Police Hiring and Promotions in the COVID Era

Since our profession continues to work as hard as ever, we still need to conduct the many HR duties that keep us moving in the right direction. Employment needs such as hiring, and promotions must still occur. Unfortunately, traditional methods to accomplish these tasks simply do not work in this environment. The Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association has been working hard to find new methods to fulfill our HR needs. Our solutions need to be slightly different and yet also reliable, viable and valid. It is undeniable that hiring and promoting officers is one of the most important decisions that any department can make. We need to continue to accomplish these processes and to do it well.

Stanard & Associates, the firm that provides us with our exams, now has an option to allow the candidate to take their exam on-line at the location of their choice. The need to maintain a secure process is accomplished in several ways. First, it is recommended that the candidate be advised that as part of the entry-level process, they may be asked to submit to a polygraph test to determine if they followed the security rules on their exam. Secondly, the teleconference product Zoom is available as a tool to observe the candidates as they take their exam. For a price of $14.99, the department can purchase unlimited use of this tool for one month. Testing on-line is no longer new or different. Colleges both large and small are using on-line testing with very good results.

Policing has always revolved around the idea that the best interviews are always in-person. Can we accomplish employment interviews using a teleconferencing tool? The Association believes that we can because we have and all with good results. This is how it works. PCPA has purchased unlimited Zoom time. We send an email to the agency who is conducting the promotional process. The email contains a link that makes the connections and begins the process. The only technical equipment needed is an audio and web camera; normally found in the basic laptop. The agency would handout the questionnaire packets and handle the administrative side of the interviews. Our (3) assessors would remain at our offices in Harrisburg and view the candidates via a large projection screen. For the department that needs to interview entry-level officers, I would suggest using the same method. The candidate can be interviewed at a location that they choose. Making sure that their wi-fi can handle the teleconference process would be imperative.