Former veteran and
city administrator Dustin Rief explains.
BLOG POST | Nov 6,
2018
ICMA dedicates this blog post to veterans and transitioning military members. It also provides valuable tips and best practices for anyone trying to land a job in local government. These tips come from the new ICMA handbook, Veterans Guide to Finding a Job in Local Government.
Preparing for the
Cultural Shift from Military to Civilian Work Life
Dustin Rief, City
Administrator, Orono, Minnesota
A couple of the
challenges I had to overcome were the change in my authority and the impact my
decisions had and then filling the void. I was in the Army from 1996 to 2007
and rose to the rank of staff sergeant by seven years time-in-service. I
was responsible for millions of dollars in assets and numerous people. Shifting
from an enlisted E-6 with more than 10 years of service in 2007 to a sales job
in aviation did not carry the same responsibilities. There was no personnel to
manage; there was little financial responsibility, and my level of
responsibility and relevance seemed to be dismantled.
How Do You Overcome This
Hurdle?
Manage your
expectations and know that much of your life will not be the same, especially
at work. What I knew and what the civilian world expected me to know were not
exactly in line. I had to use my mind to transition my thinking and lingo out
of squad leader and platoon sergeant to manager and division manager. I had to
interpret my skills in managing soldiers and aviation maintenance programs into human
resource management and capital improvement plans. I had to transition my
counseling and NCOER (Non-Commissioned Officer Evaluation Report) writing
skills into writing ordinances and resolutions.
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