From attracting qualified candidates and telling an authentic agency story to streamlining hiring processes and building long-term career pathways, departments are rethinking how they recruit and retain the next generation of officers. Police Recruitment Week explores how agencies are modernizing recruitment, with practical insights for leaders navigating staffing shortages, community expectations and the realities of building a sustainable workforce.
What the data and the field reveal about where agencies lose candidates and how to keep them
FEATURED CONTENT
A practical, agency-wide framework that turns every sworn and civilian employee into an active recruiting force
Agencies relying on bonuses and short-term tactics may see temporary gains but lasting staffing stability comes from strategies that improve retention, reputation and community trust
A customized childcare model built for law enforcement families aims to improve retention, boost morale and deliver measurable return on investment
Integrating civilians, structured internet sleuth programs, artificial intelligence and regional partnerships may be the key to sustaining clearance rates in the 21st century
Facing staffing shortages and rising complexity, departments like Atlanta are expanding civilian leadership and professional staff roles to stabilize operations, modernize capabilities and relieve pressure on sworn officers
From paperwork to people skills, seasoned cops offer hard-earned advice for the next generation
If you’re losing applicants, stretching hiring timelines or watching academy classes shrink, this guide outlines what agencies are doing to rebuild their staffing pipeline
COMPLETE COVERAGE
The DOJ stated the Biden administration had “branded the aptitude tests...as discriminatory in an effort to advance a DEI agenda,” with no evidence of intentional discrimination
Pushing decision-making power down to the front line empowers people and fosters buy-in
“American communities deserve firefighters and police officers to be chosen for their skill and dedication to public safety – not to meet DEI quotas,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi
Incoming recruits only need 24 college credits but will be required to complete a 1.5-mile run in less than 14 minutes and 21 seconds
The Lower Merion Police Department also removed application fees and added a $5,000 hiring bonus
The exodus of officers from Detroit had been a problem for years, reaching a frenzy in 2022, when the department was losing an average of one per day
Overworked, underpaid and outnumbered — rangers and officers are fighting to keep America’s wild places safe
Technology can tackle the tedious, time-consuming tasks that weigh down emergency services
“We’re talking about life or death,” said Hamilton County, Ohio, Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey, who witnessed the 2023 death of Marcus Zeigler after he collapsed during training
The DeKalb County PD will raise major and captain salaries by 7.1%, set higher minimum salaries for officers and add funding for housing allowances and other benefits
ABOUT THE SPONSOR: eSOPH by Miller Mendel
With a primary focus of turning past practices used by city, county, state and federal government agencies into modern, efficient, and cost-effective digital solutions, Miller Mendel (MMI) has been creating category-leading systems since 2011.
eSOPH by Miller Mendel is a secure, cloud-based, pre-employment background investigation software system designed specifically for public safety agencies. Used by hundreds of agencies nationwide, eSOPH has been credited with cutting the time it takes to process a pre-employment background investigation by up to 50%, saving agencies significant time, money, and resources without sacrificing investigation quality.
eSOPH by Miller Mendel is a secure, cloud-based, pre-employment background investigation software system designed specifically for public safety agencies. Used by hundreds of agencies nationwide, eSOPH has been credited with cutting the time it takes to process a pre-employment background investigation by up to 50%, saving agencies significant time, money, and resources without sacrificing investigation quality.
How to use recruitment messaging and leverage new technology to attract, hire, onboard and retain top talent