T-Mobile is a Top Employer in the Military – Here’s Why!

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / May 2, 2024 / T-Mobile

As the Un-carrier celebrates reaching its cumulative goal of hiring 10,000 veterans and military spouses over the past five years, leaders from partner organizations Hiring Our Heroes and Blue Star Families share why it’s critical for companies to up their game double down on creating inclusive work environments and career opportunities. opportunities, and what they consider most important to the success of military families.

In 2018, T-Mobile unveiled a comprehensive, company-wide initiative to hire 10,000 veterans and military spouses over five years. The goal was achieved by the end of 2023. “This recruitment goal was five years in the making and along that journey we are proud to have supported thousands of veterans and their families in creating meaningful and flexible career opportunities, while also helping them build new skills and advance their professional resume,” said Holli Martinez, vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion at T-Mobile. “We are honored to welcome veterans and military spouses to Team Magenta, and we are equally proud to have supported others who have taken their T-Mobile experience to other arenas to further their careers. We will continue to always consider part of our T-Mobile family and we will not stop searching for the best military talent.”

Partnering with organizations like Hiring Our Heroes and Blue Star Families was critical in helping T-Mobile meet its hiring commitments and is a cornerstone for how the company will continue to deliver programs and support for military families now and in the years to come prioritizing and developing.

Here we speak with Eric Eversole, president of Hiring Our Heroes, a division of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation that connects veterans, transitioning service members and military spouses with employers, and Penny Bolden, vice president of Brand Partnerships at Blue Star Families, a nonprofit organization that helps connect and support military families at the community level. The two share what they think is most important for veterans and military spouses today, and why partnerships with companies like T-Mobile create the kind of meaningful change that impacts lives.

What do you pay attention to when working with a company?

Eric Eversole, hiring our heroes: We like partnerships like the one with T-Mobile because they hire a lot of veterans and military spouses. They showed up and they’re not just waving the flag. We’re trying to understand whether they’re trying to find talent or better reach the military community because it’s a community they care about and want to help create opportunities.

Meet Alex Asunción

Penny Bolden, Blue Star Families: Through an annual survey of the lifestyles of military families, we identify the current challenges this group faces. It wasn’t until about a decade ago that we saw unemployment and underemployment among military spouses skyrocket. Organizations like T-Mobile started including military spouses in their military recruitment programs, which when I became a military spouse in 1998, was a non-starter! I still hid the fact that I was a military spouse on my resume. T-Mobile took the time to understand that data.

What do you think will have the most impact on veterans and military spouses in 2024 when it comes to their employment?

Erik: I’m proud of the progress we’ve made at Hiring Our Heroes over the past twelve years at great companies like T-Mobile, but I’m even more excited about the future. We are facing one of the most important workforce evolutions in the history of our country. As workforces change and types of work evolve, companies must evolve to remain successful – and they look to military talent, military spouses and veterans as examples of what “great” looks like. It’s the adaptability, the resilience, the problem-solving ability, it’s the trainability of these populations that companies want to hire because they know they can train someone relatively quickly in certain skills. The big challenge ahead is skills-based hiring, and veterans and military spouses are leading the way.

Cent: What we’re trying to do is shout from the rooftops to our military spouse community that there are some organizations that have taken the time to really understand the specific and unique challenges facing the military spouse community. From the perspective of hiring military spouses, we highlight companies like T-Mobile that can provide stability and a sense of belonging to a demographic with unique challenges. They move every two to three years and struggle to keep their jobs and progress in their careers because they are constantly changing jobs. Because they move constantly, they often have no local experience or have gaps in their resume. Many companies are unaware of what is needed and have not done the research to understand and adapt. If we can support T-Mobile as one of our original signatories in understanding this, it is a way to show others how they can do their part too.

Meet Logan McIntosh

Do you have any stories or memorable moments from working with T-Mobile that you can share?

Erik: T-Mobile organized an event with us last fall with the Washington Nationals baseball team. It was the first event I know of where a Major League Baseball team focused exclusively on military spouses as an audience in need of employment. We invited some great leaders that day to talk about the opportunities and challenges military spouses face. From there, we really worked aggressively to help those military spouses find jobs. T-Mobile supported that event and spotlighted the military spouse community. It was incredibly impressive that they were there to hire. Story after story of veterans and military spouses being hired by T-Mobile was very powerful.

Cent: I had the chance to meet a lot of people from T-Mobile when we did a home makeover event. (T-Mobile sponsored an episode of Moving with the militarywhich aired on several streaming services in November 2023, and was featured in USA today And Humanity.) Forty volunteers showed up for three consecutive days! T-Mobile’s culture is undeniable. When a company presents itself authentically and takes the time to do so in the recruitment procedures, it shows that it is also part of the culture. We are currently working with the T-Mobile Military & Diversity Recruiting team to recruit talent, and we have three moments this year to show our gratitude. It’s about really giving back and making people feel like this brand really cares.

Meet Laura Linderman Barker

Although some of the unemployment numbers can be discouraging, especially for military spouses who hold the power highest unemployment rate From any other demographic, what does it mean to hear that companies like T-Mobile have committed to hiring veterans and military spouses?

Erik: How do we create a culture of inclusivity in our companies, where everyone feels welcome and part of a team? T-Mobile is doing incredibly well because they have great education and career opportunities, allowing people to have more than just a job. They can build a sustainable career and feel committed to the company’s mission. They are committed to the leaders and their teammates. All of that is incredibly important to our military community. They want to feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves. Companies like T-Mobile really create that culture and make people feel welcome.

Cent: I think in the past the intent has been understood as checking a box to say, “We support our troops, we hire veterans.” But now that companies like T-Mobile are stepping up and saying, “We know what’s really needed and we’re going to provide it,” this is being received very differently by our community.

Meet Jamie Weare

T-Mobile is nationally recognized as a military-friendly employer, receiving the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Military Spouse Employer and Mentorship Award and is a signatory of the 4+1 beta nationwide effort to address the unemployment rate among military spouses.

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SOURCE: T-Mobile