BEIS has overhauled all their internal resourcing guidance and templates for advertising vacancies, introducing diversity and inclusion best practice and adopting ‘nudge theory’ prompts to reduce bias in their attraction and standard introductions.
The department has taken an innovative approach to monitoring diversity and inclusion progress by connecting data insights from external Government Recruitment Service/Cabinet Office reports to internal PowerBI data visualisation dashboards (see case study below).
BEIS ran a ‘talent pooling’ exercise which included a media campaign to attract a diverse audience (protected characteristics and geography) to BEIS SCS roles (see case study below).
The department works in close partnership with employee networks to continually improve diversity and inclusion recruitment process and career progression opportunities including the launch of a new professional development mentoring scheme, open to everyone but prioritising colleagues from ethnic minority backgrounds.
BEIS HR is working with the BEIS disability network to produce candidate guidance around adjustments available and the Disability Confident scheme. Once finalised, this will be uploaded onto Civil Service Jobs along with their own job adverts to support candidates who have a disability/long term condition through their recruitment process. BEIS has also undertaken qualitative research to produce an implementation plan to improve recruitment outcomes, especially at sift stage, for candidates with a disability or long term condition.
BEIS has introduced a social mobility apprenticeship programme, accredited by the Commission (under the Civil Service Life Chances Strategy) to support new entrants who lack qualifications and work experience.
The department continues to actively support the Care Leavers scheme and has recently introduced the Prison Leavers scheme, as well as committing to support the Great Place to Work for Veterans scheme.
BEIS has provided intern opportunities for 51 summer diversity students, 15 early diversity students and 8 autism exchange students.
External awards and certifications
- BEIS is ranked 33 on the Social Mobility Employer Index 2021 - they are one of the top 50 employers nationwide.
- BEIS also achieved Level 2 of the Carer Confident benchmark
BEIS case study 1 - HireVue assessments
What did it involve?
- BEIS was the first department to explore innovations in game-based assessments and video interviews scored by algorithms, using artificial intelligence. The department partnered with an external provider, HireVue, to trial this approach as an alternative recruitment experience for certain roles, aiming for a wider candidate field and to reduce the time to hire which often results in the loss of good candidates.
- BEIS trialled this on a net-zero-themed bulk recruitment campaign for 30 HEO roles. This is a priority area for BEIS, and the need to resource quickly often arises. To make the campaign manageable, it was advertised as a Salford only campaign, which also supported their Places for Growth agenda.
- A job evaluation exercise was concluded by the occupational psychologists to ensure a good fit between assessed elements and what was required for success for the grade and role type.
- BEIS sought advice from the Centre for Ethics and Data Innovation and the Business Disability Forum, and also consulted the Commission throughout to ensure compliance with the Recruitment Principles. The department received support from the Government Digital Service (GRS) to ensure that the process and use of automation was ethical, inclusive, and maximised candidate experience.
- BEIS worked with occupational psychologists to ensure fair and consistent pass marks were set without adverse impact for HireVue assessments. Additional checks and balances were introduced, using Government Recruitment Service staff, to review videos and ensure scoring was consistent throughout, with final oversight of the decisions by a panel.
- BEIS designed reasonable adjustment processes and provided clear guidance for these and their internal disability staff network, and the lead for disability in Welsh Government (who is disabled) to test and gain views. This provided BEIS with advice specifically on different types of disability, and whether this type of testing was not compatible, in which case an alternative provision would be applied.
- BEIS ensured that sift outcomes were merit-based and met their Disability Confident Leader commitments.
How was this successful?
- BEIS successfully filled all their advertised roles with high calibre candidates. The campaign was delivered smoothly for hiring managers to planned timescales despite the new trial elements.
- Outcomes were monitored closely and there was no adverse impact on any protected groups from the HireVue assessments. In fact, the findings suggest that this form of assessment was less biased in its outcomes than the traditional written sift of a personal statement.
- Candidate satisfaction was positive, with 86% satisfaction reported through the end of assessment survey completed by applicants. Independent partners advised that this was higher than standard Government Recruitment Service online tests.
- In particular, candidates found the HireVue assessments easy to use (97%) and sufficiently prepared by BEIS through their bespoke candidate guidance (86%). There were no candidate complaints following the campaign and qualitative feedback on the assessments included ‘very inclusive’ and ‘very engaging’.
What next?
- BEIS is yet to run another bulk recruitment campaign. However, they have maintained their partnership with HireVue and intend to identify suitable vacancies to expand the trial, gain more data and evaluate further.
BEIS case study 2 - PowerBI recruitment diversity and inclusion insights dashboards
What did it involve?
- BEIS has used the new GRID data download service (delivered by the Government Recruitment Service) for all their vacancy and candidate records since July 2019. They connected this to PowerBI, a data visualisation software tool, to monitor candidates' progress and provide new insights about the performance and impact of different aspects of their recruitment campaigns. This intuitive use of data allowed them to better understand the candidate field and journey. Crucially, BEIS took the data service offered to them and tailored it to suit their needs, using their own in house initiatives and skills. They were the first department to do this.
- Dashboards were updated monthly and provided BEIS with a unique insight into the underlying diversity trends underneath their headline aggregate numbers. They used filters such as grade, recruitment approach, candidate type, time period, business groups across the whole of the department and intersectionality filters to analyse biases from application stage to offer stages.
