NextOp Receives Donation from Waste Management
Houston — February 27, 2018– NextOp, Inc. is pleased to announce it has received a $5,000 grant from Waste Management to support NextOp’s innovative veteran employment programming.
The overall goal and mission of NextOp is to recruit, train and place high-performing military leaders into industry careers, which would not be possible without the assistance received from corporations like Waste Management. The NextOp Employment Program has placed over 1,000 veterans into industry careers since launching in March 2015.
With this grant, NextOp Veterans will be able to successfully guide more veterans through their post-military transition and place them into their next career.
At Waste Management, they place special emphasis on hiring veterans. In 2017, they hired 1,053 veterans into a wide spectrum of positions which accounted for 8.6 percent of their U.S. hires. They are proud to exceed federal VEVRAA and USERRA hiring standards every year.
“Many of our veterans have extensive operations and logistics skills and experience from their time in service. NextOp’s collaboration with Waste Management will help our team match more of our highly skilled military candidates with great careers in their many locations and lines of business,” stated NextOp Executive Director John Boerstler.
Wes Reel from Waste Management talent acquisition states, “Waste Management considers military veterans a valuable population for talent because of the many tangible (training and experience) and intangible (work ethic and character) qualities they bring to us. Additionally, certain fields from the military translate particularly well, such as military ground transportation, vehicle fleet maintenance and construction/engineering.”
About NextOp Veterans
NextOp provides companies with world-class military talent candidates and coaches them on how to be effective and valuable employees. Mentors work with each transitioning veteran to adjust to their new roles and cultivate the necessary skills to excel in new careers. NextOp serves those who have served so many—our hardworking veterans. For more information on the organization’s services, please visit www.nextopvets.org
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If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Anna Jimenez at (832) 735-0051 or email at anna@nextopvets.org.
NextOp Veterans Receives Donation From Shell
Houston, TX, November 29, 2017– NextOp, Inc. is pleased to announce it has received a generous donation from Shell Oil Company to support multiple programs, including the 2017 Shell Petrochemical Day.
The overall goal and mission of NextOp is to recruit, train and place high-performing military leaders into industry careers, which would not be possible without the assistance received from corporate partners like Shell. The NextOp Employment Program has placed nearly 1,000 veterans into industry careers since launching in March 2015.
With this grant partnership, NextOp Veterans will be able to successfully guide more veterans through their post-military transition and place them into their next career. Shell’s investment will help improve military employment programs and continue the mission to help assist transitioning veterans into all industries, including the energy industry.
The 2017 Shell Petrochemical Industry Day is a unique way to inspire many veterans to look at 2-year educational opportunities that can lead to new careers.
“Shell and its Workforce & Community Strategic Initiatives team have been one of our best partners since we started in 2015. Their commitment as a company to attract, recruit and retain military talent is truly special and should be a best practice across the industry,” stated NextOp Executive Director John Boerstler.
“We are proud to have hosted two successful industry days with Shell and are excited to plan and execute more in the future in both Texas and Louisiana,” he added.
Shell and the Workforce & Community Strategic Initiatives team works to build strong relationships and improve the future of communities. “Shell is proud to provide NextOp with the donation and support to execute programs that educate, empower and attract military service men and women to the energy industry and Shell,” says Scott Ballard, Executive Vice President, Human Resources North America.
About NextOp Veterans
NextOp provides companies with world-class military talent candidates and coaches them on how to be effective and valuable employees. Mentors work with each transitioning veteran to adjust to their new roles and cultivate the necessary skills to excel in new careers. NextOp serves those who have served so many—our hardworking veterans. For more information on the organization’s services, please visit www.nextopvets.org
About Shell Oil Company
Shell Oil Company is an affiliate of the Royal Dutch Shell plc, a global group of energy and petrochemical companies with operations in more than 70 countries. In the U.S., Shell operates in 50 states and employs more than 18,000 people working to help tackle the challenges of the new energy future.
