Interview coaching for civil service interviews - worth a try?

[Unmute]

I'm desperately looking for a new job and getting quite down about it. I moved back to the UK during 2020 and I've not been able to find anything suitable so I've ended up taking a massive pay cut and working in a job my 17yo son could do without too much trouble.

It's BORING and I need (a lot) more money.

My previous roles were policy/ministerial services type work, and I miss the challenge and the pace.

I've been applying for civil service roles and getting a lot of interviews, but my feedback is always fairly terrible.

I am extremely nervous in an interview situation (although not shy/nervous at work) and I know I struggle to answer questions coherently, even with notes, but I am actually amazing and would excel in any of the roles I've applied for. I just can't seem to convince the interview panel.

Has anyone used an interview coach? What was your experience, and would you recommended giving it a try? I'm in Glasgow if anyone has any local recommendations, but I suppose they're all online at the moment.

How much preparation do you tend to put into the interview? I've found previously that when I haven't prepared much I've done appallingly, sometimes coming from a confidence that I can do the job sitting on my hands. I've tended to do better when I've been so worried about getting it that I prepare solidly.

• memorise the job spec and what they're looking for
• prepare answers based on job spec and common interview questions (why do you want the job, tell us about a project you've led on, what are your strengths, what would colleagues say about you etc).
• practice out loud over and over again, preferably to someone who can give you feedback
• give yourself lots of free time before an interview, don't rush from childcare or work etc as that can just add to the stress.
• dress very smart, always better to be over dressed than under

-answer competency questions (tell us a time...) with the STAR acronym. Situation, Task, Action, Result.

• speak slowly

You could even start the interview explaining that you're very nervous so apologies if you seem as though. It can be an ice breaker of accompanied by a big smile.

Are you an anxious person? Sounds like some counselling or coaching would help. You're getting interviews so clearly very able, just need to be able to express that in interview.

What does the interview feedback say?

You could even start the interview explaining that you're very nervous so apologies if you seem as though. It can be an ice breaker of accompanied by a big smile.

I'd add to that by saying you REALLY want the job because (reason suiting post advertised)

I am preparing for each interview, but I don't have answers written out and I'm not using all the time available to answer behaviour/competency questions. I think I definitely need some help structuring my responses and maybe having some answers memorised so I know what I'm going to say. I'm also logging off from work about 3 minutes before interviews start, which is not ideal.

I am quite an anxious person in interviews, but only really in the competency questions. I'm fine with general chit chat, and also happy answering shorter strengths based questions. I think it's partly not understanding which examples to use. I find it hard to focus on my own role in successes I see as a team effort.

Some of the feedback I'm getting is stuff like...'unable to demonstrate the required behaviour in two of these although the examples used had the potential for higher mark'...'lacked tangible outcomes, however could be stronger if more structure using the star format and quantify outcomes'

I thought I was using the STAR format, but apparently not...

Danger in memorising answers is that you forget about the question, I've had that criticism in civil service interviews before failed to get jobs. Read up on success profiles.

What grade are you applying for? Maybe worth applying for a grade lower then trying to get promoted quite quickly?

A quick note from my POV ( I used to work in the civil service and have passed interviews and also interviewed. In fact I'm interviewing at 2pm so this is good prep in what I want to wee from the candidates!)

I want to hear about what you did. Not ehatvtue team did. You are the one trying to get a job so tell me what you specifically did in each section.

Practice saying I

Outline the Situation:
Eg Due to a restructure a need emerged for a spreadsheet to track employees time spent on each task

Or even better: Following a restructure I identified a need for a spreadsheet...
(Feel free to stretch the truth here?!)

Then tell me the Task:
I was tasked with making / I identified that the spreadsheet would need to be accessible to many colleagues across different business units. It needed to track hours spent on tasks but also have space for other free text notes bla bla

Then outline the Action you took:
I held a number of specification meetings with colleagues from each business area so that I knew I understood their specific needs and any format that would work for them. By approaching them proactively I also got people on side as they knew I was a main contact to help make this easy for them.
I collated all the responses and came up with a suggested format which met everyone's needs and was also clear and easy to use. I listened to feedback that not everyone was experienced in Excel so I added instructions into the spreadsheet for the more complex bits such as drop down menus, and I ran a couple of demo workshops to show people.