How was this successful?
- This insight shaped the attraction content on LinkedIn and the Civil Service Careers website. For example, to achieve Places for Growth targets BEIS needed to increase their proportion of external candidates. Dashboard insights show that a lower-than-expected proportion of external candidates had a disability or long-term condition. BEIS is now actively working with their staff capability action network to address this challenge in the attraction gap and is building up their evidence base to evaluate their interventions.
- BEIS has shared the recruitment diversity and inclusion insights dashboards with their staff diversity networks to give them full visibility for the first time of their recruitment diversity trends for the first time, enabling them to work more closely together to make evidence-based interventions and challenge misconceptions. They have particularly welcomed the ability to analyse intersectional issues.
- BEIS has used the dashboard to evaluate interventions on job descriptions. For example, they implemented a standard advert introduction on all BEIS adverts with a strong diversity and inclusion message last year, as well as updating their recruitment forms to nudge better job description practice from managers. After six months, BEIS saw an increase in applications from candidates who were women and/or have a disability or long-term condition at G7 and G6 level - both external and from other government departments - allowing BEIS to draw some positive provisional conclusions
What next?
- BEIS will be launching dashboards to director general business group management meetings to hold a mirror on their recruitment practices, creating positive competition between them and informing their local attraction strategies to meet their diversity and inclusion scorecard targets.
BEIS case study 3 - SCS talent pool
BEIS worked with Gatenby Sanderson to create a pool of talented, SCS1-ready candidates. The scheme was launched during the pandemic and aimed initially at attraction and identification. Gatenby Sanderson was tasked with seeking out a diverse, prospective field ideally suited to the remit of BEIS, in particular the energy and security group.
Gatenby Sanderson was able to extend the reach by not requiring a degree, or stipulating years of experience. That way, the department was able to tap into potential and emerging talent. This search aligns with the government's agenda around Civil Service Reform, 'leveling up', Places for Growth and porosity, particularly for SCS grades. Candidates were able to apply using a statement and CV, bypassing the usual Civil Service behaviours and appealing directly to an external market. The longer term goal is that these candidates, if appointed, will receive learning and development and eventually feed into SCS2 roles.
BEIS’s remit expanded beyond the traditional protected characteristics, mindful of the government’s aim for cognitive diversity and regional representation.
The talent programme received 321 applications, 41% were female, 56% described a non white background, and 9% identified as LGBTQ. This pool has been assessed in terms of potential, seniority and policy development or policy delivery experience. As we emerge from the pandemic and longer term roles are identified, BEIS will reach out to candidates to apply through open competition. All candidates in each competition will be assessed in the same way throughout the process.
Category - Excellence in overall equality, diversity and inclusion action plan
The Scottish Government’s (SG) positive actions in equality, diversity and inclusion have continued to drive changes and increase diversity in their workforce.
Case study
Actions include the move to a new applicant tracking system to enable effective monitoring of the impact of policies on those with protected characteristics at each stage of the recruitment process.
The introduction of this new technology has allowed the Scottish Government to include staff networks to increase accessibility of the website and system. The biggest anticipated benefit is the introduction of a new set of diversity and inclusion questions at application stage, and the ability to produce data from these questions and the intersectionality of protected characteristics at each stage of the recruitment process. This data will allow the Scottish Government to recommend specific, evidence-based interventions in the recruitment process for the first time, to increase the diversity of who they hire.
The system went live in January 2022 and the Scottish Government has already seen an increase in the percentage of candidates willing to declare their protected characteristics.
Category - Excellence in overall equality, diversity and inclusion action plan
The Department for International Trade (DIT) established its first Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Plan in April 2021. The plan set out the commitments that the executive recruitment and talent and resourcing hub teams would undertake to better attract diverse external candidates to their vacancies.
Case study
The Government’s Places for Growth programme to support levelling up has enabled the Department for International Trade to further their reach into a more diverse talent pool and increase the socio-economic diversity of its staff.
The department’s aim is to have 581 employees in their newly established Places for Growth (PfG) locations by the end of March 2025, to be achieved through both relocations and recruitment. They are currently on track to meet this target, having so far recruited 126 new employees to their Places for Growth locations up to 16th June 2022, with recruitment efforts ongoing.
As part of their Places for Growth resourcing plan, the Department for International Trade ran a Kick-Off campaign for Darlington roles between July and September 2021, promoting new employment activities. In December 2021, the department launched a new winter campaign to further build on this progress and gather greater insight.
These campaigns were underpinned by a range of wider activity including networking with local authorities and jobcentres, and outreach with educational institutes and careers fairs as well as media advertising and brand building. The department also recognised the need to support line managers in recruiting to a largely external market;
- Ahead of the campaign launching, the department ran sessions on how to write engaging and relevant job descriptions and adverts, and how to choose appropriate assessment criteria.
- Post-launch, the department ran sessions on how to assess a largely external candidate pool, what to expect from them during the recruitment process, and on the criticality of assessing fairly against the scoring criteria.
- The department hosted candidate support sessions designed to help external candidates understand what to expect from the recruitment process including an introduction to the success profiles. These sessions were held twice a week during the campaign live window. As a result of their winter campaign, 43 offers have been made to candidates and a further 48 candidates have been placed on a merit list which the department intends to utilise to fill future vacancies.
