Evaluating the Challenge and Weakness of the Recruitment and Hiring Process

Strategic Project Management
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Strategic Project Management
Essentially, all employment sectors in today's business environment face challenges, especially when managing their human resource. The law enforcement sector is no exception. Over the years, there has been a constant debate on the difficulties experienced in recruiting and retaining law enforcement officers. Notably, the primary concern is that though many individuals are recruited into the sector, they usually do not last long. Ideally, most law enforcement agencies invest heavily in the hiring process, with more funds going into the extensive training programs. Therefore, when already trained officers quit or retire from their jobs, the agencies suffer substantial losses. Further, when police departments are understaffed or fail to complete the recruitment process, their existing workforce is usually strained and burnt out. As such, the high rate of recruit turnover in the law enforcement sector has been a worrying phenomenon. Many researchers are trying to establish the reasons for the trend and reverse or reduce the exact prevalence. This can be done by conducting a SWOT analysis on the recruitment process in law enforcement.
The first challenge or weakness of the recruitment and hiring process is the small pool of qualified applicants available. Arguably, most police and law enforcement agencies often have vacancies open all year round. However, there are stringent rules and minimum requirements for each individual to meet before joining the police academy. For recruitment reasons, police departments often look for people with clean criminal histories and little or no prior drug usage, becoming a more difficult barrier to overcome in today's society (Wilson et al., 2010). Minor crimes and illegal drug users are becoming more acceptable due to the growing tolerances for these behaviors. Young people are becoming more involved in activities that will prevent them from obtaining a position in the law enforcement system as society accepts drugs and other substances. The drive towards the legitimization of these substances continues. In other words, there has been loosening of standards concerning previous illicit drug possession. It is common knowledge that young people are now more likely than older adults to have past criminal convictions. In the context of certain ethnic minorities, this trend might be higher than the general population.
Secondly, the recruitment policies demand that individuals who qualify for the police academy must also be willing to work outdoors and in potentially dangerous situations. This means that they should as well be in good shape. Ideally, though this might seem like an easily attainable feat, it is surprising that this requirement disqualifies many individuals from the police recruitment process. The policies also dictate that the candidate must also have a high school diploma, a higher educational background, and average to high aptitude (Kearns, 2007). Many people often argue that having a diploma or higher educational qualification and venturing into law enforcement is a waste of time. Ideally, there are many more lucrative employment opportunities requiring the same academic qualifications. Therefore, many would prefer to take on a better job. Competition occurs due to the great need for people who possess these qualities among other employment departments.
Another challenge in the recruitment and retention of law enforcement officers is the bad blood between police and American citizens. Law enforcement authorities in America have often had a bad reputation, especially regarding their interaction with ethnic minorities and protests. In essence, police officers, for many years, have been equated to gangs of racist individuals backed by the nations and an unlimited pool of resources at their disposal. In recent years, a case in point, the issue of police brutality has caused many US citizens to lose faith in the law enforcement agencies. This is not unexpected since the whole idea of policing is to ensure people feel safe, protected, and free to engage in their activities. However, this is not the case, particularly with black Americans. The police have been at loggerheads with the community due to various grotesque confrontations between them. For instance, the recent issue regarding the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer caused a stir of protests and uprisings calling for reforms in the police department (McEvoy, 2021). Undoubtedly, it would be implausible that any black individual might be interested in joining the law enforcement sector after such an ordeal. This will also have a trickle-down effect on the rest of the population since many Americans might not want to get involved with a department that propagates violence and racism in the modern era.
Consecutively, the high turnover rates in the law enforcement departments are also attributable to the system's lousy reputation and officer's frustration with the police department. Arguably, many police officers love their job, and they hold it upon themselves to maintain human dignity, peace, law, and order. In that sense, the entire policing system is built to ensure all citizens of America live in harmony without fear. However, when the same departments go against what they stand for, patriotic officers might feel detached from the system (Kearns, 2007). In other words, following unethical police actions, many officers may change their loyalty to the force and opt to resign to maintain their dignity. Without a doubt, measures such as police brutality affect officers n...