Butler County Veterans Service Office helps vets translate military skills into civilian careers

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HAMILTON, Ohio (WXIX) - About 200,000 service members transition from military to civilian life each year, and finding the right career after service can be difficult. The Butler County Veterans Service Office is working to help veterans land jobs in their field of choice.

July 25 is National Hire a Veteran Day, and the Butler County Veterans Service Office said every day is a good day to hire a veteran.

What veterans bring to employers

Mike Farmer, director of the Butler County Veterans Service Office, said there are five qualities veterans bring to any workplace immediately.

The first is teamwork. “Every veteran, regardless of their branch of service or regardless of their job, they’ve got teamwork,” Farmer said. “They are used to that teamwork, that camaraderie, whether it be one-on-one, whether it be in a large group, they’re used to that. Every employer wants that.”

The second is a collaborative skillset — and reliability. “A veteran is used to showing up, right?” Farmer said. “They are dedicated to the mission because they don’t have a choice. They’re typically early. We say in the military that 15 minutes early is late.”

Third are problem-solving skills. Farmer said military service members face problem-solving situations daily depending on their assigned mission. “The problem-solving skills of someone who served in the armed forces is generally higher than those who have not served, just because of their background,” he said.

Fourth is adaptability. “It’s what we do in the military,” Farmer said. “Veterans, they have that adaptability and they’re agile. They can shift gears, generally speaking, on a dime and get the mission accomplished.”

Bridging the gap between military and civilian work

Farmer said it can be frustrating for veterans who miss the camaraderie and teamwork they had in the military. He suggested companies consider starting a veterans employee group. “A simple group, even if you have two or three veterans in your company and allow them the ability to connect with other veterans, they get that camaraderie back. And you’ll see that leadership develop out of that,” he said.

The fifth resource Farmer highlighted is AI tools available at the Butler County Veterans Service Office, which can help veterans translate specialized military skills into civilian terms. “You may look at it and say, well, I was a radioman. Well, how about we turn that around and say, well, no, you specialized in communications,” Farmer said. “It’s about understanding the military dialect and translating that over to civilian employment.”

One-stop shop for veterans

Farmer said the office aims to be the first call veterans make when they have questions. “We like to be the one-stop shop for veterans,” he said. “From there, we can get them to more specialized help.”

He said the office connects veterans with the Small Business Development Center for those looking to work independently, and with Ohio Means Jobs for those seeking employment with an employer. “Let’s have a conversation. Let’s figure out what you did in the military, and then let’s talk about all the possibilities of where you’d be a great fit in our community,” Farmer said.

The Butler County Veterans Appreciation Day celebration is scheduled for Aug. 22 at Markham Park in downtown Hamilton, in conjunction with Hamapalooza.

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