Ask HN: Military to tech jobs
I am interested in transferring from military (8+ years) to operations job in the tech industry.
What does the tech industry feel when hiring a veteran?
What does the tech industry feel when hiring a veteran?
As far as operations, you should be golden. I can't count how many times I've used the same skills I'd use to plan an operation to plan projects. They're exactly the same skill sets, just different semantics and new acronyms to learn. You might contact student veterans of america. Even if you're not a student, they usually have "tech" resume workshops that can help you translate for the civilian audience.
Did you face any specific challenges when going from bureaucratic environment to corporate? I am not sure about the US Army. I am in the Canadian Army, where we change our position every 2 years. Therefore it doesnt make me specialist in certain position, but I have lot of experience in a leadership role. Is the US Army the same?
If you've learned how to thrive in a bureaucratic environment like the military, you can survive in any medium to large sized company. You can also adapt to small growing companies, you know what level of bureaucracy works and what is stifling.
With enough time on the job and at home teaching yourself you will be at the junior level in no time. Once your able to do all your regular tasks along with more advanced projects you may be able to start working in a senior role and be handsomely compensated for it.
Now if you have heavier military only skills government contractors more then likely still have a place for you, I would recommend checking the top government contractor job sites. They can normally place you in something very similar to what you were doing in the military with the added benefit of you learning new tech and some times becoming the expert on that tech, especially if it is very popular in the tech industry.
If you want to use many of the benefits that come with joining the military long term you may want to check out jobs at the intelligence agencies (CIA, NSA, NGA, DIA, etc.) or usajobs.gov to see if there is anything there you like. You may also be able to get a higher paying ranked job based on your military experience.
Do not forget to also take a look at the agencies like FDIC, SEC, Patent and Trade office too. They are smaller but pay better and offer more benefits than many of the larger agencies for tech talent.
I'm now a Software Engineer for one of the larger financial firms in Chicago. I never went to college and am self-taught. Every firm that sees "military" treats it the same as a degree aka:
Requirements: batchelors degree or "equivalent experience".
Work hard, and you'll be fine. Tech has no issues with vets at all from what I can tell. What in specific were you looking to go into?
For reference, here is a very not up to date resume: http://www.digitalprognosis.com/resume.htm
I am basic level coder and I have a degree in biological engineering. I haven't practiced Engineering a long time. My strengths are project management or operations. I would love to work for companies like Tesla or Faraday Future.
Jump on Linkedin's advanced search feature. Sort for profiles of local individuals in software/hardware with past military backgrounds. Reach out to them, ask for advice. They'll likely have some solid ideas and thoughts on opportunities.
For me, leaving the military was an easy and almost required choice. The system for analyzing performance, position, and growth is extremely bureaucratic. I won't go into the many pros/cons with this, but can say that if you're someone with a high growth ceiling than you're going to feel very stifled and inflexible.
Simply put, the military did not allow me to grow into my potential at the speed that I could both add value and succeed for the military and myself. I received many promotions (E5 in 2yrs) and decorations. I went through 3 combat tours in 4 years (way above average).
I was accepted by a university near the end of my 4 years and promptly exited stage left.
Mid-size to large companies tend to also be understanding of reserve duty and may have someone ex-military review your resume and/or interview you to understand your military experience.