I Italian public competitions are spoiled by “distortions” that hinder "the entry of the best candidates with the most suitable profile". This is what we read in a study conducted by four economists of the Bank of Italy (Cristina Giorgiantonio, Tommaso Orlando, Giuliana Palumbo and Lucia Rizzica), entitled "Incentives and selection in the public sector".
The problems are encountered above all locally, where the chances of success for candidates are often minimal. To the point that, according to the analysis by Via Nazionale, "in the period 2001-2015, Regions and local authorities almost banned 19 thousand competitions for permanent jobs, with an average of not even 2 positions available per competition".
The main "criticality" to face, continue the economists of Palazzo Koch, is "the high degree of rigidity" of the selection, with "written and oral tests mainly aimed at testing theoretical-notional knowledge".
The study also shows that each candidate hired "he studied on average about five months to take the test" and "over 45% have only studied in that period, not carrying out other work activities".
Considering that in 2014 over 280 thousand individuals "have sent an application to participate or taken tests in a public competition - continues the analysis - it can be calculated that every year in the Italian economy are employed over a million months for the preparation of public competitions".
Since "the average monthly net salary is approximately 1.300 euros", it follows that, according to the Bank of Italy, "the estimated opportunity cost for the country is estimated at around 1.4 billion euros a year”, which can “discourage more capable candidates”, rather generating “an advantage for those who have more time to devote to the preparation of the test (generally the unemployed)”.
Palazzo Koch points the finger at the excess of knowledge in the selection criteria, which in fact limits "the ability of the managers of the organization to evaluate the possession, by the candidates, of characteristics even relevant for the tasks that will be entrusted to them, such as career ambitions and intrinsic motivation".
Another element of inefficiency, according to Bankitalia, is constituted by the lists of suitable candidates (approximately 7 candidates for each winner), which give rise to very long rankings on average and therefore make the publication of tenders irregular.
As for the innovations introduced by the public administration reform signed by Minister Marianna Madia, which plans, among other things, to centralize the selection process by reducing the lists of suitable candidates, according to the experts of the central institute they go in "a coherent direction", but are not "capable of affecting some junctions crucial".
However, the game remains more open than ever, considering that the final decisions will arrive within the next month of February with the consolidated text on public employment.
