Success Profiles for government communicators
Wednesday 17 April 2019
You’ve probably already seen something about Success Profiles – the new Civil Service approach to recruitment.
What is it? Is it different from the competency framework? Will you need to learn a whole new technique for applying for jobs?
The answer is yes, and no. You’ll still be setting out what you’ve done and how you did it; just in a slightly different format that gives a more rounded picture of you, with more emphasis placed on what motivates you and engages you in work.
The different elements
Success Profiles look at five different elements:
- Behaviours are actions and activities that people do that result in effective performance in a job. These are based on competencies, but they have been refreshed and rewritten for Success Profiles.
- Technical is the demonstration of specific professional skills, knowledge or qualifications – this is where the GCS Competency Framework fits in.
- Strengths are things we do regularly, do well and that motivate us.
- Experience is the knowledge or mastery of an activity or subject gained through involvement in or exposure to it.
- Ability is the aptitude or potential to perform to the required standard.
How might this work in practice?
For a communications role, you might be asked to demonstrate:
- two or three Behaviours from the Civil Service framework
- one or more Technical Skills from the GCS competency framework
- a statement on your experience – your chance to show how you meet the criteria from the job description.
- Strengths – at interview, one or two quick fire questions aimed at finding out how you react in certain situations. The point of these questions is that you can’t rehearse them; they’re designed to get a sense of you as a person and a professional.
It’s not a fixed process – the aim is to give recruiters the flexibility to find the best candidate for the role.
There’s further information here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles