From Boots to Business: Transitioning from the Service to a Career in Business

by Jillian Ventrone, Robert W. Blue Jr., Roxanne Rapske, Julie LaCroix

Overview

Service members find that transitioning from active duty into the civilian sector can be abrupt, with mission demands leaving little time to prepare for new careers. Transitioning without guidance, resources, and proven strategies has left thousands of veterans sitting on the sidelines of civilian employment.

Business is a diverse field, with many subcategories to pursue and many routes available to fulfill career goals and achieve success. Designed to help personalize the experience while guiding readers through the breadth of available options, those interested in pursuing a career within the business realm or as a business owner will find Boots to Business to be a valuable reference guide. Whether new to a career field or pursuing a civilian career similar to the occupational specialty you held in the military, this book offers helpful information for planning, preparing, and executing your transition.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538126943
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	10/08/2020
Pages:	348
Product dimensions:	6.36(w) x 9.48(h) x 1.11(d)

About the Author

Jillian Ventrone is an adjunct veterans’ counselor at MiraCosta College, which is part of the California State Community College System. She counsels military and military-affiliated students regarding their higher education and career goals. She is the go-to expert for professional advice for those in the process of transitioning off active duty and into the civilian sector. She is a licensed professional counselor, a certified rehabilitation counselor, and a certified career counselor. She has written five other books, including From the Marine Corps to College: Transitioning from the Service to Higher Education (Rowman and Littlefield, 2014), From the Navy to College: Transitioning from the Service to Higher Education (Rowman and Littlefield, 2015), From the Army to College: Transitioning from the Service to Higher Education (Rowman and Littlefield, 2016), From the Air Force to College: Transitioning from the Service to Higher Education (Rowman and Littlefield, 2016), Balancing Life and Education While Being a Part of a Military Family: A Guide to Navigating Higher Education for the Military Spouse (Rowman and Littlefield, 2017), that were designed to assist service members in the Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Army, as well as dependent family members.

Robert W. Blue has been a civilian education and career counselor for the military since 2001, working in the San Diego area on Navy and Marine Corps bases providing higher education services to Marines and sailors of all ranks, from junior enlisted to admiral. He has been responsible for setting up college programs, including classroom instruction, on dozens of U.S. Navy ships.

Roxanne Rapske is a franchise consultant , specializing in using the company's proven franchise matching system and her own unique experience in the business world to consult with clients and to match them to a franchise that offers the best personal and professional fit for their needs. She teaches for a transition seminar for service members held aboard the Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base in California. In this seminar she teaches active duty service members, veterans, and military spouses about the process of owning a franchise to demonstrate that it may be a viable option for those service members who prefer to start their own business versus working for someone else.

Julie LaCroix has been a career counselor in private practice for over a decade, based in Southern California and serving adults of all ages.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Is Business the Right Option for You?

• Assessment (personality/vocational/interests/aptitudes/college) methods: Which assessments to use and why. Determining the results and alignment to the business or entrepreneurial field.
• Matching career with personality type: Types of business-related fields or businesses to pursue based on personality type and how to channel these traits into a prosperous career.
• Military occupational specialty (MOS) translator: For service members to determine civilian-sector career pathways that align to their military occupational specialty/rating.
• Pros and cons of business ownership to include description of the lifestyle. Chapter: Which Track is Best for You?
• College to work or college to entrepreneurship/franchise: Advantages and disadvantages of going to work for an established business first. Determining the correct amount of education. Benefits of attending school first.
• Career strategy stages: Selecting college majors that result in career progression, planning career progression, mentors, forming goals.
• Vocational training for small business owners: Credentials or licenses as a catalyst for small business ownership and the high demand for trained individuals who also have management potential.
• Direct to entrepreneurship or franchise. Chapter: Picking a degree program.
• Accreditation: Institutional and programmatic.
• Degrees: Types, differences, range of subjects to look for in a degree program.
• Specialized business degrees such as logistics, IT management, aviation management, international business, and business with an entrepreneurial focus. Combined bachelor's and master's degree programs and the benefits of graduate school. Internships, apprenticeships, and on-the-job training.
• Certificates to enhance resumes: OSHA, Lean, Lean Six Sigma, Project Management
• Professional, SHRM.
• School resources: Internships, career resource departments and personnel (career counselors), and organizations sponsored by colleges and universities.

Chapter 2: Study Business Abroad and Work Abroad

• Purpose: Advantages of learning a second language, problems and pitfalls to consider or avoid, sample programs and countries, countries that allow foreign students to work while attending school.
• Using the GI Bill abroad and getting VA GI Bill approval for a school that is not currently approved for benefits.

