The senior NCO or Officer about to retire and transition to civilian employment faces many more hurdles than they might think. While they believe their work habits, values and experience are desired , they are not. The exception is in highly technical stove pipes. For all others they face the following:
1. Stereo types that brand them as aggressive, lacking nuance, automatons, lock step, intolerant and dictatorial.
2. Limited ability to grasp the profit motive, ROE, ROI, marketing and salesmanship.
3. Middle managers who view the post career military individual as a competitor.
4. Civilian employers who dismiss the leadership skills as they believe all they did was give orders.
5. HR is not your friend. Many of the personality types drawn to HR will be hostile due to their prejudices and outlook.
Most military retirees transition into positions of far less responsibility, scope, limited number of subordinates and autonomy than they exercised in the military. The 45 year old professional is a new employee and treated much like the 24 year old. Their “supervisor” is often significantly younger.
The Combat Arms senior NCOs and Officers are mission and team focused and often crash in the Machiavellian world of civilian office politics and subterfuge.
I would estimate that fully successful career transitions are relatively rare. One of the biggest wastes in modern America is the under utilization of retired military individuals who decide to enter the private sector.
Most transition when they should be reaching peak earning potential while they have significant expenses like children’s college tuition, aging parents, repeated moves….. It is a risky time to start a business which is the best long range strategy.
The senior NCO or Officer about to retire and transition to civilian employment faces many more hurdles than they might think. While they believe their work habits, values and experience are desired , they are not. The exception is in highly technical stove pipes. For all others they face the following:
1. Stereo types that brand them as aggressive, lacking nuance, automatons, lock step, intolerant and dictatorial.
2. Limited ability to grasp the profit motive, ROE, ROI, marketing and salesmanship.
3. Middle managers who view the post career military individual as a competitor.
4. Civilian employers who dismiss the leadership skills as they believe all they did was give orders.
5. HR is not your friend. Many of the personality types drawn to HR will be hostile due to their prejudices and outlook.
Most military retirees transition into positions of far less responsibility, scope, limited number of subordinates and autonomy than they exercised in the military. The 45 year old professional is a new employee and treated much like the 24 year old. Their “supervisor” is often significantly younger.
The Combat Arms senior NCOs and Officers are mission and team focused and often crash in the Machiavellian world of civilian office politics and subterfuge.
I would estimate that fully successful career transitions are relatively rare. One of the biggest wastes in modern America is the under utilization of retired military individuals who decide to enter the private sector.
Most transition when they should be reaching peak earning potential while they have significant expenses like children’s college tuition, aging parents, repeated moves….. It is a risky time to start a business which is the best long range strategy.
Excellent. Never gave this much thought before but it gives an extra layer to explain the dysfunction of defence research and procurement.