"The Department of Personnel Services and the IT (Information Technology) division teamed up on this project, which utilizes technology to help make county government more accessible to the general public," said Mayor Bryan J. Baptiste. "Because of their efforts, anyone can now apply for a county job in the comfort of their home 24 hours a day."

The new software system, called NEOGOV Insight, is used also by the City and County of Honolulu, Hawai'i State Judiciary, state Department of Education and the state Department of Human Resources Development. Kaua'i is the first Neighbor Island county to offer this service.

"We wanted to implement NEOGOV as quickly as possible," said Joyce Schuierer, personnel management specialist with DPS. "There are many benefits to using this system."

For one thing, she said, the system is user-friendly.

"You simply log on to the county Web site, www.kauai.gov and click on the job-opportunities link," Schuierer said. "If you find a job you're interested in, the next step is to click on the job title, and then on the 'apply' link."

First-time users will need to create an account and select a user name and password. An e-mail address is also required. After an account has been established, the user can fill out an application and save it to apply for any county job.

Once an application has been submitted, an automatic e-mail reply confirming receipt of the application will be sent immediately.

"If you don't have a computer with Internet access, there are places you can go to and use their designated computers at no charge -- any public library (a Hawai'i state library card is required), the Workforce Development office in Lihu'e, as well as the DPS office at the Lihu'e Civic Center," Schuierer said.

Besides the ease of navigating through the system, another benefit to the county in implementing NEOGOV is that DPS staff members have a real-time database of applicant information at their fingertips.

"We'll be able to generate reports and track all kinds of data electronically. This will help us to analyze information collected such as applicant flow, recruitment costs, positions that are drawing the most interest, and more," said Schuierer.

By the end of summer, she added, the entire recruitment process will be done electronically — from the departments' request to recruit, to the review of applications and referrals to the departments, to the departments' ability to check the status of the recruitment process at any time.

Time-saving is another advantage of NEOGOV.

"Once we get through the beginning stages, we'll be able to focus our time and energy on other areas," Schuierer noted. "And of course, we'll also save a lot of paper."

For those who prefer the traditional way of seeking employment, paper applications are still available at the DPS office, and applications can be downloaded and printed from the county Website.