Editor´s Note
"CONTRACT REGIME IN THE PORTUGUESE ARMED FORCES. Difficulties and challenges in a changing context" is a publication composed of 12 studies, with the participation of more than twenty researchers, whose purpose is to continue to disseminate some of the contents of the research conducted at the Military University Institute (IUM), coordinated by its Center for Research and Development (CIDIUM).
[...]
I also consider that the 12 studies are an important additional contribution to the most recent work conducted by the MDN and the branches of the Armed Forces on the model of contracted military service in Portugal. This discussion should, however, be understood in a critical and value added perspective, genuinely subject to the scrutiny of the reader and to their individual reflection, with a view to further debate and, subsequently, to the possible implementation of some of the measures proposed herein.
For the above reasons, for the way this book is structured and for the relevance of its contents, I believe that its consultation and analysis may be of interest to military and political leaders, researchers in the field of human resources management, and all citizens, military and non-military, who, in general, deal directly or indirectly with this issue or experience its consequences.
To all, best wishes for a fruitful reading.
Lisbon, September 14, 2018
Vice Admiral Edgar Marcos de Bastos Ribeiro
Commander of the IUM
Articles
Evolution of the Contract-Scheme Model of Military Service in the Portuguese Armed Forces, Critical Analysis and Reflexions
Abstract
This study draws on documentary data and interviews to conduct a critical review of the contract-scheme model of military service in the Portuguese Armed Forces by addressing the evolution of the respective legislation and its applicability, since Portugal abolished conscription and the voluntary scheme was introduced in 1999 (AR, 1999). This study, which combines a strategy of qualitative research (Bryman, 2012; Creswell, 2013) and inductive reasoning (Guerra, 2006), is part of a wider study, the aim of which is to elaborate an intervention project in a twopronged approach to overcome or mitigate the main problems and dysfunctions diagnosed. The results suggest that the current model is fragile in terms of sustainability and that there is an urgent need to reinforce the position of the Portuguese Armed Forces in the labour market.
Keywords
Military Career, Model, Military Service, Contract Scheme, Armed Forces.Author(s) (*)
Lúcio Agostinho Barreiros dos Santos
Maria Manuela Martins Saraiva Sarmento Coelho
Rentabilization of Human Resources in the Army: Long-Term Contract Regime in Tank Crew
Abstract
The objective of this study is to evaluate the repercussions of the implementation of the Long-Term Contract Regime to the crew duties of the Leopard 2 A6 Tank crewmembers, considering the following dimensions: physical condition, technical proficiency, tactical resourcefulness, knowledge continuity, return on investment in training, attracting and retaining crew members. The study consists of two parts, the first being materialized by a theoretical framework, and the second consisting of fieldwork based on interviews and surveys. After applying statistical methods, we can conclude that the implementation of this contractual regime has beneficial implications for the Portuguese Army and for the military regarding the dimensions studied.
Keywords
Long-Term Contract Regime, Leopard 2 A6, Tank Crew Requirements.Author(s) (*)
Marco Aurélio Viana Lopes Maria Manuela Martins Saraiva Sarmento Coelho Tiago Alexandre Gomes Fazenda
Regular Corporals. The Portuguese Air Force Case
Abstract
The social-economic changes that are felt in recent times have had deep repercussions on the labour world. In this dynamic professional context, organizational success is reflected in the flexibility to value and develop its Human Resources. Year after year, the candidacy attraction to the enlisted category is decreasing, making it a liability to the Portuguese Armed Forces. In addition, those in the military by contract contribute to the notion of organizational commitment weakening. In the Portuguese Armed Forces, only in the Navy there is Corporal Permanent Staff Board implemented. Its implementation in the Portuguese Air Force (PoAF) would both diminish the consequences of personnel turnover in this ranking – loss of knowledge, setbacks caused by the time consuming formation and development of a new military –, and attract more candidates to these grades, enhancing both the recruitment and retention. Therefore, this work has had as its goal to identify the PoAF difficulties in attracting and retaining these grades, and determine whether it’s feasible to implement the Corporal Permanent Staff Board, setting some guidelines for the subsequent need to reorganize.
Keywords
Flexibility, Candidate attraction, organizational commitment, Recruitment, Retention.Author(s) (*)
Bruna Abigail Fernandes Oliveira Nuno Rafael dos Anjos Silva Quirino Martins
The Implementation of Permanent Staff in the Army in the Class of Soldiers - Case Study: Special Forces
Abstract
This study aims to analyse the feasibility of creating a permanent soldier staff in the Portuguese Army, in the Special Forces. Currently there are differences in the three Branches of the Armed Forces, since the Navy has a permanent soldier staff, when the same does not occur in the Air Force and in the Army. It is necessary to realize if the creation of a permanent soldier staff allows to obtain a better return of the investment made, since the costs of forming a soldier belonging to the Special Forces (Comandos, Paratrupers and Special Forces), are generally higher, to the costs of forming a Square belonging to the Regular Army. The field work was based on ten interviews and one hundred and fiftythree surveys, and data were processed using the SPSS program using qualitative and quantitative methods. The results allowed to verify that the existence of the permanent soldier staff would make profitable the formation of the military and contribute to a greater return of the investment made.
