The public sector is facing enormous challenges: Digitalization, demographic change, climate policy - to name just a few. There could be a shortage of over one million skilled workers by 2030 (pwc.de)which, in the worst case scenario, means that the state will no longer be able to fulfill its core tasks (pwc.de) - This would affect areas such as health, education and security (pwc.de). "What is at stake is nothing less than the question of whether the public sector will still be able to fulfill its core tasks in the future," warned former State Secretary Volker Halsch (pwc.de). The strategic importance of every single appointment in federal authorities, ministries and public companies cannot be overestimated. In this article, you will find out why top talent is so important, how modern recruiting works in the public sector and how we, as experienced career advisors and HR consultants, can help you find the best people 😊.
Talent as a key factor in the public sector 🚀
Business leaders have always emphasized that people are the most important success factor. Peter Drucker, for example, predicted as early as 1999: "The most valuable assets of an institution in the 21st century will be its knowledge workers and their productivity" (zapjournals.com). In other words, well-trained specialists and managers(knowledge workers) will make the difference between success and failure - this is just as true in the public sector as it is in the private sector. Bill Gates put it in a nutshell: "Take away our 20 best people and Microsoft would become an irrelevant company" (wordsandquotes.com).Jack Welch, CEO of General Electric for many years, put it just as simply: "The team with the best players wins" (azquotes.com) - The team with the best players wins.** These quotes make it clear: top talent is not a "nice-to-have", but absolutely crucial to moving an organization forward.
For the public sector, this means that without excellent experts and managers, many initiatives will come to a standstill. Whether it's the digital transformation of a federal authority or large-scale infrastructure projects - competent minds make the difference. They bring fresh ideas, drive innovation, manage complex projects and ensure that citizens receive the best possible services. Especially in strategic management positions (e.g. in ministries or public companies), the quality of personnel determines the effectiveness of reforms and programs.
However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to attract these high potentials to the public sector. A recent EY study shows that the public sector is becoming less attractive to top graduates - while 23% of top students still described themselves as potential applicants for "Father State" in 2022, this figure had fallen to just 16% by 2024 (ey.com). At the same time, the tech industry is attracting more and more top talent (interest has doubled from 15% to 30% since 2022) (ey.com). Although the civil service offers security and work-life balance, many young talents perceive it as a "marriage of convenience rather than a love affair" - a safe haven that often lacks appeal (ey.com). Job security alone is no longer enough when, for example, salary, flexible working hours and self-realization are more important (ey.com).
The challenge is therefore clear: the public sector is in a race for talent. Private companies are actively courting the best - public employers have to make a convincing case for why a career in the service of society is attractive and rewarding. This is where the latest findings in psychology come into play: money is not the only motivator. Studies by organizational psychologist Adam Grant show that prosocial motivation - the knowledge that you are helping others with your work - can be a powerful driver, often even stronger than financial incentives (blogs.worldbank.org). In Grant's experiment, simply being exposed to the meaning of work (one grantee told fundraisers how a grant changed his life) increased employee performance by 171% (blogs.worldbank.org, blogs.worldbank.org). Conclusion: There is enormous potential in the public sector in particular, where the common good and social purpose are at stake: meaningful tasks can attract and motivate top talent. This is in line with our experience as a recruitment consultancy: we deliberately emphasize the meaningful aspects of a public task - such as shaping education, the environment or security - because we have found that this significantly increases the motivation of suitable candidates.
Practical examples: Successes from our work 💼
You may be asking yourself: do these top people for the public sector even exist - and can they be found in time? Fortunately, we can provide encouragement from our experience 😃. We have successfully filled numerous key positions in the public sector in recent years. For example, we were able to place a Project Manager with a federal authority, who led an important digital transformation project there. In other cases, we have filled strategic roles in public companies - such as a large health insurance company and a municipal IT service provider. These examples show: The talent is there - you just have to target it.
Our track record in the public sector includes over 20 successful placements since 2018, including positions in federal ministries. A deep understanding of the administrative culture is crucial for such successes: public authorities tick differently than corporations. We are therefore looking for candidates who are not only top professionals, but also know the special challenges - from political coordination processes to compliance. We often find suitable talent in unexpected places: for example, experienced strategy consultants who are keen to create meaning in the public sector, or managers from regulated industries (insurance, healthcare) who would like to contribute their expertise to the public sector.
