Report authors Patti Powers and Carl DeMaio unveiled their findings Tuesday at the 2003 Government Performance Summit.

WASHINGTON - The Performance Institute today released "Strategic Recruitment for Government," a 92-page research report detailing federal agencies' efforts to fulfill the human capital component of the President's Management Agenda and recruit enough quality employees to stem the looming "human capital crisis."

During a presentation unveiling the report at the Government Performance Summit, Performance Institute President Carl DeMaio noted: "This report confirms that federal agencies are changing the way they recruit their staff-and for the better. While federal agencies have traditionally engaged in a 'spray and pray' approach to recruiting staff where they merely filled empty seats, the new effort is on rethinking hiring needs from a performance-based perspective and strategically targeting specific skills sets."

The Performance Institute conducted 24 interviews since October 2002 with the human resource staffs of federal departments and agencies. Using a standard set of questions, the research team culled together information about each agency's human capital plan, use of flexibilities and incentives, diversity-recruiting, workforce analyses and use of performance measures.

The result was a set of "10 Innovative Practices" found to be characteristic of successful federal human resource departments:

1. Adopting a Truly "Performance-Based" Approach to Human Capital Planning
2. Promoting Government Service through Effective Branding and Marketing of Agency "Mission"
3. Streamlining Hiring Processes and Creating "Quality of Life" Flexibilities
4. Designing Tailored Strategies to Recruiting Specific Skills Sets
5. Providing for Market-Based and Performance-Based Pay in Government
6. Using Internships, Fellowships, and Alternative Staffing Solutions
7. Cultivating Leadership through Candidate Development Programs and Strong Senior Executive Evaluation Systems
8. Promoting Workforce Diversity
9. Outsourcing Some Recruitment Activities
10. Measuring Recruitment Success

"There is no quick fix for the government's human resources problems," DeMaio said. "The answer is not to go on a hiring spree, but to thoughtfully evaluate staffing needs and win the talent war by creating flexible, streamlined hiring processes, market-based compensation, and rewarding work environments."

Right-click above and select "Save Target As" to download a copy of the report in Acrobat PDF format

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