Keywords
Permanent Soldier Staff; Cost of Instruction; Special Forces.Author(s) (*)
Joel Santos Cardoso Maria Manuela Martins Saraiva Sarmento Coelho
Recruitment Challenges for the Future Regarding Citizens Who Serve Under the Contract Regime in the Portuguese Armed Forces
Abstract
The process of professionalization of the Armed Forces (FFAA) in Portugal, with a recruitment model based exclusively on volunteer service, became effective in 2004 with the discontinuance of the Normal Effective Service (SEN). The implementation of this model entailed a change in paradigm which implied that the Military Institution had to compete under similar conditions as the other employing entities to obtain human resources. The overall object defined for this study was to contribute to the formulation of a normal recruiting model for the rank of soldiers, under the contract regime, which will ensure the sustainment of the Armed Forces in the medium term. To this effect, the process of reasoning used was the inductive one (Freixo, 2012, p. 104), backed up by a qualitative research strategy and by a comparative or multicase research design in which the data collection was based on interviews. Following the results of the research, the current study presents a set of strategic action lines for the sustainability of the recruitment model for soldiers under the contract regime of the Portuguese Armed Forces in the medium term. Additionally, this research may also meet the need for requirements of information relevant to the decision process and to human resources management.
Keywords
Human Resources, Normal Recruiting, Advertise.Author(s) (*)
Lúcio Agostinho Barreiros dos Santos Nuno António de Noronha Bragança
Predisposition for Joining the Armed Forces: a Study of Directed Recruitment Actions
Abstract
The Armed Forces professionalization process started in 2004, with the end of the Normal Effective Service, and is based on an exclusive volunteering recruitment model. The option for this model forced a paradigm shift that led the military institution to compete under the same conditions with other employers to obtain human resources. This study is based on a qualitative research strategy combining documentary analysis and semi-structured interviews with recruitment specialists. The general objective of this investigation is to evaluate the implementation of a directed recruitment, which contributes to capitalize the numbers off the Armed Forces. To achieve the proposed objectives, candidates are analyzed from a social and demographic perspective as an external environment and the typology and the recruitment actions carried out by the Armed Forces as an internal environment, and strengths potentialities, weaknesses, opportunities and threats ahead are identified. From the contributions achieved, it is clear that the recruitment model is not exhausted and can be improved. To this end, and considering the candidates, the actions of dissemination of the Armed Forces should be developed through National Defense Day, the “word-ofmouth” method, the dissemination carried out by soldiers and using the Social Networks.
Keywords
Recruitment Actions, Candidate, Disclosure, Armed Forces; Predisposition.Author(s) (*)
Adriano Augusto Gomes Branco Nuno Alexandre Cruz dos Santos
Admission of Volunteers in Portuguese Armed Forces: a Spatial Study About the Air Force Case
Abstract
Recruitment for the Armed Forces has been on the agenda and various references in this field have emerged in the media. Since the end of the Mandatory Military Service, this theme has been approached in a fundamentally descriptive and qualitative way. In this work, with the use of Geographic Information Systems, the spatial nature of the information is explored and articulated with measures of variables association. The purpose is to explore the predisposition to join the Air Force, relating it to the geographic and structural dimensions of the country. For this aim, branch recruitment data are used, statistical information is handled from the INE and Pordata sites and a variable is constructed to operationalize the distance. As a result, we identify a set of dimensions that are related to the predisposition of entry, namely distance, unemployment and family structure. A multivariate model is also constructed to explain this predisposition, resulting in models that include distance and unemployment, as predictors.
Keywords
Predisposition to Join, Geographic Information Systems, Socioeconomic Factors, Demographic Factors, Distance.Author(s) (*)
Henrique Duarte Alves Fernandes Nuno Alexandre Cruz dos Santos
The Framework of Incentives for the Provision of the Military Service as a Stimulus to the Recruitment and Retention
Abstract
Since the professionalization of the Armed Forces in 2004, volunteers have become increasingly important, and an incentive regulation have been created to encourage the recruitment and retention of these human resources. It is that set of incentives and their suitability for the difficulties in recruitment and retention that are studied throughout this investigation. To identify the suitability of the incentives, the analysis of the national incentives, together with the analysis of the French and Spanish models, is carried out, based on the motivations of enlistment and the reasons for early abandonment of this form of service provision, that allows the identification of possible improvements to be implemented, in the form of contributions that are the main result of this investigation. There are constant changes in incentives and difficulty in operationalizing some of the measures, highlighting the fact that there is a weak communication strategy. What young people are looking for and what motivates them to join the Armed Forces is the search for a path of personal and professional valorisation that will bring added value to a reintegration into the civil labour market, so those are the areas where improvements to incentives should apply.
