The Loss of Talent: Why Local and State Law Enforcement Officers Resign to Become FBI Agents and What Agencies Can Do about it

Abstract

Police agencies often have a vexing problem with the recruitment and retention of qualified personnel. Human resource management is complex and one of the most difficult aspects of leadership and management in the law enforcement community. It seems that many excellent officers are hired, trained, and subsequently become effective members of the department only to have them resign in favor of other employment. It would be worthwhile for policing agencies to analyze the reasons good staff members resign and then consider local policy or operational changes that may enhance departmental retention. This article reports research that explored the motivation of state and local law enforcement officers to become FBI special agents. FBI special agent trainees, who were formerly state and local law enforcement officers from across the country, were surveyed while they were in training at the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Staff Training Academy. Conclusions are drawn from this evaluation and recommendations are made to improve the retention rate of peace officers at the local and state level of government.