Send to Kindle

As a new decade really roars, the courts are on the cusp of a predicament. In 2018 the National Center for State Courts’ (NCSC) Future Trends (rebranded to On the Horizon in 2019) painted a grim picture for the future of the courts in the article titled “Talent War.” The courts were facing an employee crisis. Following the Great Recession, Boomers remained in the workforce longer than expected, and Millennials either were not attracted to positions in the courts or used them as steppingstones to other careers outside of the courts. [i]

With large swaths of Boomers now set to retire permitting Gen X workers to file upward, and a dearth of Millennials to fill the spots vacated by the Gen Xers, the courts face a lack of court administrators.[ii] There are several reasons the courts failed to attract and keep Millennials, including workplace culture and compensation, but the fact remains the need for qualified employees held steady or increased while the number and quality of applicants decreased. [iii]

The coronavirus, or COVID-19, has struck globally, hurling nations into a tumultuous standstill as leaders try to stem the spread of the deadly virus. Here in the United States, stay-at-home orders have resulted in over 40 million Americans filing for unemployment.[iv] The increase in joblessness is occurring in conjunction with a decrease in job postings, with Indeed, a job-posting website, seeing a twenty percent decrease in job listings compared to this time last year.[v] According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, employment in professional and business services decreased by 52,000 in March.[vi]

Courts are one of the few essential operations that remain open during the virus shutdown. Like many businesses still operating during the virus, the courts found themselves thrown out of the physical world and into a virtual universe. The third branch of government is turning to technology to keep the doors of justice open. Yes, Lady Justice has gone digital.

On April 8, 2020, the Texas Supreme Court made history by connecting remotely and streaming a live hearing using video conferencing.[vii] Similarly, the Kansas Supreme Court appeared by video conference the Saturday before Easter to rule on a ban against large gatherings.[viii] The first-ever virtual jury trial was held on May 15, 2020. [ix] Across the country numerous other hearings have successfully taken place all within the confines of digital or telephone conferences. With courts already demonstrating their ability to successfully use technology to carry out the most important of court business, it is logical the same technology could be used to fill vacant positions from the robust talent pool made available by the coronavirus shutdowns.

Finding Candidates

The first hurdle in recruiting during the new normal is getting the word out to candidates that you are hiring. This is a good opportunity to reach out to your local news stations, who are looking for positive news stories. Come prepared with information on how your court has been open for business and working throughout the pandemic even if people are prohibited or limited in your courthouse. The wheels of justice did not stop with coronavirus; they kept turning, and you are looking for more people to help keep justice moving. Not only does this get the word out that you are looking for candidates, but it helps to further confidence in the courts by getting the word out to the public that even a pandemic cannot stop justice.

Online job boards and the National Center for State Courts’ Court Community Jobs page are two additional places you can get the word out about your opening.[x] LinkedIn is recommending organizations use the hashtags #CoronoaVirusHiring or #NowHiring in their job posts; other keywords such as “remote,” “work from home,” “virtual,” or “telecommute” may also be helpful.[xi] With one-quarter of Gen Z job seekers preferring digital communications, and over half of those surveyed unwilling to apply to a company with outdated recruiting methods, courts should consider more modern methods of recruiting and interviewing.[xii] Virtual job fairs are becoming the new norm with large crowds being ill advised. Houston and Long Island are hosting virtual job fairs, while Connecticut is hosting a statewide virtual job fair.[xiii]

Before Posting Job Openings

Potential employees will be researching your court before applying. Make sure you are putting your best face forward. Confirm that your website and social media are addressing the current work environment and take down anything that could seem insensitive or inappropriate in today’s climate. [xiv] Use your court’s social media, blog, and website to talk about the coronavirus crisis and what your court is doing to help and get through the pandemic; this is an opportunity to share the court’s values not only with potential employees but also with the community.[xv] Review third-party job-posting websites like Indeed, LinkedIn, and Glassdoor to see what current and former employees and people who have been interviewed are saying about your court and take the time to respond to comments.[xvi]

Have staff in place to respond to every applicant, regardless of whether they are qualified, to thank them for taking the time to apply.[xvii] Be prepared to be transparent with applicants. This includes making sure you are checking in and providing brief status updates and timelines; this should be continued throughout the interview process and goes a long way in building trust.[xviii] Other tips include using the candidate’s first name and personalizing the e-mail so it does not feel like a form response. Employees hired during the pandemic should be permitted to work from home during the pandemic, but employers who can design positions to work from home on an ongoing basis will be in a particularly strong position to recruit and retain employees.[xix] Be ready to answer candidates’ questions about continued remote work. You will also need a plan in place to onboard, introduce, and provide tours to new employees remotely.[xx] More on this below.

