The public administration literature suggests that symbolic representation can positively affect how citizens experience and judge public organizations. This reasoning extends to public sector recruiting, indicating that representativeness can increase the effectiveness of recruitment efforts. Still, previous research did not consi-der whether and how public organizations can leverage symbolic representation in recruitment processes.

The research first conceptualizes two dimensions of symbolic representation related to re-cruitment activities. First, descriptive representation refers to the status quo, where organiza-tions disclose a given gender distribution (e.g., for a job type or organizational unit). Second, prescriptive representation constitutes an additional measure where organizations disclose which gender distribution they strive for in the future. Both concepts align with the theory of representative bureaucracy but broaden the focus to a change-oriented perspective. Descriptive and prescriptive representation in a job advertisement should positively influence organizational attractiveness and intention to apply.

This study explores this question by implementing a large-scale survey experiment to test the expectations. The factorial survey experiments (n = 1,510 German citizens) manipu-lated descriptive and prescriptive gender representation in a realistic job advertisement. Following the vignettes, participants primarily indicated perceived organizational attractiveness and application intentions. The data collection was conducted successfully and result will be available soon.

Human capital is a critical resource for any organization, with the success and performance of these organizations often relying on their ability to attract skilled and competent employees (MacRae et al., 2014). Public administration faces competition with private organizations in the labor market to recruit the best talent. With a significant proportion of the current workforce approaching retirement age, this competition is expected to intensify (Alshathry et al., 2017). As future employees often consider various organizations during their job search (Sivertzen et al., 2013), increasing employer attractiveness is one promising strategy to face labor shortage (de Waal, 2022). Consequently, it is crucial for public HRM to understand the factors that contribute to the attractiveness of public administration as an employer (Ritz & Waldner, 2011).

Individuals differ with regards to their abilities, personalities, and values, and are hence attracted to different types of organizations. Organizations can gain a competitive advantage by using their culture and identity to differentiate themselves from competitors and attract personnel who share similar values and exhibit increased commitment (Furnham & Palaiou, 2017, p. 86). From a contextual perspective, public administration differs significantly from private sector organizations in terms of their core values (van der Wal et al. 2008). According to person-environment fit theory, individuals are attracted to organizations that are committed to a set of values and norms similar to their own (Chatman, 1989). Public service motivation theory is one notable proposition in this area assuming that the greater an individual's public service motivation the more likely they are to seek membership in a public organization (Perry and Wise 1990; Andersen et al. 2021). However, public service motivation is not the sole driver for public sector employment (Christensen & Wright 2011). Other research highlights that people attracted to public sector organizations tend to differ in terms of their response to prospective work rewards, with intrinsic incentives being considered strong predictors for public sector employment (Perry & Hondeghem, 2008). In contrast, Choi et al. (2016) demonstrated that individuals who place a higher value on monetary rewards are more likely to opt for employment in the private sector. Various studies have investigated how motivational dispositions and attitudes towards incentives differ across sectors (Cordes & Vogel, 2022). Despite these investigations, empirical evidence for the assumed differences remains limited and ambiguous. Public management literature continues to grapple with the question of whether public sector employees constitute a unique workforce in terms of expectations and values. Furthermore, most studies in this area do not demonstrate if and how differences in values and motivations prompt any type of job-switching behavior. This disregard for the connection between values, motives, and actual behavior is particularly surprising given that motivational dispositions are often used to explain employee behavior.

Our study addresses these gaps by examining the relationship between job-switching motives and perceived employer attractiveness of public administration, comparing sector switchers with non-switchers based on arguments from person-environment fit, employer attractiveness, and public service motivation theory. We utilize data from actual job and sector switchers at post-entry level to investigate actual employer choice behavior. Thus, the research question is: How do sector switchers and non-sector switchers differ regarding the relationship between job-switching motives and perceived employer attractiveness of public administration?

Data were collected with an online survey conducted in Switzerland between July and August 2021 in collaboration with human resource offices at the municipal (Legal and Personnel Service of the City of Solothurn), cantonal (Personnel Office of the Canton of Solothurn), and federal (Federal Personnel Office) levels. The target population comprised employees who joined their public organization in the preceding year on a permanent contract, reaching 1263 individuals. The final dataset consists of 546 respondents with 318 sector switchers from the private to the public sector, 38 switchers from non-profit to the public sector, and 184 individuals who switched their employer within the public sector (non-switchers).

We investigate the differences in attitudes towards job switching motives and employer attractiveness of public administration by conducting multiple regression analysis, examining group differences between sector switchers and non-switchers and include a variety of relevant control variables. This procedure allows us to disentangle the effect of sector specific versus job-related motives, and public service motives versus intrinsic motives for switching across sectors as well as within the public sector. Thus, we contribute to the discourse on the role of context, motives, and values in public HRM and their practical implications for the employer attractiveness of public organizations.

Socializing employees into organizational culture matters for both individual and organizational performance. Prior research has shown the importance of socialization in conveying organizational mission and values to new recruits, but there has been little evidence on the extent to which this is driven by the direct communication of values or by other socialization mechanisms. Alternative channels of socialization require investigation especially in challenging contexts where patronage, nepotism, and corruption are norms, but mission mystique and performance-based culture are exceptions. I explore this by conducting semi-structured interviews with 81 civil servants in Nigeria’s and Ghana’s civil services about how direct supervisors socialize new recruits into their teams. I show that seemingly mundane and informal task assignment and task supervision of recruits was a primary focus of their supervisors and was a crucial, alternative channel of socialization into organizational culture. New recruits, their supervisors, and HR personnel interviewed reported task assignment and supervision to influence recruits’ identities, work attitudes, performance, and early career advancement. An important implication is that even in challenging contexts, public organizations can still influence individual performance via mundane and informal task assignment and supervision.

Increasing gender diversity constitutes a desirable goal for public sector recruiters. Since job advertisements are the initial step when public organizations target candidates, research focuses on how they affect recruitment outcomes. We zoom in on why job advertisements can result in gender sorting in public labor markets, addressing research gaps concerning gendered recruitment practices. We theorize two mechanisms of gender sorting, related to gendered language and the gender of the contact person present in job advertisements. This study tests these claims with a unique multi-source dataset consisting of real job advertisements, a survey among recruiters issuing the job advertisements, and organization-level data. We subjected the job advertisements to natural language processing with word embeddings (using “fastText”) and combined this with information about the number and share of women applying to the respective advertisement. Results from hierarchical linear models indicate that feminine wording increases the number and share of applications by women, also relating to a higher number of applications overall. A female contact person increased the share of applications by women. This study theorizes gender sorting and offers robust empirical evidence showcasing the relevance of gendered language. The research contributes to public administration research by providing interdisciplinary theorizing about how and why women may be less inclined to apply for some public sector jobs. We derive theoretical and practical implications for recruitment in the public sector.