The acronym MOS stands for “Military Occupational Specialty” in the U.S. military. What does it entail, and can it help you hire a Veteran? There are a number of employers throughout the United States that have taken steps to hire Veterans based on their MOS, and for good reason:
They have experience and transferable skills.
Many times, employers hire an employee that appears to have experience for the position they were hired for, but that individual was likely hired out of a need for someone to quickly fill the position. The negative aspect of hiring quickly over quality is that the job isn’t performed at the level that it needs to be, and as a result, the employee, the team and the company suffers.
On average, the military spends $25,000 per service member for each year of service. A Veteran with an MOS in a particular field has been trained by military personnel in that area and they are educated with discipline and precision to ensure every aspect of their job is done correctly. In addition, an MOS that isn’tdirectly relatable to a private sector job (e.g., “Field 09” Native Language Speaker, Army MOS) may be applicable in a unique way to benefit the company (e.g., Field 09’s would be useful as an in-house sales liaison to foreign clientele in a corporate setting). In addition, the soldier is trained in other aspects such as logistics, operations and human resources.
When hiring veterans, keep in mind that their MOS may only be one part of their military experience. Every single military member has been trained to properly fill out paperwork with attention to detail (excellent for administration, customer service, and accounting positions). All veterans were once required to keep up to physical fitness standards based on their branch of service (for the most part, this means that veterans are no stranger to physical labor and pushing forward for positions requiring this feat).
In short, consider all aspects of a veteran’s experience in the military and skills that are part of their primary MOS. You might be surprised what they will bring to your company.