working for state government

The University of Delaware has released a study suggesting changes to the way in which government employees are hired. It looks like it might have some really good, practical suggestions, like the following:

Among the study's recommendations was a call for eliminating traditional civil-service-type tests and replacing them with processes that examine a job applicant's skills and qualifications. The report said that traditional tests have been vulnerable to court challenges because they don't adequately reflect the actual skills needed by employees.

Between that report, and one just issued by the National Governor's Association (see below for more on them), called A Governor's Guide to Creating a 21st-Century Workforce, I think that there are plenty of good ideas circulating about how to change the way government does business when it comes to their most valuable resources --the men and women who work for them.