All the challenges that the policing profession has been experiencing currently can be in one way or another traced back to the recruitment crisis that’s plagued agencies around the US. Different initiatives have been adopted and implemented in attempts to address this issue. This webinar zeroes in on an evidence-based and scalable approach to resolving this issue for any agency.

This session’s panel of speakers are:

• Senior Police Officer Terry Cherry, Recruiter for the Charleston Police Department
• Sergeant Anthony Gibson, Recruitment, Selection & Retention Supervisor for the Charleston Police Department
• Ashleigh N. Wojslawowicz, Research Manager for the Charleston County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC)

Specifics of the discussion include:

• The research collaboration between the Charleston Police Department and the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council for Charleston County to come up with effective recruitment strategies.
• The aim to implement a strategy that is evidence-based and draws from the recruits’ and employees’ own experience and the evidence-based model that was the basis of the research initiative.
• A glimpse of the state of public safety recruitment – how events and the media narrative affected how the public perceives the industry and the appeal of a career within it.
• The research methodology: the research question they’re trying to answer, the sampling, and the data gathering methods.
  • The survey that looks into the factors that influence recruits to apply, where they learned about the organization, and their thoughts on how the onboarding process can be improved.
  • The interview conducted for recruits who opted in for follow-up interviews via zoom, phone call, or face-to-face meeting.
• The initial survey responses to these questions that reveal…
  • The draw of the location, recruitment process, and the department’s reputation to applicants.
  • How online platforms such as the website and social media pages and people already working in Charleston PD are the best sources of information for applicants.
• Survey findings offered a deeper look into the recruits’ experience and original response to the survey.
• Captured verbatim responses that provided additional insights.
  • How the possibility of career opportunities and how they were treated during recruitment contributed to their decision of choosing to work with Charleston PD.
  • Recruitment events and online content on the recruitment process provided useful information on the recruitment and hiring process.
• The primary themes and sub-elements deduced through the survey and interviews.
  • How direct influence from those affiliated with the agency, the agency’s reputation, and location contributed to the appeal of Charleston PD.
  • How the recruitment process and potential for career growth opportunities served as important factors in deciding to work with Charleston PD.
  • How pay isn’t the foremost deciding factor but remains important.
• The four recruitment elements deemed relevant to decision-making for the recruits – responsiveness, communication, timeliness, and personal – and specifics on how Charleston PD provided these.
• Applying the takeaways from the research into Charleston PD’s actual recruitment by:
  • Boosting reputation through professionalism and online presence.
  • Providing competitive compensation that supports work-life balance.
  • Encouraging referrals through a more engaged process.
  • Constantly recalibrating the recruitment process based on feedback.
  • Mitigating risks through succession planning and staff backup plan.
  • Highlighting Charleston’s geographic appeal and how people can live, thrive, and grow within in marketing efforts.
  • Leveraging customer service orientation and the purpose and passion for policing.
  • Eliminating tokenism practices that treat people like they don’t matter.
• How an evidence-based approach to recruitment and a practitioner-research partnership allows the ability to:
  • Stay current on program effectiveness and adjust programming as needed.
  • Follow the employee life cycle and look into their motivation and commitment throughout as a retention strategy.
  • Foster fruitful partnerships that uphold an evidence-based approach for effective policing.

Questions from the webinar attendees are about:

• How the recruitment strategy translated into results.
• The effectiveness of online job boards, referral bonuses, visiting colleges, and job fairs for Charleston PD.

Click here to view and register for other upcoming ASEBP webinars on the JCH Platform.

Resources and Handouts

• Handout: Additional Readings

Audience Comments

• “These 3 presenters should be featured in every state to support recruiting. What a refreshing Trio to address a needed and somewhat sensitive topic. Wonderful in-depth knowledge. THANKS !!!” — Vivian
• “So many ideas and thoughts to present to command staff. loved this webinar!!! very insightful. Great presenters that clearly have passion for their job and recruiting.” — Monique
• “Good ideas and perspective on what has been working for this particular agency.” — Scott
• “The ‘why’ is often overlooked because law enforcement requires unique tactical skills, it was helpful to be reminded of that component for the retention and sustainability of our officers. The practical suggestion regarding the website and social media was also a good reminder. Really appreciated the panelists – their passion was inspiring!” — Rachel
• “Great review on the process, the integrity of the successful process; recruitment needs to be transparent, active, pro-active, and available to ALL candidates. Appreciated the personalized ”human’ focus that was reiterated several times during the presentation. Research/Data/Questions of the candidates and applicants provided insight. Thanks for sharing!” — Melissa
• “I had not considered the benefits of gathering information about recruitment during the new hire onboarding process. The research done by the presenters showed the importance of outlining expectations and timelines to the applicants in the hiring process.” — Mark
• “Lots- esp the take on job fairs and how we need to tell people what to wear, etc. When I came into the field it was just expected that candidates knew these things and I wonder how many great people we missed. I’d like to see a webinar on how to recruit good people when you’re turning around an agency that has a bad reputation.” — Kirsten
• “Let’s commit to sharing the lessons learned we are all learning as we sustain, design and implement effective approaches to Police recruiting. … Congratulations… You are making a valuable difference. This is complicated and VERY IMPORTANT territory!” — John
• “The survey example and discussion on how it was implemented, and the discussion on making the process itself more customer-oriented and improving efficiency were the most valuable things for me. These are areas that I’ve been working on in my own agency, so good to know that this is something recognized as a need by other organizations. It gives me more to stand on when recommending changes to our leadership.” — Jessica

The American Society of Evidence–Based Policing is a non-profit organization started by working police officers designed to drive the national conversation towards ensuring that the least harmful, most effective, fairest, and safest strategies are employed to prevent crime, reduce harm, and improve community wellness.