Originally started as an executive search consultancy specializing in IT and finance, we know how to find candidates in tight candidate markets. Many principles from the business world also apply here. However, the public sector often requires a balancing act: it is looking for top performers, but cannot always keep up in terms of salary. This makes it all the more important to emphasize other benefits - stable career planning, social impact, flexible working hours or additional points such as the Diversity Charter. Speaking of diversity: we are convinced that diversity makes teams stronger. As a signatory to the Diversity Charter, we embrace diversity and inclusion - this helps us to appeal to a wide range of target groups and increases our attractiveness as a public employer. Studies confirm that companies that embrace diversity are more innovative and successful (karriere.dekarriere.de) - why should it be any different in public authorities? 🌈
Finding top talent: This is how it works 👏
So how do you actually succeed in recruiting the best talent for the public sector? Here are a few success factors from the perspective of our recruitment consultancy - our checklist as a career guide for you and for public employers:
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Active sourcing instead of waiting 🔍: The days when applications fluttered in on their own are over. Many of the most sought-after people are latently searching or already well employed - they may not even read job advertisements. That's why we rely on direct approaches via personal networks and platforms such as Xing/LinkedIn. We identify talented individuals in suitable environments (e.g. consultancies with public sector experience, strategy teams in corporations, think tanks) and contact them discreetly and with sensitivity. In this way, we tap into the hidden candidate market - candidates who are not actively looking but are open to making the right career move. This recruitment service requires a lot of effort, but it pays off: We often attract high-caliber candidates** who would never have been reached through traditional job advertisements.
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Emphasize purpose and values 💡: As mentioned above, purpose is a trump card of the public sector. Good people want to make a difference. That's why we don't sell "jobs" in our interviews, but visions. We show how candidates can positively influence society with their work - be it the digitalization of administration, climate protection measures or social justice. This values-based approach has been proven to increase motivation. Studies support this approach: according to Adam Grant, people feel significantly more engaged when they have a clear purpose for their work (blogs.worldbank.org). Recruiting in the public sector should therefore always answer the question: What does this job stand for? Why is it important? - This is how we win hearts and minds ❤️.
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Creating attractive framework conditions 🏛️: Of course, public employers also need to work on their offerings. Flexible working hours, home office options, transparent career paths - all of these play a major role for the new generation (ey.com). According to a StepStone/Kienbaum study, 92% of employees do not rule out changing jobs, and almost half are even actively looking (kienbaum.com). This means enormous opportunities and competition: if you want to retain and attract talent, you have to position yourself as a modern employer. Career planning should be supported individually: Mentoring programs, further training and promotion opportunities signal to people that they can grow in the long term. Executive HR consulting in the public sector in particular can provide advice on how to make structures more career-friendly.
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Leveraging diversity and inclusion 🤝: Diverse teams are more creative, adaptable and attractive to female applicants. We often see that female candidates are specifically looking for a cosmopolitan working environment - young people in particular want to be able to be themselves, whether they are men, women, non-binary or have a different cultural background or life path. A working environment free of prejudice - that is the claim of the Diversity Charter, to which we are committed. Public institutions that promote diversity not only increase their innovative strength, but also their appeal in recruiting. According to a study by the Diversity Charter, two thirds of companies see concrete benefits from diversity management (karriere.de). A diverse team in a ministry or office can also strengthen proximity to citizens because it better reflects the population. Diversity is therefore a real competitive advantage in the battle for talent (and, incidentally, simply the right thing to do ✨).
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Partnership-based recruitment 💼: Last but not least, don't hesitate to seek professional support. Specialized personnel consulting can make all the difference, especially for critical positions. We see ourselves as career companions for both clients and candidates. This means that we accompany the entire process closely and confidentially: from requirements analysis with the authority to candidate selection and onboarding. A good recruitment consultancy has a large network - for example, we have over 100,000 profiles in our database, many of which work in ministries, consultancies and companies. We know the current trends and salary benchmarks and can provide realistic advice on who can be recruited and how. Above all, however, we ensure a perfect fit: professionally and culturally. After all, what good is the most brilliant mind if the person doesn't fit into the team? We therefore pay attention to the famous "cultural fit" - in the public sector, for example, an understanding of administrative processes and political sensitivity. In this way, we ensure that the career planning works out for both sides: the organization gets the right manager and the manager finds an environment in which he or she can work.
Conclusion: Shaping the future together 🌟
The public sector needs top talent - more than ever. In view of the shortage of skilled workers and the growing demands, smart recruiting will determine the future viability of public administration and state-owned companies. The good news is that many highly qualified people want to make a contribution, create meaning and take on responsibility. Our job as a recruitment consultancy in IT, finance and the public sector is to find these people, inspire them and place them in the right positions. If we make career planning in the public sector attractive and promote a culture of appreciation and diversity, we will attract the best minds. Because ultimately, it's about tackling the big challenges with the right people on board. Top talent in the public sector is not an end in itself - it is the key to developing innovative solutions for society. Let's work together to ensure that "Father State" gets the brains it deserves - for a better future for us all 🚀.
Sources:
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EY (2024): Job security comes first - 2024 student study (ey.comey.com)
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PwC & Strategy& (2023): Skills shortage in the public sector (pwc.compwc.com)
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Diversity Charter (2021): Diversity study (karriere.dekarriere.de)
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World Bank (2013): Adam Grant's research on prosocial motivation (blogs.worldbank.org)
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Quotes: Peter Drucker (zapjournals.com), Bill Gates (wordsandquotes.com), Jack Welch (azquotes.com), Steve Jobs (via Walter Isaacson) (artisantalent.com), Volker Halsch (pwc.de).
