In the Winter 2015 Greater Killeen Business Quarterly, we published an article that explored the talent that comes to our region as a result of the military strength of Fort Hood (read the full article). The soldiers and their families that come to this area bring with them specialized training and skills that make our workforce especially desirable for employers. We also have within our city limits two top notch institutions of higher education to train this workforce-Central Texas College and Texas A&M University-Central Texas. It is no wonder, then, that a recent study by Beyond, an online career network, ranked Killeen as one of the top hiring cities in Texas. The city was ranked number 4 in the state for employers looking to hire.
Joe Weinlick, Senior Vice President of Marketing for Beyond, explains: “The rankings of these top metros is determined by comparing the total number of job seekers for each region to the Texas Workforce Commission’s civilian labor force numbers for February 2015. Based on our analysis of this data, Killeen ranks as one of the best cities in Texas for employers to hire quality talent.” According to the study, the easiest industries to hire for are transportation & logistics, customer service, and clerical & administration.
A separate report based on surveys administered by the Heart of Texas Defense Alliance (HOTDA) in Quarter 4 2014 supports this claim. The HOTDA report listed Transportation & Logistics as the second most popular occupation of veterans leaving the military at Fort Hood (second only to Combat Arms). This report also cites the following desired categories of post-military employment for soldiers and their spouses: medical/health, computers/software, management/business, administrative/office, and education/teaching, most of which fall into the categories Beyond found to be easiest to hire for.
These studies reinforce what businesses in our region have known for years-that Killeen is a great place to find qualified, talented workers for a variety of positions. If your business is interested in locating here and taking advantage of this talented workforce, contact Phyllis Gogue, phyllis@killeenchamber.com or 254-526-9551.