It goes without saying that government agencies can rarely compete with the salaries offered in the private sector for top tech talent. It falls to the agencies to figure out creative strategies when competing for technology applicants. One method that works is using the agency’s mission to appeal to applicants.

Case in point

Two recent examples of agencies successfully using inspiring missions to identifying and hire tech talent come from the General Service Administration’s 18F innovation acceleration team and the U.S. Digital Service. Both of these organizations have managed to recruit despite a marked disadvantage vis-à-vis private-sector salaries.  

In the case of the GSA, the 18F team increased staffing from a handful to almost 100 in a few short months—practically miraculous in government staffing terms. Likewise, the U.S. Digital Service received more than 700 applicants for only two dozen open positions.

Moving forward

A near constant refrain about Millennials identifies them as a group attracted to work that has meaning. Millennials want work that matches their values and government service can be an attractive option appealing to their desire to make their communities a better place.

And don’t despair if your organization doesn’t have a ready-made inspiring raison d’etre. Instead, get to work on articulating how and why working for your agency is part of a higher, civic-minded purpose. 

For more information on agency approaches to high tech recruiting, see “Posting and Praying: Why Agencies’ Old-School Approach to Recruiting Tech Talent Needs an Update.”