Orion Talent and Switch to give talk on untapped veteran talent at DCAC

Orion Talent Senior Vice President of Strategic Programs David Coe and Switch Chief Information Officer Missy Young will co-present at Data Center Austin Conference (DCAC) on the topic of hiring veterans to source the data center industry. The fifth annual DCAC will take place September 24-25, in Austin, Texas.

Coe and Young’s presentation, “Success of Military Veteran Talent in the Mission Critical Industry,” addresses best practices for reaching current veteran job seekers and shares how Switch has successfully hired veterans to its workforce. The session will take place at 11:10 a.m. CT on September 25.

“The data center industry is growing, and consequently so is the demand for the technical talent to support it,” said Coe. “Military veterans have seamlessly and successfully made the transition to this industry, and companies in this space need to understand the value of this talent pool. So much of the military skillset translates to this field, including technical expertise, communication, hands-on leadership, and team-building abilities. At DCAC, we are looking forward to sharing how companies can leverage veteran talent to meet labor demands and grow their business.”

With more than 186,000 veterans transitioning from service each year, the military represents a continually renewing source of talent from which to hire, comprised of approximately 35% diversity candidates. A recent Orion Talent survey revealed interview-to-hire ratio, acceptance rates, and retention rates are higher among veterans than civilians. Additionally, 93% of companies say veterans are thriving in technical roles, and 89% report they are in roles that require little supervision.

Young says developing a military hiring strategy is a competitive advantage in ensuring companies have the talent they need to support their data center business.

Young shared, “Hiring the highly honed skill set of the men and women who have served our country in the military has been a cornerstone of Switch’s 100% uptime business success.”

“At each of our PRIME campus locations Switch has successfully recruited and retained mission critical team members with strong military experience,” Young continued. “Veterans already have proven leadership and problem-solving skills, and are easily integrated into the skills required in the data center industry. I’m looking forward to sharing more about the extremely valuable military hiring strategies that have worked for Switch during DCAC.”

Orion has led hiring initiatives for data centers and mission critical facilities since 2005. More than 1,200 of Orion's candidates have been hired into various roles across data centers and mission critical facilities, including electronic, mechanical, and electrical systems, and are well versed in adhering to the strict operating procedures and protocols that are part of these centers.

Kirk Offel, DCAC founder, is an Orion alumnus and served in the U.S. Navy aboard a nuclear submarine. Once he transitioned to the civilian workforce, Offel worked in the medical devices industry before entering the field of data centers. He now serves as Executive Vice President of Platform Delivery at Aligned Energy.

"Military veterans who've had the experience of shouldering enormous responsibility in extremely stressful, high stakes environments — where mission-critical is commonly a matter of mortality — are pressure-tested to embark on successful data center industry careers," said Offel. "Having observed and come to know the military veterans who work across Aligned Energy's security and operations teams, I know firsthand that they bring the same discipline and integrity to serving our data center customers as they once brought to serving our country."

Jason Carolan, Chief Innovation Officer for Flexential, will be presenting at DCAC on the technology disruption we can expect in the future. Flexential works with Orion Novotus, an Orion Talent company, for its recruiting process outsourcing (RPO) solution that includes military talent.

“The veteran community has been a great source of IT and engineering talent over the years,” said Carolan. “Their military and technical skills parlay into the demands of mission critical data centers and services. Their attention to detail, self-discipline, and leadership have contributed exactly what we need to deliver complex solutions on behalf of our customers.”

SOURCE DCAC and Orion Talent

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