Alabama Department of Public Health
Utilizing Local Recruitment Specialists to Increase Workforce Capacity
386%
Increase in Web Traffic
On ADPH’s human resource webpages from November 2024 to November 2022.
6
Recruiting Specialists Hired
To promote positions, educate job candidates, track data, and strengthen intradepartmental collaboration.
The Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) implemented a Recruit and Hire program to improve district recruitment efforts, increase ADPH’s overall workforce capacity, and facilitate the hiring of staff who reflect the communities they serve. The Recruit and Hire program funds six Recruiting Specialist positions, one for each public health district. ADPH’s Recruiting Specialists collaborate with the department’s Digital Media Branch to promote hard-to-fill job positions. In addition to posting open positions, recruiters educate job candidates on public health careers over the phone, by email, and in person at recruitment events. The Digital Media Branch uses a Public Health Infrastructure Grant (PHIG)-funded social media management tool, Sprout Social, to collect social media data and track key social media engagement metrics, like the number of inquiries and applications ADPH has received for its open positions.
During the same period as these recruitment efforts, ADPH saw a 386% increase in visits to its human resources (HR) webpages from November 2022 to November 2024. The department also saw increases in the number of people on select job registers from April 2024 to April 2025. Additionally, the Recruit and Hire program has strengthened intradepartmental collaboration, helping district and central office staff communicate more effectively and coordinate hiring activities.
PHIG PPI Pilot Disclaimer
This practice was reviewed and classified during the 2025 PHIG Promising Practices Initiative pilot using the pilot version of the scoring rubric. Following the pilot, the rubric was refined based on lessons learned to strengthen practice classification and supporting documentation requirements. These refinements were applied to future practice reviews.
PHIG PPI Disclaimer
The Public Health Infrastructure Grant (PHIG) Promising Practice Initiative (PPI) showcases practices that PHIG recipients have successfully implemented so that public health professionals across the country can adapt evidence-based approaches to their work.
In this context, a PHIG Promising Practice refers to an action taken by a PHIG recipient and made possible through PHIG funding or support (directly or indirectly). This action demonstrates evidence of positive change through interventions, activities, programs, strategies, policies, procedures, or processes.
PHIG Promising Practices are evaluated on a continuum as Novel, Emerging, Promising, or Best.