Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Organizational Leadership

First Advisor

Timothy McCarty

Second Advisor

Raymond Hanna

Third Advisor

Jonathan Greenberg

Abstract

Purpose: This qualitative phenomenological study explored how post-9/11 U.S. military veterans describe their lived experiences of understanding and applying four ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Principles (leadership, engagement of people, process approach, and evidence-based decision making) during the transition to civilian employment. This study further sought to understand how veterans articulated these competencies across employment stages and how those competencies were recognized within civilian organizations.

Methodology: This qualitative phenomenological study used semistructured interviews with 10 post-9/11 U.S. military veterans residing in the United States who had separated from active duty and were engaged in the transition to civilian employment. Participants were selected using purposeful and convenience sampling. Data were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using NVivo software. A deductive coding framework based on the four Quality Management Principles was applied, with inductive subcodes developed to capture emerging patterns.

Findings: Analysis revealed that veterans consistently demonstrated system-based competencies characterized by structure, coordination, and data-informed decision making developed within military environments. Four key findings emerged, indicating that leadership was expressed through structure creation; engagement through coordinated participation and inclusion; process through structured workflows; and decision making through data use. A consistent pattern showed that competencies were applied across environments, whereas variation in civilian organizational structure influenced how they were recognized and interpreted.

Conclusions: Veterans possess integrated quality management competencies developed through structured military systems; however, transition outcomes are shaped by variation in civilian organizational conditions rather than differences in individual capability. Transition was identified as a system-level interaction in which alignment between prior experience and organizational structure determines how competencies are recognized and applied. This finding points to the importance of how these competencies are communicated and understood within transition and employment systems. Recommendations: Future research should examine the relationship between system misalignment during transition and broader veteran outcomes, including stress, identity disruption, and suicide risk. Additional research should investigate how system conditions influence the recognition and transferability of military-acquired competencies across industries. Further research should examine how individuals respond to system variability and how organizational structures influence recognition of leadership, engagement, process, and decision making practices.

Download

Share

COinS