- The Case:
Many Australian police forces have been facing recruitment pressures for some time.
Significant numbers of senior and experienced officers in ageing workforces are retiring.
Lucrative alternative occupations in security roles both locally and overseas have resulted
in the resignations of officers in their prime seeking the higher financial rewards that such
roles offer them. Steadily declining numbers of candidates have tested the ability of police
forces to maintain and grow their workforces to meet the needs arising from increased city
populations in particular.
The recruitment of experienced police officers from overseas has achieved some measure
of success in alleviating these pressures. However, such strategies are not seen to provide
anything other than short-term solutions.
Research has shown that there is a declining interest in careers in police services of
those in the main target group of 18-25 year olds. You have been engaged to revamp the
Queensland recruitment program as the Queensland Police Service (QPS) continue to
expand.
The (QPS) is proud of being recognised as a lead agency in the area of information
technology within the Australian law enforcement arena (Queensland Police Service,
2010). The vision of the QPS is that “Queensland is a safe and secure place to live, visit
and do business”, and their mission is “To deliver high quality, innovative, progressive and
responsive policing services” (Queensland Police Service, 2010).
The Human Resources Department have indicated that they are interested in targeting 18-
25 year olds as well as other target groups (e.g. women and 35-45 year olds). What is clear
to you is that traditional police recruitment programs, that communicate a message along
the lines of an invitation to ‘Join Us’, no longer work. The Human Resources Department
say that it is sometimes difficult to ‘sell’ police services as a career, as it can be difficult to
convey the type of impact someone can have and to overcome many misconceptions about
the nature of police work.
The HR manager has approached you for advice on an appropriate recruitment strategy and
selection process. They are particularly interested in how they can use information about
the job to attract the right kind of people to the organisation. They also want to make sure
that their selection process is cost efficient and utilises appropriate selection techniques for
this type of position.
2
Assessment Task:
Prepare a report of your recommendations for the recruitment strategy AND the
selection process for Queensland Police.
Your recommendations need to be fully justified, using core concepts covered in class and
relevant literature. Your recommendations need to consider all of the relevant facts about
the case study.
Your report consists of two elements:
1. Recommendations for the recruitment strategy
Based on the information provided in the case study, develop a recruitment strategy
for Queensland Police to assist them in increasing the number of quality applicants
that apply. Use Breaugh’s model of the Recruitment Process, (steps 2 and 3 in
particular) as a guide and other relevant material from this unit.
2. Recommendations for the selection process
Based on the information provided in the case study, develop recommendations
for the selection process for Queensland Police. Refer to the selection techniques
covered in class and use the ones you believe are most appropriate given the
circumstances. This part of your report is similar to what you completed with your
group in your final assessment item. You develop recommendations for what the
overall selection process should consist of. For example, you identify the most
relevant selection techniques (e.g. short-listing, interviewing, any direct assessment
methods, and reference checks) and the order in which they will be used.
There is a certain amount of stress associated with working within the police force.
As part of your recommended selection process, please identify what kind of
performance test (direct assessment method) you would create to assess the ability
of an applicant to handle this type of stress effectively.
Your justification needs to be based on materials covered in class and relevant literature.
Your report should be approximately 2 500 words in length, excluding any appendix material.
