Human Resources Management for Public and Nonprofit Organizations

Recruitment and Selection in the Public and Nonprofi t Sectors 183

management departments and department

managers should work together and make

workforce projections based on the current level

of employee skills. They should review trans-

fers, retirements, promotions, and termination

patterns and do succession planning in order

to identify individuals who might fi ll positions

when an incumbent leaves. This requires keeping track of and updating

the records of each employee ’ s KSAOCs and the demands required of

each position. A human resource information system can sort employee

data by education, career interests, work histories, occupation fi elds, and

other factors.

Many organizations favor internal recruitment because administra-

tors have the opportunity to review and evaluate the KSAOCs of internal

applicants prior to selection. Choosing internal candidates also enables

agencies to recoup the investment they have made in recruiting, select-

ing, training, and developing their current employees. Promoting qualifi ed

incumbent employees rewards them for their performance and signals to

other employees that the agency is committed to their development and

advancement.

Before organizations limit recruitment efforts to internal recruitment,

however, other factors should be considered. Some positions in public and

nonprofi t organizations require specialized skills that may not be found

within the agency, and for such positions it may be necessary to recruit

and hire from outside. Organizations with homogeneous workforces — that

is, agencies composed of all women, men, or Caucasians, for example —

should also consider outside recruitment to increase the demographic

diversity of their staff. Another important reason for the organization to

consider external recruitment is when it wants to change its internal cul-

ture. Applicants hired from outside are not hampered by sacred cows,

relationships with colleagues, or the agency ’ s history.

External Recruitment

External recruitment is the seeking of qualifi ed applicants from outside the

organization. Typically, the agency would seek qualifi ed applicants from

the relevant labor market, defi ned by the skills required for the position

and the location (geographical region) where those skills can be found. The

nature of specifi c occupations or jobs often demarcates the labor market.

Local labor markets, for example, are small areas, cities, or metropolitan

For internal recruitment to

work, agencies need to be

proactive and incorporate

strategic planning into their

human resources practices.