expected to leave the military between now and 2016 (according to the folks at FederalDaily.com). And just last week President Obama proposed even more initiatives aimed at improving employment opportunities for veterans.

* First, he proposed a Returning Heroes Tax Credit for businesses that hire unemployed veterans. Under this program, businesses could receive a maximum credit of $2,400 for every short-term unemployed veteran they hire, and $4,800 for every long-term unemployed veteran they hire. Sounds like a pretty good incentive, and good news for veteran job seekers.

* Additionally, he proposed boosting the Wounded Warriors Tax Credit for businesses that hire veterans with service-connected disabilities who have been  unemployed long-term, up to $9,600 per veteran. This can only help our wounded warriors to make smooth transitions back into the workplace.

* The Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs will also be leading a new task force to help exiting service members get the kind of training, education and  credentials they need to transition into the civilian workforce or pursue higher education. This would include a “Reverse Boot Camp” concept to provide extended career counseling and guidance.

* The Department of Labor will develop and launch an “enhanced career development and job search service package” for transitioning vets.

* The Office of Personnel Management will create a “best practices” guide to help private-sector companies identify and hire more vets.

* Finally, President Obama has challenged businesses to commit to hire or provide training to 100,000 unemployed veterans and spouses by the end of 2013. A number of major U.S. firms, including Microsoft, AT&T and Lockheed Martin, have already committed to the program. Wink, wink, you might want to apply to those …

I hope you all realize how much you have to offer. You are a veteran of the world’s greatest military force in the world’s most technoligically advanced era. Don’t let the shaky economy or high veteran unemployment rate deter you from your mission: to find and secure the job you want, and then chart a course to achieve all of your career and life goals!

After what you’ve accomplished in the military, no adversity can hold you back. The programs I’ve highlighted here show you that it’s not just companies like CareerPro trying to help vets… the president himself is taking action to get more vets into the federal and private workforce.

So what are you waiting for? Get your resume done, set your sights on a job, expect the very best, and move out smartly!

Until next time, in support of you -