Keywords
Incentives, Recruitment, Retention, Reintegration, Motivations.Author(s) (*)
Pedro António Marques da Costa
Training Model for the Contrated Military of the Portuguese Armed Forces
Abstract
The professionalization of military service, although apparently consolidated, continues to face enormous challenges in various dimensions and sectors, including human resources, since obtaining them, in particular the ones who sign an enlistment contract, involves the ability to attract, to retain and to support the transition to the labor market after ending the military service. The education provided by the Armed Forces is of particular relevance, since it must be seen as an added value and a differentiating factor that potentiates the recruitment and retention and makes a decisive contribution to socio-professional reintegration, therefore is paramount the alignment and harmonization with the national qualifications system. This study analyzes the vocational training models for the military with a contract, in order to identify contributions that allow the certification and recognition of the vocational training that is given, although it is verified that this has not been one of the most relevant reasons of attractiveness and retention. The measures implemented by Spain were also analyzed in order to verify the results obtained in terms of recruitment, retention and reintegration. We finalize with some contributions, resulting from the develop research and that can establish courses of action for the fulfillment of the expressed desideratum.
Keywords
Vocational Training; Training Model; Certification; Recognition; Qualifications.Author(s) (*)
António Carlos Esquetim Marques Luís Eduardo da Silva Ferreira Laranjo
Military Career - Military Motivations and Expectations of the Air Force Contract Regime
Abstract
This investigation’s objective is to study the motivations that led to the decision of joining the Air Force under a fixed-term contract, in order to assess its evolution, both in relation to the perceived expectations regarding the functions performed, as to the level of the factors that led to the choice of a specific area. According to the results obtained on this investigation, young people join the Air Force because they live the values and characteristics of the military life. The choice of a specific area tends to be influenced by their previous qualification and education and not by what they consider to be their vocation. On the other hand, during the period between the complementary instruction (initial moment of investigation) and their third year of contract (final moment of investigation), we verify that their expectations regarding the military duty changes. The difference of perspectives and expectations between categories tend to be significant only during the complementary instruction phase. By the end of the third year of contract the expectations between categories do not present significant differences.
Keywords
Admission, Careers, Expectation, Motivation, Officers, Soldiers, Air Force.Author(s) (*)
Maria de Lurdes Carvalho Batista Raúl do Carmo Cabral Gonçalves Figueiredo Ribeiro
The Special Regime Agreement in Portuguese Armed Forces
Abstract
Due to the growing difficulty in retaining staff in all categories, it is necessary to adopt mechanisms to manage Human Resources in the medium term, especially at a time when the training processes of the military are quite long and costly due to technological advances. The main objective of this study was to evaluate what conditions should be established in the current Special Regime Agreement, in order to contribute to a greater stability in the management of Human Resources. For this, a qualitative research strategy was adopted, based on an inductive argument. The analysis model was based on three dimensions; Recruitment, Training and Retention, and the indicators identified allowed us to collect the contributions from the analyses made to the current model of Special Regime Agreement and Employment Scheme of the Portuguese, Spanish and French Armed Forces. We concluded that there are areas for improvement to the current regime, namely the need for this regime to act as a complement to the Employment Scheme, when this is necessary, and the determination of functional areas that may be covered constitutes one of the main contributions and that should be made an effort to ensure professional certification to the military and thus solidify this form of military service.
Keywords
Armed Forces, Human Resources, Special Regime Agreement, Employment Scheme.Author(s) (*)
Pedro António Marques da Costa Rui Miguel Pinho Silva
Recruitment of Qualified Human Resources for Long-Term Contracts: Adequacy of Time-Limits for Contratcting to Air Force Needs
Abstract
Given the difficulties in meeting the human resources needs, particularly corporals, it has become crucial to study a solution that promotes organizational efficiency within a framework of a constraint budget. This investigation aimed to analyse whether the application of long-term contracts, specially to corporals, provide benefits to the Air Force, namely, its ability to recruit and retain the necessary human resources. For this purpose, a mixed research strategy based on enhancement was used, following a hypotheticaldeductive reasoning. Data collection included the analysis of documents, interviews and questionnaire, supported by a case study. By analysing the results, it was possible to conclude that long-term contracts correspond to the expectations of “professional stability” of the military, thus contributing to the improvement of recruitment capacity and specially retention. However, for its operationalization it becomes necessary to develop an assertive and coherent communication strategy, centred on the symbolic-operational aspects (military life) and professional (professional stability). It is also essential to define the premises and publicize them, avoiding the risk of defrauding expectations (breaking the psychological contract), leading to the premature exit of the ranks. Recognition of courses is also an objective to be achieved allowing an easier reintegration into the labour market.
Keywords
Long Term Contract, Recruitment, Retention, Psychological Contract, Expectations (admission of corporals).Author(s) (*)
Mónica Solange de Jesus Pereira Martins Nuno Filipe da Silva Rosa(*) NOTE: The alphabetical order of presentation of the authors may not correspond to the formal order found in the article.