Civil Service - making effective decisions

[cakesandb4kes]

Hello everyone,

I am currently applying to work for the Civil Service and my mind has gone blank, I am struggling with the 'making effective decisions' competency question. I have applied before in the past and unfortunately got rejected so I really want to make sure that this time my application stands out and is successful.

What does this question actually mean and what kind of examples can I include?

You can download the competency framework on gov.uk. that should help

www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-competency-framework

You need to have a look at the competency framework
www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-competency-framework
Have a look at the examples given for the grade you are applying for and the examples for the grade above and try and hit the buzzwords for the grade above. It's difficult to give written examples as each application will be graded differently depending on the recruiting manager. I've received 6's for competencies and then used them again with a different recruiting manager and received 2's.

Best of luck

Thank you both so much, I will have a look! Really appreciate it.

Choose an example with a clear decision that YOU made. When you set the scene, make sure you say what you were deciding, then describe how you did it and the outcome. Brief example:

I needed to decide what the appropriate allegations to be made in this case were. I reviewed all the evidence on file and identified eight possible allegations. I could see immediately that four were unfounded and so decided not to pursue them at all. I decided that I needed further information to decide on the merits of the others. I wrote to everyone blah blah Etc etc.... following my investigation, the case was successful at court and the man went to prison for four hundred years.

I've found that most people fall down on this competency/behaviour by not being clear about what the actual decision was!

Isleepinahedgefund Thank you for an example and for the help, I really appreciate it

For Competency Questions if you use the STAR model you won't go far wrong.

S – Situation, background set the scene T – Task or Target, specifics of what's required, when, where, who A – Action, what you did, skills used, behaviours, characteristics R – Result – Outcome, what happened?

For your example - the S would be the situation surrounding the Decision you had to make. The T how you specifically went about that, A The decision you made, then R the outcome of that decision.

Make sure it's all about you and evidence it was your work.

Good Luck.

What grade is it for? I think for more senior grades it’s also helpful to give a sense of how you reached that decision: i.e. having a clear sense of what you needed to decide and why, how you kept the decision making process on track if it is a longer term piece of analysis/decision making, how you tested that decision etc. For more senior grades I would expect the question to focus on how you reached a decision even if there was incomplete information or where the goalposts kept changing.

Also to be aware that some departments are moving away from the competency framework to success profiles so it is worth double checking how you will be assessed, as it might not necessarily be the same as with your previous application. Good luck!

Again thank you both so much, fingers crossed I get in! @Gailthefish its EO Level 2