There’s no doubt that military veterans provide a solution to the skills gap within the IT industry, so why is it that veterans still face considerable barriers when trying to get into the IT industry?
In Part I of our “Vets in Tech” series, Bram and Oli discussed how military veterans make great tech employees because of the many transferrable skills they can bring to the industry. Military veterans bring the soft skills employers value most, have backgrounds in technology and have applied their skills in high-stress environments.
In Part II of our interview series. Bram provides some insight on how we can modify hiring efforts to be more inclusive of the veteran community and where “typical” recruitment efforts fail army veterans – from often mismatched resume experience to overlooked and transferrable leadership skills. Oli and Bram also discuss the important role recruiters play in support veterans in IT, the things that need to be considered for veterans looking to make the transition from the military industry over to IT and the important roles that good mentors, coaches or managers play both in the IT and military industries.
Oli and Bram also touch on the important role recruiters play in getting veterans in front of hiring teams in the IT industry, the transition from working in the field to working in the office and the important roles that good mentors, coaches and managers play in both the IT and military industries.
"Parallel have offered fantastic support when I am required to train and I am proud to be involved in our ‘Vets in Tech’ campaign as it’s a cause close to my heart."
Oliver Davies Managing Consultant, Contract & Freelance Search
About our speakers:
Oliver Davies is a Senior Recruiter on our European Contracts team. Having left the army at 18 years old, he is now a reserve army officer and is extremely passionate about supporting veterans in their return to civilian life.
Bram Couwberghs is the Defense & Intelligence Leader of Western Europe for Microsoft, but his wealth of knowledge is not restricted solely to his industry knowledge. His military background and his passion for working with ex-military servicemen, both in and out of his place of work, has made him the perfect person to kick start a conversation in our “Talk to Us / Work with Us: Vets in Tech” series.
Parallel Consulting is a global recruitment firm focused on the technology sector, which means we speak with business leaders and talented experts in technology and innovation on a daily basis. We want to make use of this privileged position to support military veterans in our talent sourcing processes – from actively sourcing veterans for our clients to offering resume advice workshops. Why? Because we want to ensure that our talent recruitment processes are inclusive and supportive of the veteran community.
