Context
The Recruitment Eligibility Lists project is an initiative launched by the municipality of Carignano (Torino) in collaboration with the Asmel Association, a network of Italian municipalities. It addresses the challenge of slow and resource-intensive recruitment processes within local public administrations. The project departs from traditional geographically-bound recruitment by establishing a national system for pre-vetting candidates for various professional profiles.
Objectives
The Recruitment Eligibility Lists project aims to streamline public administration recruitment, particularly at the local level. It establishes a centralised selection process to create national lists of qualified candidates across different professional categories. Local governments can then directly access these lists to fill vacancies, expediting the hiring process. This initiative offers potential benefits for all stakeholders. Local governments gain access to a wider pool of pre-qualified candidates, reducing the time and resources required for traditional recruitment procedures. Citizens benefit from faster service delivery as positions are filled more efficiently. The project also addresses the issue of an ageing public sector workforce by attracting younger candidates through targeted communication strategies. As a result, a significant portion of the eligible candidates are young professionals.
Implementation
The project relies on a collaborative framework. The Asmel Association conducts annual selection procedures to establish and update the lists of eligible candidates. Candidates who successfully pass a remote selection test are included in the lists for a period of three years. Local governments that have signed the agreement can then initiate recruitment processes reserved for candidates on these lists. The entire process, managed through a dedicated digital platform, is designed to be transparent and efficient. Candidates can choose which opportunities to apply for and, in most cases, only need to participate in an oral test with the municipality, as the written test has already been conducted by Asmel. This significantly reduces hiring times compared to traditional methods.
The project has a large number of participating municipalities and hired personnel. It has demonstrably addressed recruitment delays, attracted young talent to the public sector, and reduced costs for both municipalities and candidates. The project’s emphasis on collaboration and digitisation suggests its potential for replication across the European Union.