Chapter 3: Networking

• Importance: Developing a strategy, desired outcomes, and goals necessary to create the framework for a plan, public speaking and help for refining speaking (Toastmasters).
• Resources: Service organizations that promote regular networking around military bases, veterans' and professional organizations.

Chapter 4: Preparing to Enter the Workforce

• Resources to prepare: Payscale.com, Indeed.com, CareerScope Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, LinkedIn (military-based workshops), O*NET, Glassdoor, state-based sites such as Illinois WorkNet Center, California Career Zone, and New Hampshire Works Job Match System.
• Resumes: Translating military skills, articulating career focus, substantiating focus with related skills and career experiences. Streamlining resumes, constructing profiles of capabilities and potential. Demonstrating evidence that substantiates career direction for hiring managers. Online resources for writing.
• Cover letters: Introducing the writer to the hiring manager. Letters to tell stories and are designed to be strategic documents that hook the reader's interest, pitch the writer's experience, and show momentum for the role the writer is looking to fill.
• Interviewing: Positive demonstrations on paper that lead to interviews. Preparing properly. Developing an identity for the position. Understanding and preparing for skills- based panel questions.
• Portfolio: Purpose; resources to create and publish an e-Portfolio; military, academic, and professional items to include.

Chapter 5: Franchise Opportunities and Small Businesses

• Personality profiling: What types of businesses are you best suited for?
• Transferable skill set: Organize and define. Understanding your aptitude (skill set), your areas of interest, and choosing a business based on these factors to maximize success.
• Hiring others to help: Determining areas of weakness and contract with professionals to maximize business benefits.

• Business models: Owner operator, executive model, semi-absentee.
• Finding franchise opportunities.
• Developing an entrepreneurship.
• Financing a business: Resources available, personal investment determination. Chapter: Resources
• Syracuse University Institute for Veterans and Military Families programs.
• Department of Defense two-day small business tracks aboard military bases for transitioning service members.
• The Small Business Administration, SCORE, Small Business Development Centers, local Chambers of Commerce, state government resources, local resources.
• Resources aboard military bases and in the surrounding community (such as the Employment Development Department in California) for assistance with all topics related to career transition assistance.

Chapter 6: GI Bill and Benefits

• GI Bills.
• Vocational Rehabilitation.
• Financial assistance: Federal Student Aid, civilian state-based benefits, state-based veterans' education benefits.

GI Bill Comparison Tool.

Editorial Reviews

This book should be required reading for any military member interested in pursuing a career in the business arena. The authors have created a goldmine of resources that if used should give the reader a head start to success in their pursuit. Understanding your interests, transferable skills, and communication preferences are key to successfully crafting one’s future. While the target audience is military members – veteran and active duty - pursuing business careers, these resources are applicable to a number of fields, not to mention their applicability to self-discovery for any student.

David C. Taylor

This work may interest readers who are members of a military force or who may be veterans, considering opportunities and guidance in a career in business. Drawing on terms familiar to service members, this guidebook from military counselors and consultants Ventrone, Robert Blue, Roxanne Rapske, and Jule LeCroix encourages readers to explore such opportunities and resources in a step-by-step approach.. .. Recommended for service veterans or those who belong to a military force and are interested in pursuing a career in business.

Booklist

From Boots to Business is a guide that can help active duty service members and veterans interested in a career in business or business ownership build a foundation of knowledge that will better prepare them to tackle their personal journey. The book brings together many informational resources that would otherwise be difficult to find and defines their purpose and usefulness for the reader. It is purposeful for those who are ready to start planning for their futures and those who are already attending school or preparing to do so.

Rebecca Morgan

06/01/2020

This work may interest readers who are members of a military force or who may be veterans, considering opportunities and guidance in a career in business. Drawing on terms familiar to service members, this guidebook from military counselors and consultants Ventrone, Robert Blue, Roxanne Rapske, and Jule LeCroix encourages readers to explore such opportunities and resources in a step-by-step approach. Educational requirements, entrepreneurial pathways, and training opportunities for small business ownership are examined in selected chapters. The authors recommend specific courses and programs in different institutions to develop a plan of action. Job interview questions are also highlighted, and authors provide tips in acing these questions. One useful aspect is the list of resources for internship and online learning opportunities. Another helpful feature is the self-assessment tools for readers to gauge their skill set and career interests. Some statistics, such as median pay for a particular job or job outlook may become outdated but can provide a ballpark for readers. VERDICT Recommended for service veterans or those who belong to a military force and are interested in pursuing a career in business.—Raymond Pun, New York P.L.

Library Journal