DHS turns to IT to hire 65,700 workers

It's not your father's federal government anymore. And it's not his HR department either.

Jeffrey Neal, the personnel chief for the Department of Homeland Security, has a major challenge on his desk: helping DHS hire 65,700 employees by the end of 2012. He's already turned to the art of high-tech to help him out, creating a single mechanism rather than the splintered hiring processes used by the multiple agencies that became part of DHS when it was created in 2003.

To do this, the department has started rolling out a new end-to-end hiring system called TalentLink, provided by San Francisco's Taleo Corp. Neal said Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano wants to create "one DHS," and said adopting a unified hiring system will be an important step toward that goal. TalentLink will provide department-wide statistics on how long it takes to complete each portion of the hiring process.

The system also will make it easier for job candidates to submit applications online; help human resources offices review, rate and track applicants; and help hiring managers organize interviews.

In February, DHS will start hiring people to fill 90 new Senior Executive Service positions, relying solely on resumes and interviews instead of essays. Neal said the changes are intended to bring the hiring process closer to that of the private sector.

For more on DHS and hiring:
- see this Federal Times article

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