Promotion disapointment

[Stressmess]

I have just found out that I haven't got a promotion and am really disappointed. I have gone through three stages, two rounds of tests and then a competence based interview. It has been a long drawn out process. This is civil service, I have applied several times before as an external candidate and haven't got past the testing stage but this was an internal opportunity and I have missed out again and the opportunity maybe won't come around again for years. This is phase 3 as well of the competition so there have already been candidates get through on round 1 and 2 so I doubt that there will be another round after this.

I have been in my job for a good few years now and am doing complicated work that is above my grade. I am a good hard worker and always get good reports and great potential for the next grade.

I put a heck of a lot of work in to the interview going through all the competencies and having examples for them all. On the day I felt that it went well. I answered all the questions and came out feeling relatively well about it only to get a big fat unsuccessful. There is a girl in my Office who did get it and of course I offered my congratulations but it is so difficult to see others advancing and I am not.

I just feel at a bit of a crossroads. My job is flexible and suits working around my DC but I feel for my age and how long I have been there I have just got stuck in a rut. I am bored and was hoping for further advancement and was really motivated for new opportunities. What do I do now? Do I just plod along being a good worker and getting nowhere? Or should I seek other opportunities?

I'm civil service too and I know how frustrating the recruitment process can be.

You sound like a perfect candidate for some coaching - you can access this through civil service learning. It would give you some space just for you, to work through those questions about settling for what you have vs frustration with settling for what you have etc. Most people I coach come to the process with issues like you describe.

I am also in a job that pays the bills and gives me oodles of flexibility (more than most CS jobs do really!) but have been in my current job a while and starting to feel like I'm standing still, even though I genuinely enjoy my job. In my gov agency our salaries are mysteriously much, much higher than elsewhere in civil service and I'd have to either accept being on the same salary indefinitely (as I'd be well past the top of the pay scale even on promotion) or take a pay cut in the long run. I applied for a new job recently but would be so conflicted if I got it, I'd have to sacrifice quite a lot but I'd love to do the job. Ironically I'd be better off if I moved laterally, but if I'm going to change jobs I'd want a promotion.

The way I've dealt with it (for now) is to find myself other things to do alongside my job. I use my volunteering days, I'm a coach and I put my hand up for anything I can.

It's gutting. Onwards and upwards.
Have you asked for feedback?

This has all happened just today so is all very fresh. It says on the e-mail that came through late today that you would get feedback but that it could be a few weeks before getting anything back. I am not sure if this will be comments or just scores for each area.

I am just dreading going in to work next week and having to tell people that I was unsuccessful and even worse finding out that others have been successful. It has just been a big knock to my confidence when I had been hopeful that I would get it but apparently being a good, hard, loyal worker counts for zero.

It’s dead man’s shoes in the Civil Service. DH has been at the same grade for nearly 20 years.

Success in CS recruitment has nothing to do with how well you do your job, loyalty etc. It's purely a test of how well you can do the recruitment exercise.

OP, if you are able I would look at other opportunities, particularly if you don’t feel valued where you are. I am sorry you didn’t get to the promotion.

I know that Isleep, I am just feeling a bit wounded. There were three competencies which I broke down into the sub sections. I spent a lot of time working on them and had good examples from my job. I had a meeting with my line manager before the interview and he said that my examples were strong and that I was far better prepared than he was when he had his interview.

I will just have to se what the feedback says and were I fell short.

What grade were you applying for? Unfortunately the rigidity of the process (combined with inconsistency between interviewers in how they apply it) can lead to some weird outcomes.

