FORTUNE also quotes Cameron-Brooks President and CEO, René Brooks, about the value of JMO combat experience.  Here is an excerpt:  “That’s the kind of maturity that corporate recruiters covet, says headhunter René Brooks, who with her husband, Roger Cameron, runs a firm, Cameron-Brooks, that specializes in placing junior military officers. Brooks says that her clients noticed a difference right away when she began sending them veterans of the conflict in Iraq. ‘There’s definitely a difference in the breadth of experiences of the officers who are coming out of combat,” she says. “They’re able to go from Plan A to Plan B to Plan C without missing a beat.’”

To read the full article on FORTUNE’s website go to – http://money.cnn.com/2010/03/04/news/companies/military_business_leaders.fortune/index.htm

Cameron-Brooks is also proud of the article because it features one of our alumi, Tracey Lloyd who made the transition to Wal-Mart at our August 2008 Career Conference.  Tracy is now a Wal-Mart store manager in Florida.  To learn more about her story, watch the video on FORTUNE’s website at – http://money.cnn.com/video/fortune/2010/03/05/f_west_point_wal_mart.fortune/.

With the unemployment rate dropping from 10% to 9.7% at the start of 2010, US Gross Domestic Product growing again, and demand for leaders which the FORTUNE Magazine article supports, Cameron-Brooks expects the job market for talented JMOs to continue to improve.  We are currently wrapping up our January Career Conference follow-up interview process with most candidates accepting positions.  Those January Candidates had an average of 10 interviews at the Conference, every candidate had the opportunity for follow-up interviews with a company, and the average number of follow up interviews per candidate was close to 4.  These numbers are an increase from 2009 and demonstrate that companies must continue to bring in talented leaders.   Here is the key to capitalize on:  You cannot just “wing” your transition.  The bar is still high.  Not all companies are hiring, and not all companies have positions open that are well matched for your background.  It takes the right preparation and career strategy to make a successful transition from the military to a high quality company in a position that will allow you to use all of your JMO skills.

Finally, Cameron-Brooks is now on YouTube.  In addition to our Facebook page, Website and this Blog, our YouTube page is designed to bring Cameron-Brooks closer  to you.  I encourage you to visit the page – http://www.youtube.com/user/TheCameronBrooks?feature=mhw4.

Joel Junker

I thought I had read and learned as much about goal setting as possible, until I read Heart of the Student Athlete by Karl Mecklenburg.  I ordered this book for my oldest daughter who is a swimmer and a good student.  I also ordered it because I am a fan of Karl Mecklenburg.  Karl played linebacker for the Denver Broncos from 1983 to 1996 and more importantly is from Minnesota (my home state) and played football for the University of Minnesota.  Logically, Mecklenburg devotes a chapter to goal setting as a key component to being a top performing student athlete.  However, he focuses on what he calls preparation goals.  Preparation goals are goals set for practices, studying for tests or  even focus areas set prior to a business meeting, sales call or an important production day.  This is in contrast to goals such as number of wins, points scored, revenues achieved, sales closed and production increases.  Mecklenburg contends that those specific goals should be team goals, and writes, “Game goals should be limited to team goals….  Points will take care of themselves when hustle, teamwork and proper technique are used.”  In other words, if one sets goals regarding the preparation, fundamentals and teamwork, points and results will take care of themselves.  Setting specific preparation goals will ensure reaching your desired outcome whether that be points, revenue, production or closed sales contracts.

Mecklenburg describes a time when he couldn’t make a tackle during a game because the guard kept blocking him.  His coach informed him that he wasn’t seeing the guard or using his hands to take on the block.  The next week in practice he set a preparation goal to watch the guard on every scrimmage play and focus on proper hand technique.  Notice he didn’t say he would see the guard and use proper hand technique in the next game.  Instead he set a preparation goal.  The result?  After the next game, he was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Week.

After reading Heart of the Student Athlete, I am using the preparation goal concept in both my professional and personal life.  In my professional life, I am setting preparation goals for the week and each day.  This keeps me from being complacent.  Some examples of preparation goals include, focusing on listening more than talking when interviewing candidates, being more accurate with information I pass to my team members, rehearsing presentations with effective diagrams and charts, and identifying people’s different communication styles in order to build  relationships with them.  These goals will lead to better results in my relationships with client companies and candidates, thus helping all involved achieve their goals.  Personally, I use preparation goals in fitness, focusing on technique and effort versus specific times and weights; though I do set long term goals in those other areas.  Also, personally, I am communicating this concept with my children as to how they approach their week in swimming, gymnastics and school work.  For example, my second daughter struggles with spelling (takes after her mom).  She is setting a preparation goal of checking her spelling homework twice before submitting it, and thereby learning the habit of attention to detail.

