Grade 7 in Civil Service too aspirational?

[mrsimpostersyndrome]

Had mid-term review earlier this month and this was what my team leader hit out with!

To provide some background, I've worked my way up to HEO (with temp SEO experiences also) in CS and mentioned how I'd like to see myself progessing to a Grade 7 post within the next 2/3 years. However I was told that there's too much competition for those posts within my age group (I'm 30) as Fast Streamers get priority so maybe I shouldn't be too aspirational!

Anyone else had similar experiences? Surely it's not out of reach for me to get to Grade 7, I have worked in teams alongside fast streamers in the past doing very similar roles and regularly keep up with CPD opportunities!

No, aiming for a Grade 7 position in the Civil Service at the age of 30 is not too aspirational. While there may be competition, your progression should be based on your skills, experience, and dedication rather than your age. It's essential to continue pursuing your career goals, especially if you have relevant experience and are committed to professional development.

Don't be discouraged by your team leader's comments; instead, focus on honing your skills and seizing opportunities as they arise. Many individuals achieve Grade 7 positions through hard work and perseverance.

Absolutely you can aim that high, or higher!

DH started as an AA and is now G6…. at every stage he wondered whether he could make the next step, but he went for it when the right roles came up.

I think challenges can be location, department, support, nailing down behaviours etc.

Thanks, still trying to convince my manager I have potential 😂

You don’t have to convince your manager. DH has had some appalling managers, a couple of pretty good ones.
Nothing to stop you applying for the next grade up even if your manager doesn’t rate you. Other teams, other depts etc.

In the Civil Service it’s pretty rare to get promoted within your own team anyway. You don’t need your manager’s permission, you don’t even need them to think you’re any good. Just look for suitable jobs at the next grade up on CS Jobs and start applying.

Agreed. I always say I wasn’t a grade 7 until I was a grade 7 (and then I became a very good one very fast!) I needed to get promoted outside of my previous team - they rated me but they had me stuck in the SEO box and I’d have waited a long time for a promotion there.

Of course you can, agree with other posters. It's very unprofessional for a manager to say this. Do you have protected characteristics which might mean they are judging you unfairly eg because of sex, disability, race etc.? If so keep an eye on that.

If they could back up why they think you might not make it unless you did X Y Z then that would be more reasonable. Does this manager always shit on you? If so, I'd look at making records of what is said, keep emails and messages that are like this to one side, to build up evidence. If just the once, people have their own issues and have off days so just ignore.

Anyway you could email afterwards to ask why they think that and what you could do to improve your chances. It looks proactive but also gets it on the record in writing.

Sounds like poor culture in your CS dept - would deffo not be an issue here.

to be fair, i reckon a fair few people jump to g7 and beyond way too quickly 🤣🤣

Depends on what you do, which depth you're in and where you're located.

Easier if you're in a head office where you get noticed, not so easy if you're out in the sticks.