You are being very hard on yourself. Sometimes we receive almost 100 applications when there are a number of roles, more when we have had proper promotion panels. One of the guys I worked with sounds a bit like you. He was clearly capable of the next grade and in fact was basically doing the role without the reward. Had we been in the private sector, I could have said, well done, great performance, you're promoted. I knew he could do the job, and he had thought he could do the job before he didn't get through the panel. I told him to look upon it as play acting for 40 minutes. Have mock interviews. Ask for feedback. Act on the feedback. Have more mock interviews, with the people you know to have the highest standards. Those interviews will be tougher than the real thing. One of our Directors took 10 attempts to get HEO. Also, next time, maybe don't tell people you are applying. You could also consider getting a mentor. By the way, the guy nailed his next interview - he got the highest score of all the candidates.

I was applying for an EO grade. These are promotion boards where people from the grade below apply. There have already been phases 1 and 2 and this is phase 3 and a lot of people have already got through. This is for anticipated vacancies through all Govt Departments. These are proper promotion panels.

I didn't sleep well at all last night. I kept running through things in a loop in my head then dozed off and woke up and done the same again and now feel pretty crap today.

I think I had built it up so much and put so much work in. It wasn't like I didn't know the competencies or didn't have good examples. I certainly felt like I did. It was a combined mark of 40% from tests and 60% from interview so I suppose I am just going to have to wait for feedback to see where I went wrong.

It's just so galling to see others go through and advance especially when they are younger and have less experience than you. I just don't know when I wlll get the opportunity again.

There are lots of EO jobs avaiable. Where are you based and what type of role are you looking for?

314 EO roles on Civil Service jobs live now. Not all of them will be available on promotion but lots will.

I am just so disappointed. I put so much prep work in to it going over and over the competencies and getting good strong examples from my work. I felt on the day that it went well. I spoke for 35 minutes, answered all their questions and they were all nodding and writing lots. I have been in this situation before when I have been pipped at the last post and was determined to put the work in and that it wouldn't happen again. When the result email came through I pounced on it and couldn't quite believe it when it said unsuccessful.
It seems that I am good enough to actually do the work but not good enough to be actually be promoted up in to the role.

I asked for information under FOI and apparently 2/3 of those interviewed got through and 1/3 didn't. Others I know just seem to have sailed through. I thought that I was giving them what they were looking for but maybe I was barking up the wrong tree. It's not like they were looking for 1 person, its civil service wide, lots of people from lots of different departments. Its so hard when you see people now younger than me and less experienced who will be promoted above me. Feedback is due so I will have to wait on that to see were I went wrong.

I had been so hopeful. It has taken a massive knock to my confidence and I have been kicking myself hard.

you sound like me, in fact hedgefund definitely sounds like me.

My job has a good salary, good benefits, good flexibility but I don't want to do it forever. Cannot leave for the private sector as my job is very specialist / niche and private sector jobs are at least £10,000 less in pay.

I think I will be like the husband who's been the same grade for 20 years :(

So you are overpaid with a fantastic pension? What’s not to like?

@Stressmess how old are you? I'm 36 and my career has been very up and down but looking back over the years I can see that I've progressed and the times I've failed have made me stronger, more humble and a better manager. I really have developed and grown as a person more through the bad times than the good.

In the short term, take deep breaths and go by a day at a time. Try not to over analyse. It didn't go to plan but that just means there's a better one round the corner and it may take a little longer to get there.

Good luck for the future op, whatever it holds.

40 so at that stage were I have grafted for years and feel like I should be further on in my career than I am. Also when you see people now coming in younger than you and advancing and I have come to a standstill its difficult.

Were you applying for promotion in your own Department?

I can understand your frustration. I tried for years to get to EO level and finally made it without even applying. I had applied for the TSP programme. If you get far enough on it they sometimes put you on a reserve list for EO jobs. Thats how I got my job.

I actually hate my job though and miss being an AO lol. Not to put a downer on things.....

What I have found with internal promos is that they already know who they are going to promote before the interviews. They just go through the farce as a tick box exercise.

I have seen it happen time and time again. My last workplace, all staff members and everyone connected with the place was convinced that A would get the promotion. However, B was given the promo much to the astonishment of others considering a prerequisite was to have certain qualifications and experience they didn't have.