A Veteran’s Perspective: Make the Tempo Fit the Team

by Chris Derson

I got out of the Marine Corps in 2020. I left the special operations community and walked straight back into the same civilian world I had left 12 years prior. The civilian world I left included my childhood home and friends. I went on to work a variety of different jobs and eventually earned my bachelor’s degree. While I could talk all day on the thought of feeling like a displaced warrior in unfamiliar territory, there are several observations that are critical to highlight. These observations deal with the civilian workforce.

The civilian workforce (so far) is a strange beast. I have never been able to view a job as a job. I have always viewed a job as an identity (a personal dilemma that I am working to resolve). I am a warrior, you are a fellow warrior, a mechanic, a human resources specialist, a support specialist…etc. The take away is I AM and YOU ARE, not “I work in security” and “you work as a mechanic.” I have viewed jobs and lives like MOS (military occupational specialties). Some of the things I have noticed in the civilian workforce have bothered me greatly. I will speak about these things (observations) in the paragraphs below.

Bachelor’s degrees appear to be taking a backseat. What I have observed seems as though having a bachelors degree is no longer the proverbial “golden ticket” like it used to be. In my experience, employers often post narrowly scoped education and experience requirements that are so “niche” I wonder how they hire anyone. This makes sense for the more critical careers out there (medical, science, math, etc.). For some of the other careers though I am left “shook.”

Take for example a job posting for a physical security specialist. A common theme might be 5-10 years of directly related experience and or a master’s degree and half of the required experience. The employer takes the “directly” and “related” parts of the job requirements with complete seriousness. I suppose it’s easier and cheaper to hire the exact fit than trying to grow the new hire into the position. This concept has to contribute to low staffing levels. Why not invest in the “who”? Sometimes even the qualified are not the right person for the job.

Employers may treat military service (and police work) as if there is no autonomy. I experienced this when interviewing for an insurance adjuster position. I seemed to have a positive rapport with the interviewer and exceeded the minimum requirements for the job. After what felt like a great interview, I was informed I was not selected because I had not demonstrated enough “individual decision making.” I had spoken extensively of my discretion and initiative in decisions as a police officer. I had given numerous examples of my initiative and judgement through a retelling of my Marine Corps career. Maybe it was something I subconsciously said that I hadn’t realized. Maybe I subconsciously clashed with the interviewer and that clash was masked by the digital venue in which we conducted the interview. I will likely never know nor will I ever work for them.

In several jobs there is the standard of “paid” lunches. This is more commonly known as a working lunch. 5 minutes? 10 minutes? 1 minute? The rationale is that you had the opportunity to take a lunch/break, there is work to be done and you’re paid to do it. I learned this lesson as a private in the Marine Corps. Working through lunch with the promise of going on “Libo” shortly thereafter the task was completed. It doesn’t work like that. Working through lunch stretches your employees thin (physically, mentally, and emotionally) and creates an unrealistic expectation in productivity. If there is not enough time for your people to take their lunches and breaks, you have failed to plan and supervise as a leader. There are some jobs that demand and deserve “working” lunches (medical, military, and sometimes law enforcement), but for the most part, many of the jobs out there do not demand such rigorous scheduling.

Staffing shortages are EVERY employee’s problem. Starting at the bottom it begins with one employee taking on an incredible number of tasks because there is a lack of additional employees to assist. The employee, desiring to be promoted and to look good for their supervisors, accomplishes the assigned tasks with no complaints and no indication that they were “overworked and stretched thin.” It moves up from there because the manager/leadership says: “I put an enormous amount of stress and work on my employee and he still accomplished what I asked.” This false expectation becomes the new standard because the employee(s) didn’t advise the supervisor that they (the employee(s)) were unable to meet the expectations (without unnecessarily difficult effort) due to not enough manpower.

Good employees try to satisfy the expectations of their leaders. This results in employees overworking themselves and so the problem of “not enough people” never comes to light because the leadership never sees the decline in productivity. This vicious cycle continuous up the chain and sets an unrealistic expectation for productivity. Leaders should know the capabilities and limitations of their people (assets). Assets should communicate with their leaders to let them know they “need more people.” This is not to say employees shouldn’t work hard to support the organization. This is saying that employees and employers must be honest with themselves as to the capabilities of their teams.

These are a few of my own observations. These are some of my experiences and perspectives. This is my way of venting. There are plenty of wonderful organizations out there who hire veterans without batting an eye. There are many strong workforce leaders who lead by example and treat their subordinates with love and care. I am grateful that there are employees who would accept and accomplish monumental tasks to support the objectives of the organization with whom they are employed.

I wish that companies would look at persons as a whole and not just based on the experience and education requirements written in black and white. I also wish that more organizational leaders could identify that they do not have enough employees to sustain their tempo of operations. I wish that instead of trying to make the “team fit the tempo” they make the “tempo fit the team.”

___________________________

This first appeared in The Havok Journal on December 5, 2024.

Chris spent 12 years in the Marine Corps as a grunt and an operator with MARSOC. After getting out he worked as a police officer for a year and a half and is currently employed in the physical security/safety field.

As the Voice of the Veteran Community, The Havok Journal seeks to publish a variety of perspectives on a number of sensitive subjects. Unless specifically noted otherwise, nothing we publish is an official point of view of The Havok Journal or any part of the U.S. government.