Then tell us the Result
Due to this spreadsheet my manager was able to save 2 days pm chasing people to find out who had been covering xyz post. She was also able to identify a colleague who really enjoyed spending time on bla task Due to the free form text field I'd included, and this led to a secondment opportunity for the colleague and subsequent promotion into a much needed specialist role

I hope that's helpful

I've been through the civil service interview structure over the last 18 months, it took several goes at completing the application forms then interviews before being successfull so I definately think theres a knack to getting them right.
The interviews Ive done (3 in total, all different departments) have been done online using pre recorded questions and you complete it at a time to suit you.
You sound poorly prepared, working until 3 mins before the interview isnt setting you up for success. You need to read very carefully the job profile, they tell you so much information prior to interview so you can prepare. I wrote out 2 or 3 examples for each competency listed and used STAR, I practiced reading them aloud, you only get 3 minutes (I think) to give your answer so no waffling and no 'do overs'. Make sure you use all the time allocated.
Preparation was definately the key for me....good luck

Depending on the depth etc, getting promoted quickly might be a complete pipedream. Many depts run on the basis that good natured people are happy to get paid a band or more below what they're worth

Competency based questions are a skill set in themselves. It sounds as if your feedback is saying you have the example but not quite explaining it right to reach the standard. The interviewer will have tried to coach it out of you. Can you remember what they asked you? That should give you a step for a hint as to what was lacking.

Jac Williams on You tube does excellent videos on interview skills and how to prepare.

Read the behaviour expected in the framework and match each one with an example of how you've met that behaviour, use the same language.

So, in Leadership HEO & SEO it states:
Ensure colleagues and stakeholders have a clear understanding of objectives, activities and time-frames.
You could say: I set out the deadline we were working towards highlighting time-frames and what we hoped to achieved, I stressed our end point objective and what activities we would be completing, I checked everyone's understanding to ensure we were all working towards the same goal.

S- Briefly describe what the problem is.
T- what are you doing to resolve it.
A- who did you speak to, what resources did you use, did you ask for feedback? step by step describe what you did. Always have a set back and what you did to overcome it.
R- what was the result? you need an impact statement here, money saved, stats etc.

I like to write out my answer as if I was talking then bullet point the pertinent points as a lead in so I don't forget. You should be allowed to have notes to hand although reading verbatim will go against you.

It doesn’t really sound like you need interview coaching so much as practice and preparation. I’d ask someone to ask you questions (reuse some from your interviews if you remember them) and mark you strictly on - did you refer to your own role not the team, did you set out the context, your action and a clear result, did you answer the question.

I interview a lot for the CS and personally I find people with specific answers prepped in advance often don’t do that well because they don’t listen to my question, they just shoehorn the answer they prepared for that specific competency in whether it works or not. So I wouldn’t go as far as writing model answers out and memorising them. But having some bullet points of your best examples and practicing talking about them aloud and with slightly different emphases might help.

@Unmute

I am preparing for each interview, but I don't have answers written out and I'm not using all the time available to answer behaviour/competency questions. I think I definitely need some help structuring my responses and maybe having some answers memorised so I know what I'm going to say. I'm also logging off from work about 3 minutes before interviews start, which is not ideal.

I am quite an anxious person in interviews, but only really in the competency questions. I'm fine with general chit chat, and also happy answering shorter strengths based questions. I think it's partly not understanding which examples to use. I find it hard to focus on my own role in successes I see as a team effort.

Some of the feedback I'm getting is stuff like...'unable to demonstrate the required behaviour in two of these although the examples used had the potential for higher mark'...'lacked tangible outcomes, however could be stronger if more structure using the star format and quantify outcomes'

I thought I was using the STAR format, but apparently not...

I'm a civil servant and done many of these interviews and I feel your pain as I am also a nervous interviewer (it's been mentioned in almost all interview feedback I've ever received!). Mostly interviewers are able to look past that as long as you're answering the questions in the way they want, but I appreciate the nerves can get in the way of that.

I think the feedback you've posted gives you a lot to work with actually. You have to really focus on what you did, what your contributions were and how that fed into the outcome. I still catch myself saying 'we' instead of 'I' sometimes...it's a hard habit to break!

How confident are you in your actual examples? I think you need at least two for each competency so you can choose which one fits best with the question being asked.

It does sound like some interview technique training or coaching would be helpful. At the end of the day it's all about practice and getting those techniques to become second nature.

I agree with using "I" not "we" and play large the specific role you played and the outcome achieved.
Look at the competencies in the job spec and make sure your example hits some of the key requirements for that level for the relevant competency. In our interviews we are asking each Q around a specific competency and are generally looking to hit key points from the competency framework in the response. So if it a Q say on communication no matter your example we would be mainly looking for how you managed communication in that example. You could use the same situation example for another Q, say on commercial awareness, but would need to shift emphasis to demonstrate you meet that competence.
I generally have a list of examples broadly set out in the STAR approach and a note against which competencies I could use them against. I pause after the question is asked and scan my list for the best example to meet the question.
With regard to going in at a lower grade, you could try this but new recruits and promotes in our organisation are barred for 9 months from applying for new posts within the organisation.
Good luck!

Civil Service interviews are very structured and looking to hear specific phrases backed up examples. Having preprepared answers may limit your responses, better to have keywords with an example or two you can draw on.

It is very much a technique that can be learned.

