Last year research from Harvard highlighted what the researchers referred to as “hidden workers”. These 27 million people from across the United States were people who had the skills and abilities to make a difference in the workplace, but were often overlooked for roles. They included people with mental health difficulties, a criminal record, or disabilities.
Military veterans were included in the list, who the researchers said were often frozen out of the labor market as a result of hiring practices that overlook them or diminish the experiences they bring to the table.
“By adopting hiring practices focused on creating more access for that segment, employers can substantially improve veterans’ prospects,” the researchers explain. “The success many companies have enjoyed by implementing programs targeting veterans testifies to the potential of tailored approaches for tapping into specific groups of hidden workers.”
Military entrepreneurs
Research from the Veterans Future Lab (VFL) at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering shows that veterans have similarly appealing qualities when it comes to entrepreneurship too. The researchers argue that the organization, discipline, strategy-focused, team-oriented strengths of many veterans lend themselves extremely well to starting a business.
The researchers surveyed nearly 600 current and former members of the United States armed forces during 2021 to explore their military, educational, and entrepreneurial backgrounds. The surveys also quizzed those who had started a business on the challenges they faced, the various resources they used, and their socio-emotional wellbeing. 20 of the volunteers also underwent more detailed interviews to understand their transition into civilian life and their experiences with launching and growing their businesses.
The study found that veterans are often drawn to an entrepreneurial life, in part due to the freedom and autonomy such a path affords them while also drawing on their particular skillsets. One has to wonder just how much of it is due to being frozen out of my traditional forms of employment, however.
The researchers do accept that veterans can face greater obstacles on their entrepreneurial journey than other entrepreneurs. For instance, they cite previous research showing that many veteran-owned businesses were able to obtain less financing than non-veteran-owned businesses. This extended into bank financing as well as angel or venture fundraising, suggesting that the various biases working against veterans in the traditional workplace also apply in entrepreneurship.
The VFL attempts to help by providing an incubator dedicated to businesses created by veterans. It provides a free nine-month program to provide things like mentorship and support to help the entrepreneurs grow their businesses.
