November 15, 2006

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Commissioner Torres addressed the 91st Annual NJ League of Municipalities Conference in Atlantic City on the topic, “Human Resources for the Elected Official.” Torres joined a distinguished panel which included Princeton Township Mayor Phyllis Marchand, Moorestown Township Councilwoman Ann Segal, Irvington Township Human Resource Manager Alison Diner, City of Elizabeth Human Resource Director Anita Pritchard, and Deputy Commissioner of Personnel Marjorie Schwartz.

Commissioner Torres stressed that both civil service and non-civil service jurisdictions face many of the same human resource issues: the hiring of qualified employees; retention of employees; training to update and upgrade skills; and an aging - and retiring - workforce.

“We recognize that local jurisdictions have different needs from our State entities,” said Torres. “For our local customers, efficiency is about removing roadblocks to exploring consolidation and sharing of services.”

Commissioner Torres discussed DOP programs and services that help local governments to meet their human resource needs, including public safety testing, promotional examinations, Human Resource Development Institute (HRDI) training, and the Intergovernmental Transfer Program.

He also discussed the growing trend among our younger workers to view their careers as much more dynamic – a series of ‘micro-careers’ that will turn over time and time again during their working careers, rather than staying on the civil service track until retirement.

According to Commissioner Torres, the most important question facing HR professionals today is, “At the end of the day, how do we continue to attract and retain the best and brightest into public service?”