The job information should give you details about the competencies that you need to evidence- in my area it's a table which contains a list of points below broad hearing (leadership, people management, analysis and use of evidence etc). For each competency that you are being tested on in the interview, you need a carefully constructed example which covers off all of the detailed points within that competency. It takes a lot of preparation to do it well!!! The examples need to be structured in such a way that you can adapt them on the day as needed (I.e, ideally you could use the same one to talk about managing a team through a time of change, and also make it fit a question about dealing with a performance management issue). It's good if you can have a wide umbrella example (I.e I managed a team during covid), which has some sub-examples that you can then tailor to the particular question- i.e. focus on a performance management issue related to the move to home working with covid so you have answered the question, and then continue through the rest of your pre-prepared example which ticks all the boxes that you need to tick (I.e moving on to broader chat about managing team dynamics, mental health and workload)

I've found it a bit easier when interviews are remote as it means you can be surrounded by copious amounts of notes pinned up behind the camera, and the panel can't see it

It does require a huge amount more prep than a "standard" interview. Definietly write it down, learn as much by heart as you can, and take some notes with you to make sure you stay on track and hit all the points that you need to hit.

I did get myself a mentor after a disastrous attempt at a promotion interview which really helped, but it was a bit different becuase I was already in the organisation so it didn't cost me anything, and I was supported by a more senior staff member with the civil service who definitely understood the technique themselves. It is very much something that can be learned, though an "insider" would probably be in a better position to help than someone who has never worked in the civil service themselves.

Civil Service interviews are their own particular animal, and you would need someone who has done a lot of CS interviewing to help you, so I would avoid taking advice from anyone who is not very familiar with the specific process of CS interviews. You need to print off the success profiles for the behaviours listed in the job advert at the grade you are applying for, then tick off what you have done to demonstrate each one. The questions will be very predictable and therefore easy to prepare for. As a PP said, talk about what YOU did, not 'we', always 'I', and be specific.
CS interviews are a skill, but you can learn that skill.

@Ariela

You could even start the interview explaining that you're very nervous so apologies if you seem as though. It can be an ice breaker of accompanied by a big smile.

I'd add to that by saying you REALLY want the job because (reason suiting post advertised)

For example, this advice is well meant and may be useful in a private sector context, but it would have zero impact on your scores for a CS interview. You need someone in CS to do a mock interview with you and then advise how you can bring out the most important elements of your examples to score higher marks. Ignore anyone without CS inside knowledge, they will tell you things that sound sensible and logical but that won't help you with the rigid, formulaic and (frankly) ridiculous CS process.

This is all really helpful, thank you. I'll have a proper think through once I've finished work.

I could ask my manager if she can help me with a mock interview (although I've only been in her team since December so it might not go down too well).

Just to throw a curve ball, my interviews have been done remotely, your asked a question and then record your answer, you dont actually get to speak to anyone. This means theres no probing or checking understanding of your answer, so you really do need to be prepared.
Ive no idea how long remote interviews will last for now covid restrictions are being lifted again but its a very different way of interviewing thats for sure.

I've had one interview where I had to record answers, and it was terrible. Just checked my feedback and it says 'overall showed evidence and capability across all questions, did not demonstrate motivation or enthusiasm'. It was a very strange situation, and for me it felt much harder than having a person to react to.

I've just got a new job in the civil service, and I cannot stress enough that preparation is key. You need to study the behaviours framework and have examples for each behaviour and memorise them. There a channel on YouTube, called Careervidz, run by a guy who used to work in the civil service, and he has lots of examples of the most common questions and answers. It honestly got me my job. And I too am extremely nervous in interviews.

YY to knowing the required behaviours (I.e. competencies) for the role inside out. Your eample needs to hit as many of the elements of that behaviour as possible.

I'm just watching through the Jac Williams videos recommend above (or below?). They're very helpful, thanks.

I think I was in denial about how much preparation I need to do. Also, interviews following such a strict format and marking scheme seem like a terrible way to find the best person for a job, so I think I've been subconsciously (and a little bit consciously tbh) refusing to engage with the process. Not smart I know, and I will give myself a good talking to and get on with preparing properly for my next interview.

On a side note, does anyone know how likely it is that you'd be offered a role off a reserve list? Can I email and ask my position in the list? Or ask what roles are coming up?

Have you seen this? Sets out the procure and how to structure your examples for the competencies. www.gov.uk/guidance/a-brief-guide-to-competencies

That's useful, thanks. I've also found some good stuff on apolitical

I 100% get you OP, I have recently moved to a new role and had to go through the interview process to get it. I spent literally a week preparing - including a presentation - for a 45 minute interview, and it made me really cross to be honest because it was a huge investment of time and it shouldn't be necessary. But you are right that you just need to grit your teeth and do what the process demands. Forget about how crap it is and just do what you need to in order to get the job you want.