When the world went virtual a year ago due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, Hiring Our Heroes, like many organizations, had to quickly pivot its program operations. For the Hiring Our Heroes events team \u2014 which in 2019 orchestrated 46 in-person events to include 28 Career Summits at military installations, 12 Hiring Expos, and six traditional events serving a total of 13,297 people \u2014 the pivot was a 180-degree turn. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last spring, while many companies and organizations were pushing pause, more than 200,000 service members were still full speed ahead with their military-to-civilian transitions. Without dedicated hiring events coming to their military installation and limited access to the multitude of in-person transition resources, the employment landscape for transitioning service members was especially daunting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this environment, Hiring Our Heroes faced a pressing question: How could we continue to deliver world-class curriculum without in-person events? How would transitioning service members, military spouses, and veterans connect with military-ready employers if they weren\u2019t shaking hands, exchanging business cards, and delivering elevator pitches at hiring events? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The answer? The launch of our Career Community<\/a> and the addition of Virtual Hiring Fairs and Virtual Career Fairs to Hiring Our Heroes\u2019 events lineup. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTransition is tough, and it was made tougher with the pandemic. The military community is our customer and we had to find innovative ways to keep serving our customers. Our virtual events did just that,\u201d said Eric Eversole, president of Hiring Our Heroes and a vice president at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On March 30, 2020, HOH launched its first series of Career Community webinars. HOH Brand Ambassador and retired U.S. Army CSM and former SEAC John Wayne Troxell<\/a> kicked off HOH\u2019s virtual programming with a leadership- and motivation-focused session. Other sessions that week included a trio of transition-focused webinars: Leveraging Indeed During Your Job Search<\/a>, LinkedIn for Veterans and Military Spouses<\/a>, and Preparing for Interviews; wellness-focused Wednesday BALANCE<\/a> workshops; \u201cIndustry Thursday\u201d sessions featuring expert panelists from the transportation industry, and an employer-spotlight session highlighting careers for veterans and military spouses at Amazon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The addition of virtual education and training allowed the military community to engage in career curriculum from anywhere, 24 hours a day. Last year, HOH orchestrated 244 virtual sessions, reaching more than 10,000 viewers<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The programming continues into 2021 with new sessions scheduled weekly. The Career Community is a resource that continues to educate the military community on career-focused topics, as well as focused training for military recruiters and employers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The virtual hiring events are also proving to be a blessing for employers still hoping to plug military talent into their pipelines. In 2020, many employers were not able to travel to hiring events and have faced extra roadblocks accessing job seekers at military installations with enforced COVID-19 restrictions. <\/p>\n\n\n\nWorking to Remove Roadblocks for Employers Hoping to Plug Military Talent into Their Pipelines<\/h4>\n\n\n\n