Moving forwards, DIT are working hard to:
- Continue to build brand presence in Places for Growth locations through media, marketing and focussed outreach.
- Provide support to Hiring Managers through the re-instating of hiring manager support sessions, the building of a job description template library and further training on fair and open recruitment practices.
- Re-establishing candidate support sessions to ensure prospective candidates have the knowledge and skills to submit strong and successful applications.
- Establish DIT as an employer of choice for career goals, not just job goals. We are working with media partners to build a “one-stop-shop” careers website for information and support with building a career in DIT, considering all the Department’s teams and professions, linking directly to our live vacancies and providing support and advice on how to successfully apply to these.
Category - Excellence in overall equality, diversity and inclusion action plan
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has worked to increase the ethnic diversity in HM Prison and Probation Service, and has improved the candidate journey for candidates with a disability by making the provision of reasonable adjustments and the identification of Disability Confident candidates clearer to ensure a better candidate experience and more confidence in the process.
Case study
The Ministry of Justice has embraced a proactive approach to Life Chances recruitment, being one of the first departments to set up a team on these particular issues with a dedicated focus on ex-offender and armed forces veterans’ recruitment. These are two groups which can face significant barriers to employment and which can cross over into addressing issues for other groups such as people from a lower socio-economic background.
Since introducing the Life Chances Team in October 2020 the Ministry of Justice has delivered the following actions:
- The department’s expertise on ex-offender recruitment has seen them providing delivery insight and practical support to other government departments, as well as helping to set the vetting framework and strategy to encourage greater recruitment of ex-offenders amongst government suppliers. This was developed from lessons learnt and the comprehensive service wraparound that MoJ has used for the Going Forward into Employment (GFiE) scheme within the department.
- The department advertised a significant number of vacancies as one of the pilot departments for the Great Place to Work for Veterans scheme. These roles were for vacancies across the UK based on prison establishments thus aligning with Civil Service targets to encourage greater regional recruitment.
- Leading on from the Great Place to Work for Veterans scheme the Ministry of Justice introduced Advance into Justice, a dedicated campaign helping veterans to become prison officers. The scheme supports the smooth and speedy transition of veterans from military service, and the focus on resettlement supports the government’s commitment to reduce homelessness within the service leader community.
Category - Excellence in monitoring outcomes
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is committed to inclusive recruitment practice, particularly focussed on improving accessibility to the Civil Service for under-represented communities.
In November 2021, ONS won the CIPD Wales Award for ‘Best resourcing and talent management initiative’ for their webinar series, which offers a window into their culture, career development pathways, application tips, and the opportunity to engage directly with colleagues.
Case Study
ONS’ webinar programme has inclusivity at its core. In order to know whether this, and all their other inclusion and diversity initiatives were making a difference, they needed effective monitoring. Their quarterly monitoring of the outcomes for under-represented/minority groups through their recruitment process has given ONS a baseline dataset and the ability to monitor and measure their progress. ONS are now able to see where they are making a difference and whether further interventions are needed.
ONS approach has given them a way of measuring both attraction and success, against gender, ethnic origin, disability and sexual orientation. They look at both ‘proportion’ and ‘outcomes’ and can immediately see how representative the ‘proportion’ is to the working age population in the locations of their offices. If there are noticeable swings (in either direction) recruiters are able to deep dive into campaigns to see if there was anything in their presentation and advertising that may have caused a shift in applicant proportions.
Using the ‘outcomes’ data, ONS is able to see the percentages of minority applicants that make it through each stage of the recruitment process. With analyses for the rolling year and quarterly, they can see where there are significant shifts and identify campaigns that may have caused the shift (both positive and negative). Reports are produced for each Directorateto help understand if any particular business area has a positive outcome that others could learn from, or an outcome that suggests that greater support or intervention is needed.
Category: Excellence in social mobility leadership
A Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) priority is to make careers in law accessible to all, with a particular focus on improving the accessibility for those from a lower socio-economic background.
Case study
The Crown Prosecution Service undertook a series of recruitment and community engagement initiatives under the Anthony Walker: Access to Law programme. This programme was launched in memory of Anthony Walker (see below) and included three strands of activity: a bursary programme for law students, work experience with local schools in more diverse and deprived communities, and an apprenticeship programme. The initiative was exclusively based out of the North West and Merseyside and Cheshire areas.
Anthony Delano Walker 1987 - 2005
Anthony Walker was a black British student of Jamaican descent who was murdered in an unprovoked, racially-motivated attack in Huyton, Merseyside.
The Walker family were the first black family to live in Huyton and the children were subjected to racial abuse at school.
On 2nd April 2008 the CPS approved a legal scholarship in Anthony’s memory.
The apprenticeship programme was a recruitment campaign that ran twice in the last year under an exception 2, targeting students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. CPS worked closely with local community groups in more diverse areas of the Areas to encourage applications from young people, including application support sessions to help candidates navigate the recruitment process. The offer included a paralegal officer role, as well as a paralegal apprenticeship programme delivered by CiLex, which upon successful completion would make candidates eligible to apply for internal law qualification programmes to become a solicitor.
The bursary programme worked with undergraduate and postgraduate students to provide funds towards the completion of their legal studies, as well as a wealth of development support from CPS, including a senior legal colleague as a mentor for the duration of their studies. The Crown Prosecution Service worked with local universities, including alternative and non-redbrick universities in the area, to target prospective candidates from lower socio-economic backgrounds.