About Shell Workforce and Strategic Community Initiatives
Shell Workforce and Strategic Community Initiatives (WCSI) understand that vibrant and healthy communities benefit everyone. Public health, civic engagement and workforce development are key focus areas for the WCSI Team. Together with national programs and community college partners, WCSI is looking to create economic opportunities, provide relief after natural disasters and increase the impact of volunteerism. For more information, visit http://www.shell.us/sustainability/shell-in-the-community.html and www.shell.us/energyizeyourfuture
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If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Anna Jimenez at (832) 735-0051 or email at anna@nextopvets.org.
Value of Veteran Recruiting Initiatives
Who are you?
John is Executive Director of NextOp, a non-profit organization whose mission is to recruit, train, and place high-performing mid-level enlisted military leaders into industry. John served in the United States Marine Corps from 1999-2007 as an infantry unit leader. His overseas assignments include Iraq, Kuwait, Syria, Jordan, Djibouti, and Kenya. In 2009 John helped found the Lone Star Veterans Association (LSVA), which has become the largest network of Post 9/11 veterans in Texas. In 2015, John worked with regional leaders to establish the Combined Arms network, a first of its kind community-based transition system built to accelerate the impact of veterans on Houston.
John holds a Bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M and a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Houston. John is also a recipient of the prestigious Marshall Memorial Fellowship, representing the United States in eight different European countries during a month-long fellowship. As a Marshall Fellow, John has also traveled to the United Kingdom, Israel and Denmark to write comparative papers on their military transition systems and is planning to travel to Ukraine in Spring 2017 to assist in the development of their military transition infrastructure.
What do you do at NextOp?
Mostly serve as the janitor but also work with the board of directors on passing an annual budget, approving policy, setting strategic vision and authoring of 3 year strategic plan for the organization.
Serve as the chief financial officer, programs officer, development officer (fundraising), and anything that helps build the brand with military installations, corporate partners, foundations, grant making institutions, our 3 advisory boards, mentor universe, strategic partners and generally anyone who will support our veterans!
Value of Veteran Recruiting Initiatives
The value of military and veteran recruiting initiatives not only impacts working culture, safety, productivity, team orientation, and respect within an organization, learning how to recruit, train, and retain veteran employees has proven to have a significant impact on a company’s bottom line. The Corporate Executive Board recently found that veteran employees not only have a lower turnover rate than their civilian counterparts, but also have a higher productivity rate. So, veteran employees do not only save the company money but they make companies more money too!
We all know that veterans’ “soft skills” are the most sought after for companies such as showing up early, staying late, learning things faster, adapting to the mission, showing respect to supervisors, and working well in teams. Veterans also come with significant hard skills too, depending on their MOS or military occupational specialty. Although the military does not do a great job of providing civilian credentials for many of these learned skills, veterans may be able to test into mechanically and technically oriented positions right out of the military, they just need the chance to prove their value.
By developing a military or veteran recruiting initiative, companies can take advantage of these great opportunities to improve their workforce by attracting more military talent. It does not have to cost a lot either. For example, if you already have employees who are veterans, recruiting and hiring managers can activate them to attend job fairs, design military-specific marketing collateral and provide their perspective on how to best develop a veteran recruiting plan. HR professionals can also tap into expert military recruiting organizations like NextOp to source veteran candidates from regional bases and other marketing portals in the community.
There are many cost-effective solutions to recruit, train, and retain military employees into an organization such as insourcing and outsourcing – or a combination of both – to ensure your team is successful in taking advantage of America’s greatest human resource.
How to Find Key Words in Job Descriptions to Tailor Your Resume
Who are you?
My name is Jonathan Barreda and I am a Marine Veteran who deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in the Helmand Providence.
What do you do at NextOp?
At NextOp, I am one of the Employment Team Coordinators who works with the veterans to assist them in their search for employment in their desired industry.
How to Find Key Words in Job Descriptions to Tailor Resume
Having a resume that stands out when given to a recruiter can be challenging and confusing. I use the term confusing loosely because I can get an opinion from multiple people and still not have a clear direction of what should be included in the resume. Something else that can be challenging can be a special task that requires time and a selection process to pick out a job. I personally read the resume and either highlight repeated words that can be considered hard/soft skills and recommend that there is an emphasis on those specifically highlighted words. Rule of thumb is that if an employer is looking for a certain candidate they would expect the resume to answer all of the requirements on the resume itself.
