Commissioners’ Mark of Excellence - Winners

INNOVATIVE AI RECRUITMENT CAMPAIGN WINS FIRST EVER COMMISSIONERS’ MARK OF EXCELLENCE

Campaigns that show innovation and commitment in recruiting diverse candidates to the Civil Service have been recognised in the first ever Commissioners’ Mark of Excellence. 

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) came top, from a final shortlist of 18 campaigns.   

Natalie Campbell MBE, Chair of the Commission’s judging panel said:

“We were looking for creative approaches that made a tangible difference to recruitment and that could be applied more widely. We want to showcase some of the great work we see going on across government, highlighting innovative and thoughtful initiatives that attract strong and diverse fields for Civil Service Jobs.

“Our overall winner - BEIS - is the first department to explore innovations in game-based assessments and video interviews scored by algorithms, using artificial intelligence. The department trialled this approach as an alternative recruitment experience for certain roles, aiming for a wider candidate field and reducing the ‘time to hire’ which can often result in the loss of good candidates.

“They also made excellent use of HR analytics and data visualisation software, giving them new insights into the journey of a diverse range of candidates throughout a campaign.”

Five other departments or agencies were ‘highly commended’ by the judges: Office for National Statistics, Scottish Office, Ministry of Justice, Crown Prosecution Service and HM Revenue and Customs. 

The judging panel, led by Natalie Campbell MBE (former Civil Service Commissioner), included Baroness Gisela Stuart, (First Civil Service Commissioner), Antonia Romeo (Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice) Gerri Clement MBE (Co-founder and Vice-Chair of the Cross-Government Social Mobility Network), Paul Willgoss MBE (Vice-Chair of the Civil Service Disability Network) and Roxanne Ohene (Co-Chair of the Senior Civil Service Race to the Top Network). 

18 departments and agencies made it onto the shortlist for the Commissioners’ first ever ‘Mark of Excellence’ from 39 entries across the Civil Service. 

Winning organisations can display the award logo on all their recruitment advertisements for one year and will be taking part in an online event to share their approaches with recruitment teams across the Civil Service in the autumn.

Notes to Editors

1. More information about the work of the Commission is available on its website www.civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk
2. For more information about the BEIS campaign please contact calum.grant@beis.gov.uk
3. Media enquiries about the work of the Commission should go to Maggie O’Boyle on 07880 740 627. 
4. You can also follow the Commission on twitter @CivServComm
5. The Civil Service Commission was established as a statutory body in November 2010 under the provisions of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010. The Commission is independent of Ministers and the Civil Service. It is responsible for upholding the requirement that recruitment to the Civil Service is on merit on the basis of fair and open competition.
6. The Commission comprises senior figures from the private, public and third sectors. Civil Service Commissioners are appointed by the Crown for five-year non-renewable terms of office.