The concept of preparation goals easily translates to a JMO in the process of a business career transition.  Cameron-Brooks has a reading program, self-evaluation modules, interviewing webcasts, podcasts and exercises, as well as personal face to face meetings as tools leading up to initial interviews.  Specific preparation goals could be reading two business books a month, teaching others the concepts learned and applying a concept from each book within one month of reading the book.  Sometimes candidates need to work on improving communication skills which are key to successful interviewing.  They will set preparation goals to work on voice inflection during conversations with others at work or elsewhere, being more succinct in answering questions, or joining Toastmasters International.  For interviewing, I have been recommending that candidates set preparation goals in developing in-depth answers to why they like the company, the industry and position, as well as identifying the 5 strengths they want to communicate to the company, and 2 accomplishments that connect to the position for which they are interviewing.  I then suggest the next preparation goal should be to practice those answers 2 to 3 times prior to the interview.  If they do this, the end result of the interview will take care of itself.  They can’t control the recruiters’ impressions but they can control their preparation and effort.

 Like my daughter using preparation goals to achieve the habit of attention to detail, adopting the setting of preparation goals into one’s daily routine will develop habits that will continue throughout one’s career and life not only to deepen one’s reservoir of knowledge but also to build up those around us as they strive towards their goals. Points will follow!

Joel Junker

A Regional Sales Manager for one of our medical device clients told me a funny story at our January Career Conference that reminded me of the learning and self-development required in a new career.  This manager hired a Cameron-Brooks JMO from our November 2009 Conference and assigned him to a training location in San Diego, CA.  Because this candidate’s spouse is finishing up her career in Dallas, he occasionally has been flying from San Diego to Dallas to spend the weekend with her.  This particular Regional Manager also happens to live in Dallas.  Recently, late on a Friday evening, the manager who had been conducting business in Southern California during the preceeding week, boarded an American Airlines flight back to his home office in Dallas.  As he walked down the aisle of the plane, he noticed the candidate (now employee of the company) whom he had recently hired.  Remember, it is late on a Friday afternoon and this Cameron-Brooks Alumnus likely just completed a long week of work with a lot of early mornings.  He could have been sleeping, sipping on a cocktail, or reading a good novel.  Instead, he had his laptop open playing a DVD demonstration of a new surgical procedure and an anatomy textbook open at his side.  The manager calmly walked by without drawing the employee’s attention.  After the flight departed and leveled off, the manager walked forward to the alumnus’ seat, to find him still studying his textbook.  The manager put his hand on the new employee’s shoulder, surprised him and said, “Nice job.” 

I am sure that when this Cameron-Brooks Alumnus started studying, the last thing he thought of was impressing his Regional Manager who MIGHT be on the flight.  He studied because he wanted to master the business, science, and sales aspects of his position, successfully launch his career and build a foundation for his future.

Joel Junker

Go to:  http://tinyurl.com/yaky5kx

Joel Junker

We’d like to take the opportunity to compliment the 41 officers who attended the January Conference.  They prepared for an average of 10 months prior to showing up in Austin, TX for interviews, and during much of that time they had plenty of reason for doubt.  Many of them began their preparation for the transition at one of the most challenging times for our U.S. economy.  Like you, many of the January candidates had to overcome questions and concerns from those around them in order to focus on preparing for their transition.  The strong results of these candidates at the January Conference show how that confidence paid off.

Our client companies were impressed with what they heard from the C-B candidates and were excited to have the opportunity to interview top quality officers.  These companies have been working hard to fight decreased demand and increased challenges of the recession.  Their performance contributed to the turnaround that was highlighted by the 5.7% year over year growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the 4^th quarter of 2009.  We heard from a number of companies that they are looking ahead and want to build the “bench strength” of their management teams to sustain the recovery and growth they have fought hard to achieve.  Several noted that, even though high unemployment means there are a lot of potential hires available, they find their best quality leaders at the Cameron-Brooks conferences.

 While the Development and Preparation Program (DPP©) has several aspects that helped the January candidates prepare successfully, we’d like to note two areas highlighted by company recruiters.  Many of the recruiters appreciated that Cameron-Brooks candidates had taken time to read business books.  This allowed for a discussion of business topics and gave the recruiter a chance to hear the candidates’ ability to relate their experience to business processes and initiatives.  Concepts like Six Sigma, Lean and Kaizen are being used to drive efficiencies, while companies have ramped up their production, supply chain, and sales areas, to increase profitability.  The companies at the January conference were impressed with candidates who had sought out opportunities to apply similar concepts in the military and had thought about how they could contribute to these areas in the for-profit environment.

