Agency official says teamwork skills central to hiring at Juvenile Justice Department

An agency official said the Juvenile Justice Department prioritizes candidates who can work in multidisciplinary teams and uses scenario-based interview questions to evaluate those skills.

The official said scenario-based questions let interviewers learn about a candidate's past experiences and how they cooperate with others, even if those experiences were not in identical settings. "We are looking for people who already show the ability to work in multidisciplinary teams," the official said, adding that interviewers seek examples of collaboration, moments when candidates sought or provided support, and how they integrated into team settings.

The official framed that hiring approach as central to the department's broader mission. "In order to transform lives and create safer communities ... we have to have people that are working together," the official said, saying the department needs juvenile correctional officers, mental health professionals, maintenance staff and educators to work together to support that mission. The official emphasized that no single role can accomplish the work alone.

No formal actions or decisions about staffing allocations or policy changes were recorded in the transcript. Next steps or timelines for hiring were not specified.