Category: Excellence in disability leadership
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has designed and implemented dedicated actions at improving the representativeness of their workforce at all levels and ensuring their recruitment processes are fair and accessible.
Case study
HMRC has focused on greater support for disabled candidates. At the start of 2021/22 they achieved a renewed level 3 accreditation (leader) in the government’s Disability Confident employer scheme. The accreditation was validated by an external organisation, the Business Disability Forum, ahead of final accreditation by the Department for Work and Pensions.
HMRC has worked alongside the Government Recruitment Service to develop a specific survey question seeking candidates’ experiences of requesting reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process. They used this data and insight to conduct a deep-dive exercise, analysing approximately 3000 responses. Several key themes emerged - for example, some candidates were unaware of what was meant by a reasonable adjustment, with the assumption that it was only for physical disabilities; and some were concerned that disclosure could negatively impact the selection decision.
HMRC developed a ‘Disability Matters’ guide to support and advise candidates on how to navigate recruitment processes and explain the types of support and adjustments offered. The guide was launched in July 2021 and is housed on the external GOV.UK website. It is also included within all HMRC adverts. As a result of its positive impact, HMRC was shortlisted for the Business Disability Forum’s Disability Smart Awards 2021 under the category of ‘Disability Smart Diversity and Inclusion Professional Award’.
The second strand of this work was the launch of vacancy holder guidance, which includes a frequently-asked-questions section on examples of adjustments (including for non-visible disabilities), a step-by-step guide to putting adjustments in place, and information on where to find further support.
HMRC has recently achieved Visibly Better ‘Recruiter’ and ‘Employer’ status. Following this the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) is actively signposting HMRC roles on their job seekers site and promoting HMRC as an accessible, inclusive and positive recruiter.
To ensure that they fully support candidates with sight loss, and linked to the Disability Disparity Audit, HMRC has been working closely with the diversity leads in RNIB to self-assess against the institute’s positive action standards. This includes reviewing a sample of HMRC adverts for accessibility and ensuring that the content of their adverts does not create barriers for candidates with sight loss.
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
- More information about the work of the Commission is available on its website www.civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk
- For more information about the BEIS campaign please contact calum.grant@beis.gov.uk
- Media enquiries about the work of the Commission should go to Maggie O’Boyle on 07880 740 627.
- You can also follow the Commission on twitter @CivServComm
- 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.
- 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.
The Commission’s annual report and accounts for 2021 – 22 will now be published in September owing to delays at the National Audit Office.
The winning entries for the Commissioners’ Mark of Excellence which were due to be published in our report will be announced online on 20th July.
We will also be holding an online event on 20th September with the winners of the Mark of Excellence, where the winning recruitment teams will share more detail on their innovative campaigns and initiatives.
Shortlisted entries for Commissioners’ Mark of Excellence
First Commissioner, Gisela Stuart, gave a keynote speech at the First Division Association annual conference on 12 May. You can find the full text of her speech below:
Good morning – and thank you for inviting me to speak.
I’m Gisela Stuart and I am here today in my role as the First Civil Service Commissioner.
This is my first public speech since starting in March. Evidence that your General Secretary has his finger on the pulse!
Before joining the House of Lords in 2020, first as a non-affiliated Peer and now as a Crossbencher, I was an MP for 20 years.
In the first Blair term I served as a Health Minister. I was on several select committees including the Intelligence and Security Committee which oversees MI5, GCHQ and MI6.
Unlike most of my predecessors in the role of First Civil Service Commissioner I have not been a civil servant.
But I have worked with civil servants. I have had to rely on them and trust their advice.
I have experienced first-hand the importance of an effective and impartial civil service and the value of the ethical principles which underpin all their work.
There are no universal laws which tell us how to run a society. Democracy is a system of trial and error where we continually try to find partial solutions to recurring problems.
As an example, I have experienced three fuel crises. One in 1973/74 when we run out of electricity because there was no coal being mined, one in 1999 when the supply chain broke down and the last one during the pandemic when arguable there were sufficient supplies but panic broke out. All three had different causes, but some of the solutions remained the same as were some of the knee-jerk reactions which had to be avoided.
Politicians bring with them the impatience of the moment. They want things done today as they look over their shoulders worrying about the next re-shuffle or the next election.
Civil servants tend to be more cautious and provide collective and enduring memory and impartial advice. Both entered their professions because they are committed to public service.
Tensions arise here but they are part of the essential checks and balances of a functioning democracy.
However, politicians can answer back when they feel they have been unfairly attacked and criticised, civil servants can’t. If they do, it is usually a resigning matter.
You have to rely on others to make your case and defend your professional integrity. I know that the FDA has spoken up in the past, as have other trade unions, and I am glad they have done so. And we all should speak up when we see integrity and professionalism undermined.
Can I also say that to my mind briefings and anonymous attacks are not just wrong they are also counter-productive. They don’t make things better but risk putting talented people off working in government
And helping the Civil Service attract and recruit people with the skills and abilities it needs – on merit - is at the core of my role.
Asking “what is the Civil Service Commission and what do they do” is a legitimate question and some of you may not have come across us before.
The Commission, as well as the Civil Service, have as their foundation document a report published in 1854. The Northcote-Trevelyan Report talked about a British Civil Service with the “core values of integrity, propriety, objectivity and appointment on merit, able to transfer its loyalty and expertise from one elected government to the next”.
