Nationally, there are approximately 63,000 current openings for law enforcement officers, yet about 60% of applicants on average never complete the initial testing step in the process. Every aspect of Law Enforcement is ultimately tied to recruiting. The most important part of police recruiting is the most overlooked: professional recruitment training. Officers are trained in the academy and the field by experts who prepare them to be officers. Throughout their careers, they receive advanced, specialized training by experts with every job change. Officers serving in sections like traffic units, K9 units, SWAT, homicide, and evidence handling are all able to excel because they receive relevant and professional training. This is rarely the case with those assigned to recruiting duty.
When I began my military career, I was sent to basic training where I was trained to be an Air Force Airman, and then I was sent to technical training and trained to be a mechanic. The military trains for everything. Feeling compelled to make a larger impact, I volunteered for recruiting. My desire to be a recruiter was not enough; neither was knowing how to be an Airman nor being a certified mechanic. I had to navigate a rigorous selection process, then months of intensive training, and finally complete a year of on-the-job “field training”. All this had to be completed and tested before I earned the title of Recruiter. I was trained on principles like how to adapt my recruiting approach to different audiences, search for new pools of talent, identify the specific requirements of a given job, how to articulate the unique value proposition of both my organization and the roles being offered, and then guide candidates through the selection process. Since retiring from the Air Force, I have worked in challenging recruiting environments creating programs to recruit: pilots, medical professionals, engineering, and law enforcement. I encountered a similar pattern of extensive training at every organization I have ever worked for, except one.
When I accepted my position in law enforcement recruiting, I was not given training and no one else who was part of the recruitment process had been either. What distinguished me from my colleagues, and gave me insight they did not possess, was my previous training. It wasn’t until I went to a law enforcement recruiting conference that I learned from other participants just how widespread this problem is. Recruiter training in most law enforcement agencies is generally accomplished by the officer who is moving on to their next assignment. This approach takes officers who are dedicated, highly motivated, and well-intentioned professionals, but leaves them with no formal training and only their own experience to draw from. The lack of specialized training results in the focus being on the individual and their role within the recruitment cycle, not on a holistic approach toward converting applicants into qualified candidates and those candidates into officers.
Recruitment is largely viewed as a simple task that anyone can handle, rather than a specialized skill. Investing in dedicated, trained recruiters is an investment in the future of law enforcement. By recognizing recruitment as a specialized skill and providing the necessary resources and training, agencies can attract top talent, enhance diversity, and ultimately strengthen their ability to serve and protect their communities. Just as law enforcement agencies prioritize training in other critical areas, they must recognize the vital importance of recruiters trained in how to build a strong and effective force.
Recruiting in law enforcement can never be about simply filling vacancies because not everyone can become a police officer. For this article let’s agree on a few definitions. A talent pool is a community from which recruiters find applicants, it could be a school, military community, youth programs or even community groups. An applicant has expressed an interest in becoming an officer by completing an application with a given agency. A candidate is someone who has applied, meets the basic qualifications, and has taken concrete steps (completed testing) toward participating in the selection process. Those candidates who complete the process and ultimately are hired become officers. As mentioned earlier, agencies lose on average 60% of their applicants before they become candidates. It’s the recruiter’s role to find and identify qualified applicants who align with the agency’s values and commitment to public service and convert them into candidates.
Recruiters trained in talent acquisition and modern recruiting practices are far better equipped to engage talent pools, inspire applications and later evaluate the viability of those applicants at the beginning of the process, by comparing agency standards against applicant qualifications. By listening to their motivations, uncovering their employment needs, and assessing whether your agency can meet their professional goals. Trained recruiters act as ambassadors for the agency, presenting a positive and accurate image of law enforcement work to inspire and encourage people within talent communities to apply. They guide applicants through the process transparently and professionally, ensuring a fair, efficient, and most importantly positive candidate experience. They are equipped to build rapport and motivate applicants through tailored communications to pursue the next steps and become candidates. A well-trained recruiter finds interested talent, inspires them to apply, and then motivates them to become candidates by showing them how your agency will not only meet their career goals but also why your agency is the best place to realize those professional aspirations.
Given the nature of a career in law enforcement and the high standards associated with hiring the best officers; the selection process is necessarily involved and can take an extended amount of time and steps. By identifying individuals with the right combination of character and ability, recruiters contribute significantly to the overall quality and effectiveness of police recruiting because it will lessen the number of candidates who cannot make it through the recruitment cycle. Recruiters have two main roles during the selection process. First, taking the time to understand the qualifications and needs of their applicant allows the recruiters to leverage their professional knowledge and assess the viability of each applicant. Where needed they can provide basic coaching and guidance to candidates who for whatever reason are not viable and increase the number of candidates who not only test but are more likely to pass it. A continuing emphasis on guiding qualified candidates through the remainder of the selection process with the candidates maintains that motivation and prevents losses to competing agencies.
This function serves two purposes. First, it provides a positive candidate experience for non-viable candidates and gives them a roadmap to pursue their applications at a later date, if possible. Second, it allows the recruiters to ensure that all of the resources involved with the remainder of the selection process are focused on the candidates most likely to become officers. By prioritizing the most qualified candidates, recruiting stakeholders can better manage their workload allowing for substantial time savings, greater consistency, and providing a better experience to those who have a higher likelihood of becoming officers. Dedicating the time saved and coaching relationship allows the recruiter to better prepare candidates for what to expect throughout the cycle even leading to their eventual attendance at an academy also strengthening their relationship with the agency. This is how professionally trained recruiters not only convert more applicants to candidates but also to turn your highly qualified candidates into your next generation of officers.
Law enforcement must revolutionize its approach to recruiting and talent acquisition training. The safety and well-being of our communities hangs in the balance. Ineffective recruiting leads to an unfortunate and inescapable domino effect: slower response times, mandatory overtime, and significant budget implications. The challenge of attracting and hiring new officers has become increasingly difficult, with various competing factors and interests at play. Ultimately, we are in a recruiting environment where all agencies are competing against each other for a limited number of candidates who possess a desire to serve, along with the character and qualifications to wear a badge. The time to evolve your agency’s commitment to training your recruiting team is now.