 A second point that a number of recruiters noted was how much easier it was to pursue candidates who took time to build rapport.  Each organization has a culture and environment that the recruiter knows they have a responsibility to support.  Candidates who were able to open up during the 45 minute interview, and had the confidence to show their personality, allowed the recruiter to see how they would fit with the company.  Simple steps like expressing excitement when describing a job well done, or conveying the frustration with a challenging problem, were key to helping recruiters identify candidates who achieved success due to their internal drive versus those who were thrust into success by external forces.  Industry-leading companies want self-motivated, results-oriented leaders.  The candidates who made it clear to recruiters why they worked hard at their career, ended up making stronger connecting points.

Reviewing our blog postings about each Conference over the past year, you will find they share a positive outlook on career opportunities for Cameron-Brooks candidates.  Through the recession and challenging times in the U.S. economy, there are times where officers with whom we talk wonder why we maintain an upbeat stance.  Joel Junker commented on this back in May of 2009 in his blog post “Want bad news? Look elsewhere” (http://blog.cameron-brooks.com/2009/05/19/want-bad-news-look-elsewhere/).  In addition to his points about looking at challenges as opportunities and the role of leaders in maintaining a positive outlook through tough times, our January candidates showed one more reason why Cameron-Brooks continues to have a positive outlook.  We get to combine top performers with our proven DPP© and put them in front of some of the best companies in Corporate America.  Great people, a great process, and the right level of effort, get positive results.  When it comes to your transition out of the military, you’d expect nothing less.  We look forward to seeing you as we travel around the world to help you with your career.

Scott LePage

I love podcasts and I really enjoy podcasts that help me grow and improve at work.  I recently have been listening to episodes of the podcast: The Public Speaker: Quick and Dirty Tips for Improving Your Communication Skills, http://publicspeaker.quickanddirtytips.com/.  Some of the podcasts have been about mastering the art of a conversation (many interviews today are conversational), how to introduce yourself and how to ask questions.  There are also episodes with tips on how to deliver effective presentations which is huge for my role here at Cameron-Brooks.  If you want to improve your communication and thus your interviewing skills, this podcast will provide you with some great tips.  The episodes are short, full of real life examples and tips you can apply immediately.

I offer one piece of caution.  I have not evaluated episodes that have specific advice on interviewing or the book on interviewing that is associated with the podcast.  If you are a JMO and looking for specific interviewing advice, I highly recommend you stick with JMO headhunters who are experts in the unique aspects of a JMO career search and interviews.  You can learn a lot about interviewing by visiting the Cameron-Brooks website at www.cameron-brooks.com and specifically visiting the Cameron-Brooks Resource Center at http://www.cameron-brooks.com/candidates_resourcecenter.html.

Continue to follow the blog because next week’s post will be about the January/February 2010 Conference.

Joel Junker

Development candidates are hired by businesses based on their leadership experience.  Our client companies recognize that the leadership experience achieved by junior military officers (JMOs) in the first part of their career is well above that of any other career path available to the rest of that age group.  When a business is hiring a JMO based on experience, they will interview that officer to determine the accomplishments he or she has achieved during his or her service time.  While academic credentials as well as other factors used to evaluate students still play a part in evaluating a potential experienced hire, the accomplishments of a leader who has overcome real challenges and achieved real results is a much better indicator of future leadership performance.

For Cameron-Brooks candidates, our client companies are looking at you as an experienced hire for a development career.  It is your top performance in the military that makes you a fit to take on the challenges and opportunities where our client companies are looking for leaders to step in and make an impact.  In that environment, a certification that details your experience with one skill set is not enough for them to determine whether you can truly use that ability to make an impact.  Our companies would want to know how you went on to use the knowledge you earned and the abilities you developed during the certification process to contribute to a major accomplishment.  A company that is looking at you as a leader will want to know how you have “operationalized” your certification.  That is proof that you not only have the knowledge but you also know how to use it.

The information above may also help you identify the right time period to focus on certifications and building new skills.  Trying to squeeze in exams and credentials just prior to a separation date will not give you time to put your new abilities to work.  By developing your career goals early and identifying certifications and credentials that you can use to develop key skill sets, you will have the opportunity to put those abilities to work.  Your goal should be to use them to have break out performance in the military to create career potential for yourself in and out of the military.  The impact you’ve made with the abilities becomes the career “enhancer” and allows you to connect your success as a JMO with your goals for success in the rest of your career.  Certifications can be a great way to build your skills.  Using those skills to make an impact is how you increase your success in bringing those abilities to Corporate America.

Scott LePage

Lessons come from many sources. Perhaps some of you will find and read your own copy of Winners and Losers, learn a lesson, and like me avoid touching the stove quite so often.

