10 Steps TO ENSURE YOU WON'T RECRUIT THE TALENT YOU NEED.

Governments need to be able to successful recruit talent, but some have a reputation for making it harder than it has to be. The following not Top 10 list includes common mistakes governments have made, based on the reported experiences of a few recent job applicants in a survey by GFOA.

Read all our findings in GFOA's recent research report, "Meeting Demand for State and Local Public Finance Jobs," which provides more information about the scale of the challenge and some specific challenges facing the public finance industry.

Read the full report at gfoa.org/meeting-demand-public-finance

1 Following a long hiring process with no clear timeline. The hiring process in state and local public finance can take as long as six months, compared to 21 days for private sector finance.

2 Making the application process unnecessarily tedious. For example, some governments require applicants to reformat or rewrite their resumes to comply with the requirements of their recruiting system.

3 Failing to communicate about benefits or expectations of the position. Governments should use job postings to attract candidates and include information about benefits, career paths, work hours, and scheduling practices.

4 Providing no flexibility on remote work. While remote work may not fit as a permanent strategy for every government, there are some opportunities where remote work may be necessary in the short term. Governments need to provide some flexibility to allow staff to be productive.

5 Not advertising the salary in the job listing and/or offering a salary that's too low. Outside of some entry-level positions the salaries are typically lower in government finance than in comparable jobs in the public sector. Governments should provide information on both salary and other benefits that would make up total...