DOD and the Services Have Limited Visibility over Recruiter Irregularities

DOD and the services have limited visibility to determine the extent to  which recruiter irregularities are occurring. Accordingly, the services use  different terminology, which makes it difficult to compare and analyze data  across the services. DOD Lacks an Oversight Framework to Provide Guidance on Recruiter Irregularities, and Has Not Established Criteria to Characterize Irregularities

Effective federal managers continually assess and evaluate their programs  to provide accountability and to assure that they are well designed and  operated, appropriately updated to meet changing conditions, and  achieving program objectives. Without an oversight framework to provide complete and reliable data,  DOD and the services are not in a position to gauge the extent of recruiter  irregularities or when corrective action is needed, nor is the department in  a sound position to give Congress and the general public assurance that  recruiter irregularities are being addressed. Many Factors May Affect the Recruiting Environment

A number of factors within the current recruiting environment may  contribute to recruiting irregularities. These factors, coupled with the typical difficulties of  the job and pressure to meet monthly recruiting goals, challenge the  recruiter and can lead to recruiter irregularities in the recruiting process. In fiscal year 2005,  three of the eight active and reserve components we reviewed—the Army,  Army Reserve, and Navy Reserve—failed to meet their recruiting goals. Recruiters also believe that the ongoing hostilities in Iraq have made their  job harder. Almost three-quarters of active duty  recruiters who responded to DOD’s survey stated that they worked more  than 60 hours a week on recruiting or recruiting-related duties. In addition to performance evaluations, the services provide awards to  recruiters that are generally based on the number of contracts that a  recruiter writes, rather than on the number of applicants that graduate  from basic training and join the military. The department concurred with our recommendations in order to  enhance recruiter success and help recruiters focus on DOD’s strategic  retention goal, and it indicated that the Secretary of Defense would instruct  the services to link recruiter awards more closely to recruits’ successful  completion of basic training. Services Have Standard Procedures in Place for Administering Military Justice to Address Recruiter Irregularities

The services have standard procedures in place, provided in the Uniform  Code of Military Justice and service regulations, to investigate allegations  and service-identified incidents of recruiter irregularities and to prosecute  and discipline recruiters found guilty of violating recruiting policies and  procedures. DOD concurred with our recommendations to establish an oversight  framework to assess recruiter irregularities and provide overall guidance to  the services; to establish criteria and common definitions across the  services for maintaining data on recruiter irregularities; and for the  services to develop internal systems and processes that better capture and  integrate data on recruiter irregularities. As we stated in  our report, data that the services reported to us show that the number of  allegations, substantiated cases, and criminal violations all increased from  fiscal year 2004 to fiscal year 2005. While we did conclude from the data services provided to us that  recruiter wrongdoing did not appear to be widespread, we also stated our  belief that service data likely underestimate the true number of recruiter  irregularities, and further concluded that DOD is not in a position to  answer questions about these allegations and service-identified incidents  because it does not know the full extent to which the services are tracking  recruiter irregularities or addressing them. Finally,  we interviewed officials at the U.S. Military Entrance Processing Command  and two military entrance processing stations regarding recruiter  irregularities.
Why GAO Did This Study

The viability of the All Volunteer Force depends, in large measure, on the Department of Defense's (DOD) ability to recruit several hundred thousand individuals each year. Since the involvement of U.S. military forces in Iraq in March 2003, several DOD components have been challenged in meeting their recruiting goals. In fiscal year 2005 alone, three of the eight active and reserve components missed their goals. Some recruiters, reportedly, have resorted to overly aggressive tactics, which can adversely affect DOD's ability to recruit and erode public confidence in the recruiting process. GAO was asked to address the extent to which DOD and the services have visibility over recruiter irregularities; what factors may contribute to recruiter irregularities; and what procedures are in place to address them. GAO performed its work primarily at the service recruiting commands and DOD's Military Entrance Processing Command; examined recruiting policies, regulations, and directives; and analyzed service data on recruiter irregularities.

What GAO Found

DOD and the services have limited visibility to determine the extent to which recruiter irregularities are occurring. DOD, for example, has not established an oversight framework that includes guidance requiring the services to maintain and report data on recruiter irregularities and criteria for characterizing irregularities and establishing common terminology. The absence of guidance and criteria makes it difficult to compare and analyze data across services and limits DOD's ability to determine when corrective action is needed. Effective federal managers continually assess and evaluate their programs to provide accountability and assurance that program objectives are being achieved. Additionally, the services do not track all allegations of recruiter wrongdoing. Accordingly, service data likely underestimate the true number of recruiter irregularities. Nevertheless, available service data show that between fiscal years 2004 and 2005, allegations and service-identified incidents of recruiter wrongdoing increased, collectively, from 4,400 cases to 6,500 cases; substantiated cases increased from just over 400 to almost 630 cases; and criminal violations more than doubled from just over 30 to almost 70 cases. The department, however, is not in a sound position to assure Congress and the general public that it knows the full extent to which recruiter irregularities are occurring. A number of factors within the recruiting environment may contribute to irregularities. Service recruiting officials stated that the economy has been the most important factor affecting recruiting success. Almost three-quarters of active duty recruiters responding to DOD's internal survey also believed that ongoing hostilities in Iraq made it hard to achieve their goals. These factors, in addition to the typical challenges of the job, such as demanding work hours and pressure to meet monthly goals, may lead to recruiter irregularities. The recruiters' performance evaluation and reward systems are generally based on the number of contracts they write for applicants to enter the military. The Marine Corps is the only service that uses basic training attrition rates as a key component of the recruiter's evaluation. GAO previously recommended that the services link recruiter awards and incentives more closely to applicants' successful completion of basic training. DOD concurred with GAO's recommendation, but has not made this a requirement across the services. The services have standard procedures in place, provided in the Uniform Code of Military Justice and service regulations, to investigate allegations of recruiter irregularities and to prosecute and discipline recruiters found guilty of violating recruiting policies and procedures. In addition, to help recruiters better understand the nature and consequences of committing irregularities in the recruitment process, all services use available information on recruiter wrongdoing to update their training.