Interview I.Q. p1 - Military Transition - Military Times EDGE

It took 10 job interviews for Scott Radcliffe to really get the hang of it. As he talked and talked, it slowly dawned on him that his civilian would-be employers often had no idea what he was saying. What exactly was a scout platoon leader with the 1st Cavalry Division? What did a scout executive officer do?

Those had been a few of Radcliffe’s jobs between graduating from West Point in 1998 and leaving the service as a captain in 2002. He was proud of the work, but couldn’t always spell it out during job interviews. “I was putting too many things in military terms that were just second nature to me, but they weren’t necessarily in the common lexicon,” he said.

For many ex-military, the civilian job interview is unfamiliar terrain. After years in uniform, it can be hard to know what to wear. It feels rude to drop the “sir” and “ma’am” habit, yet civilian interviewers seem to recoil at the honorifics. Still, the interview is a hurdle that has to be leaped. You won’t win the job without a successful face-to-face.

Here’s how to breeze through the getting-to-know-you part of the job-search process.

What to wear

The rules are few and simple. “For men or women, a navy blue suit is the best bet. For men, a white starched shirt with maroon tie. For women, hose and heels,” said Linda Henman, a leadership consultant and president of Henman Performance Group.

Some say a warm earth tone also is appropriate for women. Don’t show too much leg or chest. Gentlemen, polish your shoes. Overall, be comfortable. If you’re self-conscious about your attire, it will distract you at a time when you most want to look and feel relaxed, according to the California State University Monterey Bay career center.

Some companies will specify a “business casual” interview. Khakis and skirts are OK, skirts at least knee length. Men still need a collared shirt. Low-heeled shoes or loafers pass muster. No jeans, tennis shoes, T-shirts or miniskirts.

Walk the appropriate walk

There’s something about a military bearing that can intimidate civilians. Not quite stiff, not exactly severe, just vaguely “other.” Don’t bring that to the table.

“You need to smile and relax a bit, and you may need to practice this,” said Wally Adamchik, president of human resources consulting firm FireStarter. “I have been out of the Marines for over 10 years, but I still have people say they can tell from how I walk that I was a Marine. Soldiers and Marines can be particularly intense, so they need to tone that down. Recruiters love passion, but don’t overdo it.”

A civilian workplace typically is more casual than the parade ground. Too much spit-and-polish can scare them off.

This raises the related point of flexibility. If your demeanor is stiff, maybe you are, too. “Hollywood doesn’t portray the military in a flattering light,” Adamchik said. Civilians “think of an abusive, rule-driven culture of near robots. Of course we know this to not be the truth, but it is up to veterans to explain how they operate, how they think on their feet and remain flexible. The truth is that the military is very flexible. Mission orders change and things don’t go as planned. Give an example of that.”

Translate your experience

It can’t be said strongly enough. You have to be able to tell a civilian interviewer what you have done in uniform. Before landing his present position as an account executive at anthonyBarnum Public Relations in Austin, Texas, Radcliffe searched for civilian terminology that reflected his military responsibilities. “As an executive officer, I was in charge of logistics, so that was the word I started using. Nothing really lined up perfectly, but in the end, if I could give people a general enough description of the job, most people would be smart enough to understand what I did,” he said.

An applicant should have done this already in the course of preparing a résumé. The translation process starts with a job review. Think of every word you can to describe what you did: You managed personnel, organized inventories. Now pair those words with civilian job titles and descriptions, categories such as human resources or logistics.

In the interview, draw the line from A to B without waiting to be asked. Spell out your experience up front in terms the interviewer understands. In the long run, you are going to be hired for your ability to lead, solve problems and organize situations. As you convert your job vocabulary into theirs, keep this bigger picture in mind.

Turn vocabulary into value

Defining your experience is only first step. Now you’ve got to show them why it matters. “Hiring managers tell me that veterans can’t explain the benefits they’ll deliver — and that’s bad. Remember, the benefits are what get you hired,” Adamchik said. Let’s look at the benefits veterans bring to the table:

• Teamwork skills yield higher productivity.

• Being drug-free reduces time lost due to injury and illness.

• Practical leadership experience means you are able to establish and achieve goals.

• Working under pressure means you can make wise decisions and use resources efficiently.

