Changing recruitment practices can ease retention challenges

Ahead of the historic investment in American infrastructure, government organizations are facing an unprecedented employment and retention squeeze. But while there’s a lot of economic drivers that are out of administrators’ control, there are certain hiring practices that can soften the blow. 

“We’re already constrained in finding the talent we need,” said Elizabeth Kellar, director of public policy and deputy executive director at the International City/County Manger’s Association (ICMA). “It’s all kinds of jobs—everything from skilled trades—people who can drive trucks, to inspectors, the department directors, the planners and the managers.”

There are a number of reasons for this, some of them structural and long term, others temporary. Limited by taxation, fixed revenues typical in public service constrain budgets. Governments can’t compete with salaries offered by private companies—especially in urban settings. Rural areas face other challenges, like convincing talent to move to more sparsely populated settings. From offering telework opportunities whenever it’s possible to educating communities about the benefits of public work, governments need to take action.

“One thing we know we need is the ability to hire and be smart about how we hire—and we’re seeing some places do better about it than others,” Kellar said. Many communities, for example, are leveraging technology to scan resumes and filter those that have necessary qualifications from those that don’t, stretching the reach of small offices.

“In some things, we need to change our habits and how we do things,” Kellar said, noting the importance of reaching out to underrepresented communities and considering candidates that might otherwise be overlooked. “Sometimes in government, we require too many years of experience—it’s sometimes not necessary to have five years of experience.”

In the immediate term, the present labor and employment shortage is concerning for a few reasons. Given the historic investments of the American Rescue Plan Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, local governments are going to need a lot of skilled laborers. And with the ongoing “Great Recession” and the impending “silver tsunami,” or the anticipated exodus of the aging baby boomer generation from the labor force, agencies everywhere need all the help they can get.

There isn’t an easy fix, and long term solutions are few and far between—like investing in trade schools or cultivating relationships with local community colleges. But there are creative steps organizations can take now to prepare for whatever comes next.

“One of the solutions that comes up is ‘grow your own,’” Kellar said. “We have some great jobs in cities and counties that require a certain amount of expertise.”

What local governments can’t offer in pay, they can offer in intrinsic incentives. At its core, government work exists for the betterment of communities. Those looking to make an impact on their world would do well in public service—an “intangible” trait, according to Kellar—even if they don’t yet have the specialty skill set that’s needed for a specific job. 

“One of the most important qualities we should be recruiting for in our local governments is a set of values that’s a good value for public service, because you can’t really teach that innate desire for public service—to help your community and make a difference,” Kellar continued. “You can build on that. It’s harder to teach that.”

There are a number of ways local administrators can find potential employees in their communities with those qualities.

For mid-career workers, “Some of the ways you might entice people to get involved is to involve them in some type of volunteer program in your community,” Kellar said. A community could, for example, host a flower planting event with a local bank to introduce public service to someone who “is not feeling terribly fulfilled” in their current role.

Administrators can connect with younger prospective workers by visiting schools to educate students about the benefits of working in the public sector and invite students to shadow for a day.

“Offer summer employment, It doesn’t have to be a lot of money, but just getting young people in the door so they can learn about what it means to be involved in their community,” she continued. And to fill current vacancies in the more immediate term, Kellar said, “right now, one of the things that is very common is hiring contract employees.”

Along with local actions, there are steps the federal government can take to assist administrators and ease the employment challenges, such as raising the immigration cap or sending technical experts to guide communities through the grant writing process.

“If you bring in someone who, say, is a recently retired city manager to write you a grant, they might be available to help you the next time you write that grant, or, you might hire them as a consultant,” Kellar said. 

It’s a way for local governments to deepen their resource pool.

But while the employment challenges might be difficult for organizations to overcome, Kellar said she anticipates things will settle in the next five years or so.

“We’ve known for some time that we’re in a generational transformation in our workforce. We bought some time after the great recession back in 2008 because a lot of people postponed their retirement,” Kellar said. And while there are undoubtedly more hardships on the horizon, there’s also opportunity for young workers to gain a foothold in the industry. “I think it’s going to be a bumpy period, but on the other hand, I think it’s going to be an exciting time especially for young people.”