There are some tools that I wish I would have known when I started my transition from the Marine Corps. The website JobScan.co can be a great asset because you can easily see what are the words that are mostly used in the job description and you can capitalize on explaining your accomplishments. Another source that I found very useful was O-net Online and that site helps you see what type of jobs would be closest related to your military specialty. At the end of the day, NextOp is here to assist in translating military experience to civilian terms.
Memories for Military May 2017
“The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example” — Benjamin Disraeli
NextOp’s Military May Mentorship & Fundraising Campaign kicks off May 1st, the first day of National Military Appreciation Month! Highly motivated Fire Teams of supporters compete against each other to raise awareness and funds that will help get more veterans employed. Aimed at easing the post-military transition process, our goal is to recruit more mentors that would like to guide veterans into long-term careers, raise funds to help NextOp improve our employment programs, find more job opportunities, and reach more veterans in need of our services. Learn more about our Military May Mentorship & Fundraising Campaign here.
CELEBRATE THE SERVICE MEMBERS IN YOUR LIVES!
Help us recognize our nation’s veterans and their service to our country by submitting military pictures to anna@nextopvets.org. Please be sure to include the name of the service member and branch of service.
Military Construction (MILCON) Summit
ABOUT MILCON
Military and construction industry experts will come together to highlight upcoming reductions in force, major issues impacting soldier transition into the construction industry, as well as provide direct networking opportunities for soldiers and construction professionals.
Organizations Speaking at MILCON
NEXTOP, INC.
NextOp recruits, trains, and places high-performing middle-enlisted military leaders into Industry careers.
NextOp provides companies with world-class, skilled candidates and coaches them on how to be effective employees. Our mentors work with each transitioning veteran to adjust to their new roles and cultivate the necessary skills to excel in field work, increasing satisfaction and reducing turnover for these positions. We serve those who have served so many—our hardworking veterans.
Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC)
ABC is a national construction industry trade association representing more than 21,000 members. Founded on the merit shop philosophy, ABC and its 70 chapters help members develop people, win work and deliver that work safely, ethically and profitably for the betterment of the communities in which ABC and its members work. ABC’s membership represents all specialties within the U.S. construction industry and is comprised primarily of firms that perform work in the industrial and commercial sectors.
Speaker and Presentation
Mike Glavin, ABC Workforce Policy Director
Construction Industry Workforce Data Construction Industry Workforce Data »
The National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER)
NCCER is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) education foundation created in 1996 as The National Center for Construction Education and Research. It was developed with the support of more than 125 construction CEOs and various association and academic leaders who united to revolutionize training for the construction industry. Sharing the common goal of developing a safe and productive workforce, these companies created a standardized training and credentialing program for the industry.
Speaker and Presentation
Mark Thomas, NCCER- Senior Manager, Programs NCCER
Construction Credentialing Programs for Engineering Soldiers & Officers Construction Credentialing for Soldiers »
The Society of American Military Engineers (SAME)
The Society of American Military Engineers leads collaborative efforts to identify and resolve national security infrastructure-related challenges. Founded in 1920, SAME unites public and private sector individuals and organizations from across the architecture, engineering, construction, environmental and facility management, cyber security, project planning, contracting and acquisition, and related disciplines in support of national security.
Speaker and Presentation
Joe Schondrel, Executive Director SAME- Society of American Military Engineers
MSG Jason Parlor, US Army School of Engineering- NCCER Construction Credentialing Programs for Engineering Soldiers & Officers
The Soldier for Life- Transition Assistance Program (SFL-TAP) Fort Hood, TX
The Soldier for Life — Transition Assistance Program (SFL-TAP) is a centrally funded commanders program that provides transition assistance services to eligible Soldiers. Public Law is the foundation of the Transition Assistance Program initiative, along with DOD and Army policy. SFL-TAP supports the Army’s Active Component recruiting effort by producing successful alumni. Those who are capable of translating Army skills, training, and experience into rewarding careers are living billboards promoting the Army as a great place to start.
