Administration of Highway and Transportation Agencies. Recruiting and Retaining Talent in the Transportation Industry: Guide

State departments of transportation (DOTs) and industry partners have experienced internal and external compounding factors that have decreased applications for open positions, with many state DOTs experiencing unprecedented job vacancy rates. The unfilled positions challenge state DOTs in operating and maintaining their systems and implementing planned projects. This has prompted state DOT leadership to refocus on recruiting new talent to the transportation industry. However, difficulties in recruitment are symptoms of an 80/20 problem: 80 percent of recruitment activities focus on recruitment itself, while only 20 percent of efforts address internal and external factors dissuading talent from working at their agencies, or challenging retention efforts. Yet these factors may represent 80 percent of the actual problem. For example, prior to the pandemic and especially during recessions, state DOTs and industry partners could receive hundreds of applications for a single open position. Accordingly, systems in human resources (HR) were implemented to filter applicants and help hiring managers find the best candidate more readily. Postpandemic, HR efforts may need to shift toward welcoming individuals into the transportation industry even if they do not yet possess certain skills or prior educational requirements, to broaden the available talent pool. Additionally, state DOTs have differences in laws, regulations, policies, and practices that HR must adhere to. Research is needed to provide state DOTs a nuanced understanding of the full problem and to identify context-sensitive actions for state DOTs to attract and retain talent. The objective of this research is to develop a guide for state DOTs and industry partners that identifies actionable and scalable strategies to address the internal and external factors that challenge recruitment and retention.  

• Record URL:
  http://apps.trb.org/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=5627
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Contract to a Performing Organization has not yet been awarded.

Language

• English

Project

• Funding: $400000
• Contract Numbers:

  Project 20-24(149)

• Sponsor Organizations:

  National Cooperative Highway Research Program

  Transportation Research Board
  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001

  American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)

  444 North Capitol Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Project Managers:

  Wadsworth, Trey

• Start Date: 20240723
• Expected Completion Date: 0
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Equity; Organizational factors; Personnel retention; Recruiting; State departments of transportation; Workforce
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Society; Transportation (General);

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01905497
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Transportation Research Board
• Contract Numbers: Project 20-24(149)
• Files: TRB, RIP
• Created Date: Jan 24 2024 3:26PM