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CareerCOACH+ Offers Military Spouses and Partners Career Assistance

CMFMAG Team March 3, 2024

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To meet the needs of military spouses and partners with their career aspirations, Military Family Services (MFS) Spousal Employment Programs is launching a unique program.

Designed with the military lifestyle in mind and to meet the challenges civilian military spouses and partners face, CareerCOACH+ is a career-tailored program featuring expert guidance.

“The CAF DGMPRA Quality of Life survey noted due of the circumstances of mobile military family lifestyle spousal employment and the difficulty to find and keep a job is identified as a challenge military members and their spouses reported,” said Vanessa Walsh, senior manager for MFS Spousal Employment Programs.

About CareerCOACH+

Focused on career coaching, CareerCOACH+ participants will engage with a dedicated career coach and receive personalized support to explore and address their career aspirations and economic opportunities.

The core objective is to empower military spouses and partners to make career choices, set and reach their professional goals, and overcome obstacles encountered along the way.

Created uniquely for military families, the free program provides:

Virtual and confidential career coaching.
Connecting military spouses/partners directly to a professional career coach for tailored support with career transition.
Access to Career development resources.

Along with participating in five individual virtual sessions with a career coach, participants will also gain access to a digital learning lab that houses career development and employment related resources and tools for self-paced learning opportunities.

Walsh notes the program is also offered in French, CarriérePRO+.

See report here: http://www.ombudsman.forces.gc.ca/assets/OMBUDSMAN_Internet/docs/en/mf-fm-eng.pdf

History

The new program stems from the 2013 CAF/DND Ombudsman report On The Homefront: Assessing the Well-being of Canada’s Military Families in the New Millennium.

“The report recommended a couple of different things: a national employment strategy to dedicated to civilian military spouses/partners, a network of military-friendly employers, financial support for retraining or license renewals and one-on-one career counselling for spouses and partners,” explained Walsh.

The 122-page report examined the welfare of military families in Canada.

MFS has been offering virtual career development and employment programs to military spouses across Canada since 2015 and the suite of offerings are designed to be complementary to other employment-focused services within military-connected communities.

CareerJoy

To ensure they receive tailored virtual career assistance, military spouses and partners will work with CareerJoy, an award-winning national HR services firm that works with over 500 companies in Canada.

Walsh explains, “The company is a leader in career development services and outplacement transition services in Canada.”

She adds that CareerJoy has coaches across Canada and offers bilingual services.

“We are excited with their career coaches across the country because we can offer the live connection to spouses anywhere in the country and accommodate OUTCAN spouses as well.”

Dr. Catherine Hansen was a guest speaker at the launch. Married to Colonel Jeremy Hansen, the first Canadian to travel to the moon, Dr. Hansen knows the hardships of balancing career, marriage, and parenting with military life.

Launching CareerCOACH+

CareerCOACH+ launched on March 1, 2024, featuring military spouse Dr. Catherine Hansen as a guest speaker. Married to Colonel Jeremy Hansen, the first Canadian to travel to the moon, Dr. Hansen knows the hardships of balancing career, marriage, and parenting with military life.

Walsh explains, “One of the keynote speakers is family member Dr. Catherine Hanson. She is an OB-GYN and menopause practitioner. She will talk about her career trajectory, the impact of being a military spouse, and what that means with two professionals in the family.”

The event launch will also feature: