More than 1 million service members are projected to transition out of the military by 2016 — a statistic that JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) considers an opportunity. In 2011, with 10 other private sector companies, the company launched the 100,000 Jobs Mission, with a goal of hiring 100,000 veterans by 2020. In just two years, 64,628 transitioning U.S. service members and military veterans had found jobs through the program.
What began with 11 companies — JPMorgan Chase plus AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T); Broadridge Financial Solutions Inc. (NYSE: BR); Cisco Systems Inc.; Cushman & Wakefield Inc.; EMC Corp.(NYSE: EMC); Iron Mountain Inc. (NYSE: IRM); Modis; NCR Corp. (NYSE: NCR); Universal Health Services Inc. (NYSE: UHS); and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) — has grown to 102 companies and evolved into a stable, ongoing initiative to hire veterans and share best practices. We checked in with Maureen Casey, managing director, Military and Veterans Affairs at JPMorgan Chase, about the program’s successes and why more companies should get involved.
How did this mission take shape?
Every year, JPMorgan Chase hosts a summit of CEOs from some of the largest U.S. companies. Our 2011 meeting was attended by Medal of Honor recipients, which sparked conversations about the challenges faced by post-9/11 service members, veterans and their spouses. Of particular concern was their high unemployment rate. Our CEO and COO began having detailed conversations with other CEOs about what we could do to address this unemployment issue, and the 100,000 Jobs Mission was born.
To what do you attribute the program’s successes?
One important aspect has been staying true to our focus. Companies simply commit to hiring veterans, report their veteran hiring figures quarterly, and participate in our quarterly meetings. There are no costs to join or hiring quotas.
What is the role of the meetings?
To share best practices around recruiting, hiring, training and retaining veterans. More than 50 companies participated at our most recent meeting in Dallas. That substantive exchange of information and ideas has been crucial to the success of the program.
The Dallas gathering also provided a platform for a successful hiring event. We encourage employers and transitioning service members to get prescreened. Then hiring managers conduct onsite interviews. If a candidate is not right for a particular company, we have an informal process for sharing military talent with other coalition members.
Has JPMorgan Chase seen benefits from this effort?
Absolutely. It is wonderful to help the veteran community, but this program is also about getting real talent into our firm. How many 22-year-olds do you know who have had leadership experience in a foreign country? You can teach someone the technical skills they need to perform certain jobs, but it’s much harder to teach leadership, mission focus, teamwork, dedication and loyalty. Servicemen and servicewomen bring all of those things to the table. History confirms the positive impact veteran populations have had on the economy upon returning to civilian life. These men and women are the next generation of leaders, and we believe, given their training, that they will be real assets to our company.
Visit 100000jobsmission.com for more information.
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