It recommended that entry to the Civil Service be solely on merit, to be enforced through the use of examinations.
That is still our core function today, to regulate the entry into the Civil Service, albeit since the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act of 2010 we have been put on a statutory basis.
It is a very thoughtful piece of legislation which defines boundaries and powers but leaves room for evolutionary development. For example, there is a statutory duty to have a “Civil Service Code”, but does not define what that code should contain.
As the “Frist Civil Service Commissioner” I lead the Board of eleven Commissioners who regulate appointments into the civil service. We are all appointed by Her Majesty the Queen and serve a five-year non-renewable term.
Our titles may have a touch of Gilbert & Sullivan about them, but the concept - eleven (diverse) individuals with senior experience of the private, public and voluntary sectors providing public assurance that appointments are made fairly – is a sound (and entirely modern) one.
Our key interest is that anyone joining the Civil Service is appointed fairly and on merit – not on the basis of patronage or nepotism (which was the driving force behind the establishment of the Commission following the Northcote Trevelyan report.)
The Commission’s logo on an advertisement for a Civil Service job tells you that the competition will be regulated in line with the statutory requirement of “merit after a fair and open competition”.
The Commission’s recruitment principles set out what this means in practice. These are intentionally principles – and not narrow Rules.
The Commission has a second role as the independent appeal body for civil servants making a complaint under the Civil Service Code.
We help departments promote the Civil Service values of impartiality, objectivity, honesty and integrity.
Some of you may have come across the Commission, either through a recruitment exercise or our chairing of senior competitions. Today, I’d like to talk to you about how we – as the regulator – want to support, enable, challenge and celebrate the work of the Civil Service.
To deliver the government’s priorities – and even more so at a time of major national and global challenges - the Civil Service must continually bring in - as well as train and retain - people with the relevant skills and experience. In some departments this requires more emphasis on policy than delivery, but the two should never be seen separately. Deliverability has to be a core element of good policy.
The Civil Service exists for a purpose and the concept of an impartial permanent Civil Service relies on a workforce that is able to face new challenges. It is what Gus O’Donnell once coined as 4Ps ‘passion, pace, professionalism and pride’.
Some of the skills required may never be found within the permanent Civil Service. I am thinking of the role of Chief Medical Officer, the Chief Scientific Officer and a number of the new openings around nuclear energy.
Others may only be needed for a short period and for very specific purposes. Developing vaccines and managing large scale supply chains in response to lock down and the pandemic come to mind.
At the top level we need the ability to use data, not just to justify existing policies but to anticipate where policy intervention may be needed in the future.
The public we serve expects fast and responsive service delivery. Every one of us, when we are not in our professional capacity, takes the last sentence as a given.
No one doubts the need for continued reform – and ability to adapt and respond to changing circumstances, but we tend to have diverging views on the scale and the pace.
The Government’s 2021 Declaration on Government Reform is a shared document between Ministers and the Civil Service leadership. This is important to us at the Commission. Effective government relies on working together in the public interest.
It calls for greater ‘porosity’ and commits to relocating civil service jobs away from Whitehall and London and into all the regions and cities of the United Kingdom to support ‘levelling up’. This brings new challenges as do changes in working arrangements and the use of new technology.
So how can we support you?
First and foremost, by doing our day job well – by providing assurance that recruitment into the Civil Service is done fairly and openly and that appointments are made on merit.
At the lower levels, recruitment is delegated to Departments and my team audit their practice annually. Broadly speaking, compliance with the ‘Recruitment Principles’ is pretty good, but we intend to put greater focus on persistent poor performance.
As a regulator we don’t have the power to sanction but we can make sure that our findings are taken seriously and that action is taken to improve performance.
The annual performance review of Permanent Secretaries is undertaken by the Lead Non Executive of the Departmental Board. In future the Lead NED will include the Commission in their list of stakeholders to be consulted. Each Department’s compliance feedback – which covers both performance under the Recruitment Principles and Code complaints – will become part of their Permanent Secretary’s own performance review.
We are in the process of putting together our Annual Report which will be laid before parliament in the summer. In the last financial year Commissioners personally chaired 242 competitions for the most senior roles - ensuring recruitment panels test candidates’ skills and experience fairly, against the criteria, to identify the best overall candidate for a specific position.
Recruitment panels for senior roles will usually include a key stakeholder or sector representative – or a departmental NED – to ensure external input.
Decisions about salary, terms and conditions and location are for the department – our interest is in making sure that all candidates are treated fairly and compete on a level playing field.
Getting it right – thinking about the job specification and how you describe the skills required, making sure the recruitment process is fair and open and getting a strong and diverse field of people to apply – these are the things that Commissioners will want to see.
The government reform plan indicated that all civil service roles would become ‘external by default’ meaning that vacancies should be opened up to the wider employment market.
I would expect a government announcement on how this might work in practice before too long.
Up to now, the decision whether or not to open up a role to external competition was done on a case by case basis by departments.
In our experience of chairing selection processes, civil servants do well in external competitions and regular testing of skills and capabilities can provide new and sometimes unexpected insights.
As our role relates to recruitment INTO the Civil Service, “External by default” brings the Commission in to oversee substantially more recruitment competitions.
