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 Golden Police Department launched the four-day week program in order to recruit and retain more officers; it has helped with productivity, response times and morale
The Moose Lake city council will soon vote to decide whether to dissolve the police department in favor of a county law enforcement contract
“We’re pleased to see this increase in applications from [individuals] … willing to go above and beyond to serve and protect, with ... strong moral fiber not exclusive to those with a college education,” said Colonel Christopher Paris
For you to come out on top, you will be a blend of having the chops and showing up as your best-presented self
Some leaders are asking that the time frame recruits must abstain from marijuana use before being hired by a law enforcement agency be lowered from two years to six months
The Ripley Police Department will only be able to sustain three officers if the proposal passes, leaving several hours of the day with no cops on duty
Silos kill progress and diminish the greater good, and our greater good is a healthy, operational police agency
“In addition to being police officers, we are also members of the community. We have lives outside of policing, too.”
The Alameda Police Department is nearing the maximum number of officers it can hire; the PD is only short one officer per squad and is hiring in the “top 5%" of qualified applicants
At just 18 years old, Donnie was controlling a chaotic murder scene while others his age were still struggling to control their acne
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