Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced a grant for new tools and resources to help service members transition into civilian jobs at an Aug. 27 press conference at the new United Services Organizations Inc. Council of San Diego in Liberty Station.
The $2.5 million grant will enable the USO to incorporate the Google IT Support Professional Certificate into their programming. The IT Support Professional Certificate is a first-of-its kind program with highly interactive content, developed by Google, and which provides a direct route for those who successfully complete the program to get their information into the hands of employers. 
“One out of three transitioning vets end up with civilian jobs well below their skill levels,” said Pichai. “Starting today, vets searching for jobs will be aided by a special occupational code that will match their military career skills with jobs in San Diego.”
One out of every 10 small U.S. businesses are led by veterans, added Pichai.
Service members can now search “jobs for veterans” on Google by entering their military occupational specialty code (MOS, AFSC, NEC) to see relevant civilian jobs that require similar skills to those used in their military roles.
Launched last year, the new job search offers an improved experience to help job seekers find open positions more quickly and efficiently. Additionally, employers can implement this feature on their own career sites using Google Cloud’s Talent Solution.
The announcement was part of the tech company’s Grow with Google initiative to help create economic opportunities for American service members. The program draws on Google’s 20-year history of building products, platforms, and services that help people and businesses grow. 
“We’ve been around for 77 years waiting for this partnership,” said USO president Dr. J.D. Crouch II, who noted the missions of Google and the USO overlap, with both helping people to get and stay “connected.”
“Military families living separately feel disconnected,” Crouch said. “Our mission is always to keep them connected while in uniform, and help them with their focus when they’re transitioning out.”
Crouch pointed out there are some 200,000 Americans transitioning out of the military every year, half of whom are married when they return to civilian life.
“The transition process is complex, and we hope Grow with Google’s new tools and resources can play a part in making that easier,” said Lisa Gevelber, Google vice president. “At Google, we believe technology has the power to improve lives. With today’s announcement, we look forward to working with America’s transitioning service members to help them succeed in civilian life.”
To help veteran-owned or led businesses identify themselves to potential customers, Google maps and search will offer a new attribute. Users will see the “veteran-led” designation when searching for a place on Android or iOS mobile device or in Google maps when they open a business listing and tap the two-line description of the business to see the attributes associated with that business.
The USO is a nonprofit organization supporting American service members, which, since 1941, has worked in partnership with the Department of Defense. USO is congressional chartered, but not a government agency. It relies heavily on private contributions and on funds, goods, and services from various corporate and individual donors.