The Commission is clear that this will not mean ‘light touch’ regulation – but the sheer numbers of appointments at this important ‘pipeline’ grade, mean the Commission will need to respond - and evolve its working model.
We will want to see the data and hear from departments and Civil Service HR about how they will achieve this and what they hope to see in terms of outcomes as we develop our regulatory model.
Like many regulators, we will look to deploy most resource on recruitment practice that poses greatest risk.
For example, where a department has high compliance scores, the Commission may be able to move to an ‘earned autonomy’ position for some roles with.
We will be looking to pilot and test potential models as ‘External by Default’ takes shape in departments. But we will never lose sight of our statutory duty to ensure that selection is open, fair and on merit.
So how do we support you?
As a Board we constantly ask ourselves whether we are striking the right balance between our regulatory duties and our desire to be flexible and pragmatic. We want the Civil Service to innovate and experiment.
This challenge comes alive when we are asked to approve ‘exceptions’ to fair and open recruitment for specific reasons and for time limited periods. Departments tend to ask for them because they need to respond to an urgent and often unexpected set of circumstances.
In recent years the Board has encouraged the use of exceptions to help the Civil Service meet its wider ambition to become more representative of the country and to give ‘life chances to individuals from a range of disadvantaged backgrounds such as care leavers, veterans and ex-offenders.
We strongly support the Civil Service’s ambition to be more diverse – including diversity of background, region, thought, ethnicity and gender.
Internal measures such as talent development programmes, temporary promotion, mentoring etc. are not within the Commission’s remit. But with our unique perspective across departments’ recruitment from chairing open competitions at senior levels and auditing processes across government, we are using our experience and influence to help departments deliver on their ambition to be more representative.
Recently I have paused and reflected on the fact that the current cabinet is ethnically more diverse than the senior levels of the civil service. Dame Sharon White was the first black person to become a permanent secretary in 2013. Suma Chakrabarti served as the Perm Sec in the ministry of Justice from 2007 to 2012. I assumed things were beginning to change, but they have not. It is not good enough for us talk about the need to change without being prepared to accept that this includes each and every one of us.
The Commission is beginning a pilot– initially with MOJ – for ‘Pathways to Lead’ to develop potential leaders with backgrounds and skills currently under-represented in the workforce (for a time limited appointment) who may be able to bring in new thinking and innovative answers to intractable policy problems.
We will be reviewing this pilot to see if it has wider application.
The successful “Going forward into employment” exception scheme which began as a pilot under Ian Watmore, my predecessor as First Civil Service Commissioner, is now offering over 1000 roles as life chance opportunities to veterans, care leavers and ex-offenders and others will move into Cabinet Office, with the Commission’s ongoing support.
How do we challenge you?
If you have not yet done so, I really do encourage you to read the Commission’s recruitment principles. Intentionally they are principles – and not narrow Rules.
They explain what we mean by “open, fair and on merit”.
During the pandemic there has been a surge in using exceptions for appointments, and that is not surprising. But we need to get back to normal. Make strategic decisions and operate within the rules.
We audit recruitment and highlight breaches because rules are important, but we also really want to encourage and support new ways of doing things.
Hiring managers must think carefully about the skills and qualities they are looking for and spend time and effort to reach a strong and diverse field of candidates. Successful external candidates will need different kinds of support and induction than internal ones.
Our recruitment processes take too long. We know that we lose talented candidates who either drop out or take on other roles. This is wasteful for those who have applied and dropped out and for vacancy holders if don’t get the best people into post.
Together with departmental HR departments the Commission will want to look at ways of shortening the time taken from “decision to hire to someone being in post”.
The Commission also hears appeals under the Civil Service Code. All civil servants should be familiar with the Code and new joiners need to have an awareness of the ethical expectations and the mechanisms in place to raise concerns.
We hold online events and workshops and support departments’ work but embedding public service values is an ongoing task and is never quite “done”.
The primary responsibility for this is within departments, as is the duty to resolve complaints. We only hear appeals once all internal avenues have been exhausted.
The perfect outcome for the Commission is a system where all departments are responsive to complaints and address concerns appropriately, so that no one has the need to appeal to us. But if they do – we are here to help.
The last six years have been particularly demanding and challenging and it is right for us to celebrate the Civil Service.
We in the Commission try to play our part in this celebration.
We recently launched the first “Commissioners Mark of Excellence” to showcase some of the excellent recruitment practice out there. The award will recognise outstanding innovation and commitment in the recruitment of diverse candidates across all grades into the Civil Service.
It champions diversity in its broadest sense, supports the Government’s priority of ‘levelling up’ as well as the Civil Service reform agenda of an innovative and skilled Civil Service.
Along with the Cabinet Secretary, cross-government networks are endorsing and supporting this award. The winner – and those who are highly commended – will be announced in July and they will be entitled to use the excellence kitemark on their advertising for a year.
One of the great things about being a Commissioner, is that we have a unique perspective right across Whitehall.
We see the range of tough and demanding jobs which have to be filled. We see commitment and determination to do what is right.
There are changes ahead both for those working in Whitehall and for us as a regulator.
As long as we remember that we play a vital part in making democracy work and that we have a shared commitment to public service, I know we can do it!
Thank you – I’m very happy to take any questions.
It is five years since I got the call to tell me my application to become a Civil Service Commissioner was successful - and what a five years it has been.
