What Personnel Management Jobs are Best for Former Military?

The personnel management jobs that are best for former military are those that allow veterans to utilize their unique training, knowledge and experiences.

Human Resources Manager

Not all human resources managers deal with policy, strategy and organization every day. Some human resources managers mainly help current, prospective and former employees. They deal with a variety of person-to-person interactions every day, such as helping new hires enroll in benefits and interviewing prospective job candidates. Human resources managers plan, coordinate and execute very different HR related activities.

For example, most HR managers spend their time posting job ads, reviewing applications, screening candidates and then interviewing candidates, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Companies with highly technical or demanding positions, such as IT, finance, production, will most likely require their human resources manager to learn about positions in order to hire the right people. Once hired, human resources managers will guide employees through the onboarding through providing new employee orientation, explaining benefits and giving training on company policies.

Human Resources Entrepreneur

Former service members who have extensive travel and work related experience will excel as human resources entrepreneurs. They may create their own consulting firm or become a professional headhunter or talent scout. It is rewarding to help small business owners successfully launch a company through helping them set up HR policies and processes. A human resources entrepreneur will never suffer boredom and instead enjoy a rich variety of experiences.

Veterans with human resources experience can also set up a firm and find a group of clients who want to permanently outsource their HR needs. Human resources entrepreneurs have the choice of offering a broad array of HR related services, or they can focus on their area of expertise like temporary staffing, benefits coordination and organizational development. Human resources entrepreneurs must have a strong work ethic and high risk tolerance.

Training and Development Manager

Veterans who enjoy teaching and helping organizations grow will enjoy being a training and development manager. They help employees improve their skills, knowledge and career potential through hosting classes, workshops and hands-on training sessions. Training and development managers usually design effective coursework with meaningful content in areas they know well. Some training and development managers may work with technically proficient managers to create content and teach employees.

Alternatively, some training and development managers travel to different work locations in order to provide standardized training. For example, corporations with dozens of regional locations often send training and development managers to provide annual mandatory training related to safety, quality, government regulations and company policies. A training and development manager who works in a health care corporation may travel to different facilities and provide training on new ACA and HIPPA best practices.

Related Resource: Logistician

As a final alternative, former service members may find work as a Human resources IT specialist. This is perfect for veterans with a technology related MOS because they have experience with some of the most advanced equipment and systems that are not available to civilian IT professionals. Human resources IT specialists usually work in technology related companies and can have previous experience as IT architects, software developers and systems administrators. Personnel management jobs that are best for former military also include talent manager and industrial-organizational psychologist.