NAV Café – The Staff Recruitment Policy of the National Tax and Customs Administration and Their Practice in Preparation of Newcomers for the Challenges

Abstract

As part of a new organisational development approach, the ‘Police Café’ method provided excellent opportunity to talk about a special student community, customs officer candidates and their future employer, the National Tax and Customs Administration (NTCA). Among the Hungarian authorities, this specific organisation combines administrative, law enforcement and investigative functions. At an outstanding location, in a comfortable atmosphere, with active dialogue and sincere expressions participants had a rare opportunity to learn about the expectations posed by the revenue authority for its new employees and also, how the cadets think about their chosen profession. Lecturers of the Law Enforcement Faculty of the National University of Public Service as well as senior managers from several sectors of the NTCA also attended the workshop where participants analysed very actual problems such as how to direct potential candidates to the organisation; how recruits should be prepared for the challenges of their service; how to integrate them into the staff and, in longer terms, how to keep new generation staff members within the agency? Feedbacks from the working groups indicated that not simply a change in our habits of thought is required, but additional development of effective training practices, the introduction of new communication channels, and improvements in the organisational culture are also needed for the success.