As I arrived the Commission had just agreed some strategic enablers:
- to support the Civil Service in recruiting the skills needed to enable EU Exit,
- to help strengthen the specialist professional skillbase supporting delivery,
- to provide ‘life chance’ opportunities by allowing exceptions from fair and open competition and
- to get behind the commitment to increase the diversity of the civil service workforce.
With so much there I cared about; I couldn’t have felt more at home.
And I’m proud that we can demonstrate that we have taken the practical action and the collected data to show we have made a difference. Those same data also suggest that structural inequalities persist and that there remains much more to be done before the civil service is the diverse and inclusive workplace we’d all like to see. I’ve been closely involved in our Life Chances work and am so proud of the line managers in departments and agencies who, through their support, are making a job in the civil service a reality for those who otherwise might not have had the chance to make their contribution. This year sees nearly 1000 new starters through 30 schemes across the Civil Service.
It reminds me that sometimes being a good regulator means helping to clear obstacles out of the way!
All eleven Commissioners spend a lot of our time doing what the law requires of us including chairing competitions for the most senior appointments in the Civil Service. I’ve done that now for the recruitment of over 100 Directors, Directors General, Permanent Secretaries, Chief Executives, Chief Operating Officers, Chief Digital Information Officers, Regional School Commissioners, Chief Medical Officers and Chief Scientific Advisers, Chief Finance, People and Commercial Officers and HM Trade Commissioners. It’s been not only a privilege but a voyage of discovery as the rich diversity of background and experience of candidates is matched only by the huge variety of operating cultures and challenges across the [73] departments, agencies and ALBs we regulate. Unlike most Commissioners, I was fortunate myself to enjoy a civil service career that spanned operational, diplomatic and more traditional civil service leadership roles and having surveyed the scene for the past five years I can assure that that opportunity is certainly still there for you now.
Over the last 2 years as the Commission has worked through the challenges of COVID we’ve discovered that we can rely on improved technology to interview online and be confident that we are making fair appointments. Additionally, we’re now seeing that the investments in technology that the civil service has made to enable remote working means recruitment competitions are drawing in candidates from right across the country for posts that previously required attendance in buildings in Whitehall and search firms tell us that is becoming a positive attractor for those looking to join the civil service. That can only be positive in helping realise the government’s new strategic objectives of levelling up, developing Places for Growth and increasing the ‘porosity’ of the senior civil service to external experience.
Finally, before I - quite literally - sign off, there’s important work to be done chairing the sub group of Commissioners who each year undertake the detailed, if less visible, regulatory work assuring that departments, agencies and ALBs are compliant with the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act in making appointment to the civil service on merit, following fair and open competition. You might not be aware, but your Permanent Secretary or Chief Executive gets an annual letter rating your organisation as ‘Good’, ‘Fair’ or ‘Poor’ on the basis of the Commission’s audit of recruitment practice, taking account of your own People Survey feedback on Civil Service Code awareness and practice, and of evidence of positive action and progress on diversity. Over the five years I’ve been a Commissioner, we’ve seen the number of Good and Improving departments and agencies rise, but we also report that a number are persistently Poor too.
Such is the lot of the modern regulator - to enable, to support, and to challenge and call out poor practice where it exists. It’s been a privilege to play a part in ensuring we have a brilliant civil service - here’s to you all and your future success!
Please find attached the job pack to apply for the role of Commissioner:
First Commissioner, Baroness Gisela Stuart of Edgbaston talks about the role of a Commissioner:
Eighteen departments and agencies have made it onto the shortlist for the Commissioners’ first ever ‘Mark of Excellence’.
The new ‘Mark of Excellence’ will be awarded to recruitment campaigns that demonstrate outstanding innovation and commitment in the recruitment of diverse candidates across all grades into the Civil Service.
The judging panel, led by Natalie Campbell MBE (Civil Service Commissioner), includes Baroness 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) will now choose a winner from shortlisted recruitment campaigns by:
- Department for International Trade
- Food Standards Agency
- Competition and Markets Authority
- Department for Culture, Media and Sport
- Crown Prosecution Service
- Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS)
- UK Hydrographic Office
- Scottish Government
- Office for National Statistics
- Ministry of Justice
- Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
- Intellectual Property Office
- Defence Equipment & Support
- HM Treasury
- HM Revenue and Customs
- Government Social Research Service
- Government Economic Service
- Department for Transport
The award will champion diversity in its broadest sense, supporting the Government’s priority of ‘levelling up’ and the Civil Service reform agenda of an innovative and skilled Civil Service.
Natalie Campbell MBE said:
“We have had such a great response to this award – the first of its kind. As a Commissioner, I know there is some outstanding recruitment practice across government. We want to showcase that, highlighting innovative and thoughtful initiatives that attract strong and diverse fields for Civil Service Jobs. It’s not going to be easy choosing from this shortlist but the panel will want to see that the approach is creative, making a tangible difference to recruitment and is something that can be applied more widely.”
Winners and case studies will be published in the Commission's Annual Report & Accounts, on its website and throughout Civil Service social media channels.
Winners will be able to publicise their achievement with an award logo on all their recruitment advertisements for one year.
Follow the Commission on Twitter @CivServComm
The latest Civil Service Commission diversity event took place via Zoom on Wednesday 23rd February.