“It’s all about saying, ‘and what this means for you ...’ You can say it aloud or in your head. But you need to be able to say it to help employers understand it,” Adamchik said. “For example: I hold a top-secret clearance, and what this means to you is you won’t have to spend time and money doing the investigation for the clearance I’ll need to work with you.”

Slow it down

Your experiences under orders may have taught you flexibility, but that doesn’t mean you can always turn on a dime. If an interview veers off unexpectedly, don’t be afraid to apply the brake.

At the start of one routine conversation, Radcliffe’s interviewer declared that all military résumés were the same and that he had no interest in talking about Radcliffe’s military experience. “I was totally unprepared for that,” Radcliffe recalled.

If you run into a surprise during an interview, be ready think on your feet, but you’re also allowed to take a minute before you start talking, Radcliffe said. “I took a deep breath and said outright, ‘Please allow me a second to think about this question.’ You have to calm yourself down, think about it, and then go forward.”

Prepare for the basics

A civilian job interview likely will include a series of stock questions about your past job. Some or all of these are bound to turn up. Convert the standard questions into military-specific ones, and practice in advance.

• What did you learn in your military life that will help you in this job?

• Why did you leave the military?

• How will you operate in an environment that isn’t just “follow orders”? (Now’s the time to explain the military culture of individual initiative and its focus on teamwork.)

• Always a killer question: “Tell me about yourself.” This is going to be a judgment call, and you’ll need two ready answers. If the military angle has been covered already, interviewees can talk about their overall qualifications and what value they can deliver. If questions still linger about the relevance of time spent in uniform, use this chance to explain again what you did and how it will benefit this employer.

Look up “common interview questions” on Google and have answers ready for the top 10.

Beware the peer interview

“After an intense morning interview with your future boss and the human resources department, you’ll go to lunch with a few of the folks you’ll work with. This is so you can talk to your peers, to really get a feel for the place and the job,” Adamchik said.

“But, make no mistake. No matter what the firm tells you, you’re being evaluated by these people. Sometimes they’re a well-trained group and will do a great job answering your questions and asking insightful ones of their own. Sometimes they’ve just been thrown together that morning and don’t know what to say to you. But you’re still being evaluated. It is tempting to let your guard down. Don’t.”

You’ve got a script, a set of talking points you’ve prepared in advance of the interview. Stay on message.

Know your interviewer

“Find out as much as possible about the person, or people, who will be interviewing you,” advises online education site Learn.com. “Find out their positions, what and who they're in charge of, and, if possible, their accomplishments of note.”

The company Web site, especially Bio sections and news releases, will yield treasure, as will scouting the Web with a combination of name and job title. Take advantage of social networking. Chances are you can Facebook or Twitter your way into your interviewer’s background.

At this point it’s worth saying, though it should go without saying: Research the company, too. Know what it does, how many people work there, who it competes with, what’s going on in the industry. The point is to come into the interview ready to speak knowledgeably about the team you will be joining. Show them you are taking this seriously.

Facts are not arrogant

Interviews come with a built-in bind. Interviewees need to tell the employer about themselves without coming across as arrogant — able to talk only about themselves.

Radcliffe cut the knot by learning to stick to specifics. Let the facts tell the story.

“When they are asking you, ‘How would you react in this situation?’ you relate it back to something you’ve done, rather than just pulling it out of the sky. You can relate what you would do back to what you have done. Then it comes naturally to talk about yourself. It doesn’t seem forced, and you don’t sound arrogant.”

Common mistakes

Those coming out of the military seem almost immune to the most common interview mistakes. Don’t be late. Don’t appear rumpled or offer a limp handshake. Don’t neglect eye contact. Other mistakes, like these from www.patenteducationseries.com are more subtle:

• Don’t ask about salary too soon. Focus on the work first. Show interest in the job.

• Don’t make demands such as a corner office or a company car. Negotiate the details later.

• Don’t talk about other job offers. Rather than looking fast-track, you’ll seem like someone who doesn’t really want the position.

• Don’t name-drop. It’s not who you know, it’s who you are. Don’t give the impression that you are riding on your connections.

Putting it all together

Ultimately an interview is a conversation, an honest dialogue between two people looking for common ground. It isn’t a performance, and a good interviewer won’t try to make it a series of hoops to jump through. Present yourself directly, without overselling it. Know why you want the job and what value you will add to the company. Make eye contact. Dress for the occasion. Then just relax and be yourself … minus the “sir.” Everything else can stay.