Speaker and Presentation
LTC Jon Sowards, Soldier for Life Central Region Director
Permissive TDY Policies and Soldier Life Cycle ARMY 101 »
Martin Traylor, Fort Hood SFL-TAP Transition Services Manager
Transition Assistance Program Transition Assistance Program »
Did you miss MILCON?
Don’t worry you can still register with NextOp
We will help you with your veteran hiring needs
Date and Time
Thu Apr 20, 2017
7:30 AM – 7:30 PM CDT
Fri. Apr 21, 2017
7:30 AM – 11:30 AM CDT
Location
Texas A&M University Central
Warrior Hall, Multipurpose Room
1001 Leadership Place Killeen, TX 76549
Parking Map
NextOp Placements since 2015
MILCON PROUD SPONSORS
Title Sponsor
AECOM is a global network of experts working with clients, communities and colleagues to develop and implement innovative solutions to the world’s most complex challenges. Delivering clean water and energy. Building iconic skyscrapers. Planning new cities. Restoring damaged environments. Connecting people and economies with roads, bridges, tunnels and transit systems. Designing parks where children play. Helping governments maintain stability and security.
Installation Sponsor
PCL Industrial Construction Co. is a diversified heavy industrial contractor, based in Atlanta, Georgia, and Houston, Texas, with extensive experience in the power, oil, gas, chemical, cement/aggregates, mining/minerals, and pulp and paper industries. An expansive project portfolio consists of work throughout the United States.
Soldier Social Sponsors
Corps Sponsors
The Benefits of Mentorship
During your time in the service, you were trained to lead. In the office or in the field, you know leadership involves taking your junior service members to the side whether in a group or individually and teaching them the ropes.
You mentored them; you taught them how to think and take care of others, you gave them the tools necessary to succeed.
Your enthusiasm and knowledge made them the leaders they are today.
Now that many service members are transitioning, they need your guidance again. Remember how you felt when you made that decision to transition.
If you’re interested in becoming a Mentor and helping transitioning veterans, please REGISTER HERE!
“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.”
—Benjamin Franklin
Mission Accomplished: The 300
This year, NextOp Veterans had a goal; it was to have 300 veterans and transitioning military hired in the construction, healthcare, and energy industries by the end of 2016.
We reached that goal on October 31st and to date NextOp has placed over 450 Veterans since March 2015.
NextOp’s impact on the local economy is over $25 million based on the first year earnings of 456 successfully placed veterans.
We wouldn’t be able to reach this goal without the support of our Corporate Partners and our Top Contributors. Without your contributions and support, we wouldn’t be able to successfully serve those who served.
Our Top Contributors and Supporters:
The William Stamps Farish Fund
Chevron Phillips Chem Co LP
Vaughn Construction Community Foundation
Strake Foundation
Herzstein Charitable Foundation
KBR
Adaptive Construction Solutions
Harris Health
Bechtel
Consolidated Infrastructure Group
Marek
Performance Contractors
Schulte Building Systems
Shell
Schlumberger
Cajun
Texas Medical Center TMC
Fort Polk
Fort Sam Houston
Fort Hood
Insight on Schlumberger’s Industry Day
NextOp Veterans partnered up with Schlumberger for Industry Day, held at the company’s Sugar Land Technology Centers on Oct. 21.
The day was filled with informative sessions where veterans learned about the oil and gas industry, and how to enter the industry.
Veterans toured the rigs, received personalized resume coaching, and interview coaching by Schlumberger’s human resource professionals.
Schlumberger is one of the world’s largest oil field services company, with offices in Paris, Houston, London, and more. According to the Houston Business Journal, the company plans to move their National Headquarters to Sugarland. The anticipated completion date for the new headquarters is 2019.
The company is Houston’s third largest public company based on the Houston Business Journal’s research.
If you missed the last Industry Day, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn for the next Industry Day, and be sure to register with us for career placement assistance, mentorship, and career guidance.
