Moody transition team gives separating Airmen tools for success

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Ceaira Tinsley
  • 23d Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Moody's transition team gave separating Airmen a jumpstart on the competition for when they enter the job market, during a workshop at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., Aug. 26.

The Ready, Set, Go: Resume and Networking Workshop is designed as a stepping stone to ensure separating Airmen are confident and competent to take the journey back into civilian life. It included one-on-one help with modern day résumé writing, mock interviews, do's and don'ts of interviews, and advice on how to market yourself.

"We are basically taking résumés that have been created coming out of the TAP program [Transition Assistance Program] and we're helping to critique and tweak those résumés so we can provide the outside stand point," said Miranda Moore, Valdosta-Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce marketing and government affairs specialist. "If this was to come across my desk this is what I would want to see versus what you have shown me. "

The goal of the workshop was to assist Moody team members in transitioning from military life back to civilian life.

"We want to help every [Department of Defense] ID card holder," Moore explained. "If we can help, we want to help. Our strategy is to build a bridge between anyone who is separating and the employing community."

The workshop focused on the importance of having a well-prepared résumé by offering step-by-step individual assistance that critiqued the entire process of gaining employment.

Tony McKenzie, Georgia Department of Labor services specialist, said your résumé is critical. It's your marketing tool that speaks to who you are and what you bring before you get to speak.

One of the obstacles people face while job hunting is grabbing the employer's attention, making them remember you and obtaining the interview.

"One of the biggest challenges is understanding how and what you bring to the table," said McKenzie. "Also being able to take the skills you've learned in the military and translating that into a format the civilian community can understand."

"Employers are going to spend maybe 20 seconds reviewing a résumé before they move on to the next one," said Moore. "So we are helping them to ensure that the information is provided briefly, accurately and effectively and doing so in a way that it is going to catch the employer's attention. If you have the greatest résumé and they don't remember anything about you, then it's kind of pointless."

Additionally, the workshop highlighted many common mistakes that military members make when writing a civilian résumé.

Moore said that in her experience, military résumés are often too lengthy and contain a lot of acronyms. Employers need to be able to understand what skills you have, not what job title you had.

After a day of critiquing and tweaking résumés, one of the guests in attendance, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Collin Crowe, 23d Equipment Maintenance Squadron avionics technician, said the workshop was helpful because when he starts applying for jobs after the military he will know exactly what to expect.

The workshop was used as preparation for the upcoming Moody Transition Expo scheduled for Sept. 4.

"The main focus of this campaign has all been building up to Sept. 4th," said Moore. "This event (workshop) was created specifically to bridge the gap between the TAP program and the employers in the community."

Numerous organizations collaborated to create the workshop and the upcoming job expo including: Georgia Department of Labor, Valdosta-Lowndes county Chamber of Commerce, all of the area's higher education, employer committees and local media.

"This has been a community wide collaboration, and I cannot stress that enough," said Moore. "This would not have happened without joint partnerships with a variety of organizations in the community."