Attractions and Repulsions: How Competitive is the Hungarian Civil Service Today?

Purpose: The aging of civil servants poses the greatest risk for public institutions in Europe, making it increasingly difficult for employers to offer a suitably motivating atmosphere and attractive working conditions for different generations. Lately, research has been focusing on the tools and human resource (HR) and communication strategies that can help retain talented workforce and increase their loyalty. The purpose of the study is to investigate the competitiveness of the Hungarian civil service through a literature review, exploring how attractive or repulsive a civil service career is in the Hungarian labour market. Finally, the article presents some suggestions on how governments can proactively attract and retain the talented next generation of civil servants.Design/Methodology/Approach: The article is partly descriptive and synthesizing, drawing on extensive, comprehensive knowledge and systematization of domestic and international literature and legislation.Findings: The greatest challenge in public administration HR management today is replacing the older generation, transferring knowledge and practical experience, as well as winning over generations Y and Z and creating attractive working conditions for them. The article summarizes the options to address these staffing challenges based on the literature and practice offering numerous solutions to recruitment and retention issues.Practical Implications: Public administration has always been considered a special field, with operating principles and processes differing significantly from those of the private sphere. A wide range of specialized literature has researched, through the explanation of generational change, the HR tools necessary for attracting and retaining today’s employees. Some of the proposed tools and measures may differ from the traditional organizational culture of the public administration. This article lays the grounds for the next empirical phase of research, which will investigate the main motivators for public administration employees and the factors that drive their commitment. This phase will also examine whether the motivators and commitment factors differ from those in the private sector and how the unique characteristics of public administration manifest in this field. By presenting development trends in Hungary, this study aims to contribute to the scientific discourse on the specific characteristics of this issue in Central and Eastern Europe.