Steve Sosland

For military officers looking to better understand where they fit into Corporate America, the recent factory orders report provides a very good example.  The chart provided with the report shows a clear turnaround of factory orders in August of 2009.  From an operational point of view, this means that businesses were seeing increased demand for their products starting at the end of this summer.  Production teams that had scaled back for over a year prior to August 2009 were suddenly looking at ramping back up to meet new demand.

As military officers who have led teams, you know what this challenge is all about.  Many of you have worked closely with a group of people who have developed processes and plans to address the current operations tempo.  Then, suddenly, things changed and you needed to lead your team in a new direction to meet changed goals.  There was likely resistance to overcome, problems to solve, bottlenecks to address and opportunities to pursue.  That is exactly what businesses were facing in August of 2009.

Interestingly, in the summary of our August 2009 Conference, we noted the trend 4 months before this report.  If you go back to our Cameron-Brooks August 2009 Career Conference blog (http://blog.cameron-brooks.com/2009/08/28/cameron-brooks-august-2009-career-conference/), we noted, “In addition to sales and process improvement, our August client companies have strong needs in production and supply chain areas as they look ahead to the upturn.”  As the Cameron-Brooks client companies looked ahead to increased demand, they turned to the junior military officer leadership experience to help them address the challenge of ramping up their teams. 

I’d like to make one additional point on seeing how the economy may impact the junior military officers’ ability to market themselves as leaders in Corporate America.  While this recent report shows how an improvement in factory orders created leadership opportunities, a downturn can also create a demand for leadership.  Scaling back a team can result in serious challenges for an organization and can cause issues related to morale, motivation and accountability.  For junior military officers who have recently returned from deployment, you’ve experienced how difficult it is to keep teams productive as their operations tempo decreases.  This point is important because it is pretty clear that economic growth will likely result in employment needs, and many economists expect that recent positive trends will result in unemployment decreases over time.  However, for Cameron-Brooks candidates, the market for leadership is often driven by the level of change and challenge in the marketplace.  This is why we’ve continued to recruit, and why we have seen strong demand for our candidates throughout the recession when many economic indicators were turning down.

We look forward to helping you with your career and to understanding the development career market for junior military officers in 2010.  Let us know if there is business news that you’d like help understanding.

Scott LePage

Before we took our holiday break, I meant to post our Holiday Letter on the blog.  I realize I am a couple of weeks late, however, I wanted to share the positive message, appreciation and well wishes to all those who follow our blog but may not have received the e-mail with the Cameron-Brooks Holiday Letter.   The letter is in italics below.  From all of us at Cameron-Brooks, we hope you had a meaningful holiday season and wish you great success in 2010.

With the Holiday Season upon us, we find ourselves reflecting on the past year and on those who have helped to shape our business, especially in these turbulent economic times.  We are filled with gratitude for the many people with whom we are associated – our client companies and recruiters, our active duty military officer candidates and our Alumni.  We value our relationship with you, and we are thankful for your role in the success of Cameron-Brooks.

We are especially grateful for the American military men and women who continue to defend liberty in faraway places around the world so that Americans may live in peace at home.  Thank you for answering the call to duty during this historic time in world history.  Equally, we are grateful for their families who bear a heavy burden in the absence of their loved ones during the holidays.  Most importantly, we join Americans across the country to pray for the families of those fallen Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors and Marines who have died to preserve our security and freedom.

To paraphrase the great patriot Thomas Paine, these certainly are the times that try our souls.  In a year when the economic affliction and debate among our elected leaders seem to be at peak levels, the holidays provide a good opportunity for us to remember that throughout our 233-year history, our country has faced and overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges.  When the Pilgrims and Founding Fathers endured overwhelming challenges, they paused at the end of the year, not to dwell on their hardships or question their future, but rather to give thanks for the blessings they still had.  The blessings that bound Americans then still bind us today – the enduring love of freedom to pursue our own lives and dreams.  Regardless of the crisis we face today or in the future, these blessings can never be taken away from us.

Our blessings take on special meaning during the 2009 Holiday Season.  We have so many things for which to be thankful, and reminders are all around us in our homes, friendships, communities, businesses, and schools.  We must never take for granted the ideals that make us Americans – our love of country, our belief in the American Dream, and our unshakeable faith in America.  These virtues provide us power over painful and trying times, and give Americans the ability to break free of fears and focus on the possibilities of tomorrow.  The more challenging the times, the more unyielding the will of the American people to safeguard our country and make America better for future generations.

May this Holiday Season be a time when you can celebrate the blessings of our great country.  May you lift your eyes to the horizon with the hope and inspiration to see the possibilities of tomorrow.  May you spend time with loved ones, enjoy honored traditions, rekindle old friendships, and share in the happiness and thanksgiving that are so much a part of this season.

 With joyful wishes to you during this Holiday Season and throughout the New Year.