The Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce sent their new loaned executive, John Olshefski on a road trip to Fort Campbell last week. He attended a Career Summit held by Hiring Our Heroes, an initiative of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.
Olshefski, a retired U.S. Army Garrison Commander at Redstone Arsenal and executive at Huntsville Utilities, announced in early February plans to open a new space in the approach to recruiting veterans. It involves working to establish relationships with transition offices and military installations to share information about career opportunities in our region.
His strategy is to make a run on first and second level enlisted men and women leaving the Army at a young age, still in their early 20s. Olshefski believes he can introduce them to Huntsville’s high-paying blue-collar jobs where they can make $20 to $25 an hour with excellent benefits.
“I believe companies like Mazda Toyota Manufacturing (MTM), Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama (TMMAL), Raytheon, Boeing, and many others, are interested in these young military folks because of their maturity, discipline and strong work ethic,” Olshefski told 256 Today in early February.
His approach is a twist on traditional veteran recruitment strategies that target retired generals and colonels for consulting jobs, executive positions and technical support jobs but his new approach clearly planted a lot of seeds with these young veterans.
“This (Career Summit) was a super event — this is our country seeing a need to help these young men and women find jobs, and then helping them with practical ways to get hired,” said Olshefski. “They learned resume building tips, they learned about the importance of using LinkedIn, how to dress for an interview, and other things. I was really impressed with the quality of this career fair, and I encourage companies to support this effort.”
Olshefski shared with the potential recruits, information about Huntsville’s high quality of living and high-paying jobs for veterans and encouraged them to check out ASmartPlace.com for jobs and career opportunities.
The Chamber will take advantage of its partnership with Hiring Our Heroes to attend additional in-person and virtual veteran hiring events throughout the year.
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