Interviewing Candidates

While remote hiring and onboarding is a new concept for the courts, other industries have engaged in the practice for years; as such, there are many helpful guides to assist the courts in navigating through this new method of talent acquisition. Over at LinkedIn, a networking site for professionals, they have developed seven tips for remote job interviewing; many of these tips are echoed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.[xxi] Those tips include:

1. Developing a remote interview process and clearly communicating the process with both your acquisition team and the candidates. Keeping everyone in the loop is one of the most difficult aspects of remote hiring. A shared document where the acquisition team members can ask questions and get answers and links to resources helps to keep everyone on the same page.
2. Get necessary technology in place and test it. There are a number of web-conferencing platforms available. If your court has yet to pick a platform NCSC has available, upon request, a matrix comparing court-focused features of some of the popular platforms. Email pandemic@ncsc.org to obtain this matrix.
3. Be open with your candidates. Over-communicating is good here. Let the candidate know the details of their interview including the schedule of topics and the names of the people they will be meeting with. Also keep in mind remote interviews may be new for both you and your candidates. Providing technology tips and a backup number should there be any problems is also recommended.
4. Choose your interview space well. Your space should be quiet, well lit, and clean.
5. Pitch your court culture. Candidates will not have the opportunity to walk around your courthouse, meeting the judges and other court staff to help them get a sense of how things operate within your halls of justice. You will need to create the imagery of that culture for them. Is there a meeting every Monday at three? Do the judges all gather in one office for morning coffee? Is the office quieter than a library or busier than an Indy 500 raceway? You need to virtually impart to the candidate the mission and vision of your courthouse.
6. Professionality and personability count just as much in a virtual interview as they do in an in-person interview. You should dress and act as though the candidate was sitting across from you in the courthouse and expect the same of them. However, keep in mind the circumstances of the coronavirus and do not penalize a candidate for a cat that appears wanting their fifteen minutes of web fame or a child asking for help with their virtual lesson.
7. Follow up with a thank you note that informs the candidate about the next steps.

As mentioned above, it is important to be transparent with interviewees. Let them know the time frame for making a decision, if the decision will be delayed, and if they will be considered for additional positions in the future.[xxii]

Onboarding New Hires

Once you have found your new employee, and they have accepted the offer of employment, you still need a way to onboard them without putting your new employee and current staff at risk by having everyone come into the courthouse. Like recruiting, others have blazed this trail and have some tips for the courts as they embark on this new frontier. Fast Company, an American business magazine, suggests the following for remote onboarding:[xxiii]

1. Streamline the number of onboarding activities. There is a lot of bloat in traditional onboarding activities, with an average 54 onboarding activities, impeding the new employee’s ramp-up period. That bloat contributes to employee turnover. Use online tools to conduct virtual onboarding meetings but keep those meetings focused, engaged, and productive, keeping in mind the employee’s personal motivations, learning behaviors, and developmental goals.
2. Managers need to have one-on-one time with their direct reports. Be quick about setting things up, use videoconferencing to conduct the meetings, and get the right people sharing the right information.
3. Use digital tools to fight isolation and build community. There are a number of platforms that provide internal social networks for companies. Being mindful of workplace appropriate topics and tones, these forums are a great place to talk about things other than work. This is a place for court employees both across the courthouse and within work groups to hold virtual water cooler conversations. Did Carol feed Don to her tigers? Are you participating in the teddy bear hunt? Who has seen the most Tom Hanks movies or can correctly identify the most of his 87 movies off of a single scene? Who has the best name for their sourdough starter? These are the types of non-work-related conversations that build your community and they can still happen remotely.

Onboarding is also a good time to use those same tools utilized in the virtual interviewing. Screen-sharing functionality is built into many of the web-conferencing platforms, and even some online phone systems. Screen sharing allows the trainers to walk your new employee through getting online and getting up and running in your systems as though they were shadowing or being guided by someone right there in the courthouse. Scheduling apps and task trackers allow the employee to learn what is expected of them and managers to follow along as the new employee learns the ropes. Instant-message chats can serve as a quick way to ask a question that does not feel as formal or imposing as an email.

The coronavirus has thrown the country onto a different course than most were anticipating when revelers range in the Roaring 20s 2.0. That new course includes a robust talent pool that courts have been unable to tap. Using technology, the courts have the opportunity to snap up candidates who might otherwise be unavailable to them and further strengthen their local community in these trying times. However, just getting the Millennials and the iGeneration in the door is only the first step. The long-term question will be now that the courts have used remote interviewing and onboards to obtain younger staff, will they be able to adopt their culture to retain the new employees and build the court administrator experience they need?

Word Scramble

This  month's puzzle in interactive. Type you answers in the boxes. Correct answers will highlight green, incorrect answers will highlight red.