Aimed specifically at those from diverse backgrounds who are interested in entering the Senior Civil Service, this free online event was led by independent Civil Service Commissioner, Natalie Campbell MBE. Other speakers included Paul Gray (Civil Service Commissioner), Seonaid Webb MBE (Deputy Director, DEFRA and Deputy Disability Champion), Gerri Clement MBE (Programme Director, CSHR) and Nagesh Reddy (Portfolio Director, DWP).
Topics covered included:
- Learn about different pathways into the Senior Civil Service
- Hear a diverse panel of senior civil servants talk about their own experiences
- Find out about the recruitment process and get interview tips and guidance on making your application
The full recording of the event can be found below:
People often ask me, ‘what made you want to become a Civil Service Commissioner?’ Nearly five years on my answer today is slightly different from Day One on the job. I am a public servant and social entrepreneur in equal measure, I have a sense of duty and an overwhelming desire to do what I can to benefit society. I was once asked, what happened in your life that made you want to help people, and my response back was, what happened in your life that made you not want to help people. I believe it is the gift we have as humans.
When I joined the Commission board in 2017, I wanted to make a difference. In terms of one aspect of the work we do, chairing competitions, I profoundly believe that appointments - especially leadership appointments - must be open, fair and based on merit. What has shifted is my own understanding of the system I am in as a regulator, the nuance, and the need to balance broader ministerial or political aims, the expertise already in the dept and the skills that need to be hired. I am an idealist at heart, but I very quickly learnt that pragmatism gets better results in government. As I started chairing open recruitment competitions and getting under the skin of departments, I also wanted to make excellent hires because I realised civil servants are what I term ‘Architects of Society’. I am in awe of the work done across the UK, especially over the past two years, to make sure that society functions for the betterment of people and planet. So, when someone asks me today, why I am a Civil Service Commissioner I say it is because I want to contribute to the decision-making table that determines who the ‘Architects of Society’ are.
With this in mind I tried to find fixes for my frustrations; I believe the pace of change in relation to equity, diversity and inclusion has been slow. To help ‘fix’ this my inner idealist had grand plans; we launched ‘Demystifying the Commission’ sessions for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Senior Civil Service leaders because I wanted to unpack the opaque nature of the ‘chaired competition process’ I encouraged black and minority ethnic staff to be vocal about their ambitions; I declared on stages ‘tell your bosses boss what job you want, that is how you succeed’. I know now that ‘the system’ remains bound by rules of engagement and that concepts of merit, or fairness don’t work on their own. This is the raw truth. I hope it is not a future fact.
Great strides have been made in terms of gender balance and flexible working and supporting Veterans, Care Leavers and ex-offenders into Civil Service employment. However, I rarely hear conversations about LGBTQI+ inclusion and as a Commission, we know there can be problems in collecting or reporting that data. Progress on disability and race across the Senior Civil Service remains painfully poor. I am hopeful that a focus on social mobility can address some of the cultural issues. Why is this important? Well, the senior majority of the Architects of Society do not represent the people they serve. This must change.
So, in my final months I will continue to push, encourage and promote diversity across the Civil Service, including unearthing excellent recruitment practice so it can be shown and shared more widely.
This week we launched the Commissioners’ Mark of Excellence to encourage and share innovation and best practice in attracting and recruiting a broad and diverse field of candidates for Civil Service roles. If your department or organisation is audited by the Commission, you can apply for the new Mark. Winners will be highlighted in our Annual Report and able to stamp the mark on their recruitment advertising for one year.
I know there are some excellent examples out there where teams have considered how to properly open up recruitment to a broader field of candidates and, as a result, have hired individuals with new talents and experiences into and across the Civil Service. I want to hear from you – tell us about what worked so we can share your learning with others and celebrate your effort!
In my last few months at the Commission, this is my final push before I hand over to a new or future Commissioner, please get involved and apply. It has been a privilege and honour to be a part of the Civil Service Commission and even when I finish my term, I’ll be willing change on from the sidelines with just as much energy.
The next Civil Service Commission diversity event will take place via Zoom on Wednesday 23rd February, 2.00 - 3.30pm.
Do you aspire to reach the Senior Civil Service but have no idea about the route to get there? Do you think your non-traditional background means you won’t be successful in applying for roles in the Senior Civil Service? Think again.
The Civil Service Commission regulates recruitment into the Civil Service to make sure it is fair, open and merit-based. Our Commissioners personally chair recruitment competitions for Senior Civil Service roles.
Aimed specifically at those from diverse backgrounds who are interested in entering the Senior Civil Service, this free online event will be led by independent Civil Service Commissioner, Natalie Campbell MBE. Other speakers include Paul Gray (Civil Service Commissioner), Seonaid Webb MBE (Deputy Director, DEFRA and Deputy Disability Champion), Gerri Clement MBE (Programme Director, CSHR) and Nagesh Reddy (Portfolio Director, DWP).
- Learn about different pathways into the Senior Civil Service
- Hear a diverse panel of senior civil servants talk about their own experiences
- Find out about the recruitment process and get interview tips and guidance on making your application
- Opportunity for Questions and Answers via Slido
A recording of this event will later be made available via the Commission’s website if you are unable to attend on the day.
Please submit any questions to the panel (including your CS grade) via Slido prior to the event (as well as during) using: #DivSCS
The Eventbrite link to sign up for the event can be found below:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/building-a-more-diverse-senior-civil-service-tickets-256555142337
