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How To Hire Civil Service Staff

How To Hire Civil Service Staff
Post Series: How to Hire

Recruiting for a civil service job can be a challenge, and if you get the hiring process wrong, it can be costly and result in a poor hire. If a hiring manager gets it wrong, public services, business goals, and performance may suffer. Get it right, and your team will go from strength to strength with talented civil servants and leadership that embraces the mission they are given.

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To avoid recruitment bottlenecks and bad hiring decisions, you need to deploy effective recruitment solutions appropriate to your sector. This is the focus of our civil service staff hiring guide, where we discuss:

  • Preparing To Recruit Civil Service Staff: Your Employer Brand & Company Careers Page
  • Writing A Civil Service Job Description & Job Advert
  • How To Hire All Civil Service Staff
  • Advertising Your Civil Service Positions: Referral Schemes, Social Media, & Job Boards
  • Reducing Civil Service Hiring Costs And Time: Recruitment Companies & ATS
  • Screening Job Seekers & Conducting Interviews
  • Presenting A Job Offer & Onboarding Civil Servants

Preparing To Recruit Civil Service Staff: Your Employer Brand & Company Careers Page

How To Recruit Civil Servants

Before you begin to advertise externally for a junior or senior civil servant, you should visit and review all your existing candidate touchpoints to ensure you are promoting a positive employer brand. You will ultimately only secure the best individuals if you show that you are a highly desirable employer where quality staff will want to work.

The first step is to consider how you portray your company culture, values, and success, along with other elements such as supporting further training and career development. In our Guide On How To Hire, we explore the topics of Why Should SMEs Build An Employer Brand and What Should Be On A Company Careers Page.

Writing A Civil Service Job Description & Job Advert

Writing Civil Service Department Job Descriptions

You can only write an accurate job description and job advert once you have examined your department’ needs. It helps now for Human Resources and recruiters to speak to key decision makers in the hiring process, including the position’s line manager:

Civil Service Department Job Descriptions

Writing a job description for a civil servant role will help your hiring manager save time and speed up recruiting actions. The best practice is to have one on file for all department positions, which can be quickly updated and used to create job postings whenever recruitment needs arise.

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For SEO, it is a good practice to integrate keywords and key phrases that the workforce might search for in a search engine. The job profile should have a clear message to attract the most suitable individuals. It also helps to refrain from using excessive punctuation and too much industry jargon.

When writing a job description for a civil service position, consider:

  1. Identifying and outlining typical department-wide requirements
  2. Collating today’s minimum qualifications and experience
  3. Reviewing what other departments are saying when they post jobs
  4. What your new hires should look like
  5. How you want your brand to be perceived

Our Job Description Templates can help you get started; we appreciate writing this content can be a challenge. You can discover the most popular Civil Service Job Descriptions here.

Further useful resources include How To Define What People Do In Their Jobs, Preparing Job Descriptions, and Key Roles And Responsibilities Of Civil Service Professionals.

Civil Service Job Adverts

Your job descriptions form the basis of your new job ad. There are other things to add to attract the perfect candidate with appropriate experience, so ensure your ad includes:

  1. An accurate job title – DWP work coach, census officer, housing officer, property manager, community manager, compliance officer, forensic psychologist, government security officer, police officer, etc
  2. An opening statement – saying why applicants will want to serve in your department
  3. The job’s description
  4. A list of responsibilities – serving government ministers, performing defence data analysis, investigating crime, maintaining law and order, monitoring public transport, updating policies, administering pensions, collecting census data, guiding people’s health, education and future training, etc
  5. Qualifications, personality traits, working knowledge and specific skills – integrity, ability to remain politically impartial, empathy, objectivity etc
  6. Job location – office-based or remote
  7. Salary range and health benefits – check the average salary for government positions and civil service roles
  8. Next steps – applicants should email xxx or apply via your career page

We recommend that departments use a job advert template to get down the basics and then fill in more detail on the unique duties carried out by your teams and departments.

How To Hire All Civil Service Staff

HOW TO HIRE A DWP WORK COACH

Your job advertisement should prioritise crucial duties and responsibilities to hire a DWP Work Coach. Work coach tasks may include providing advice, support, and motivation and coaching individuals to help them move towards employment and financial security.

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Vital skills include persuasion, empathy, confidence building, and communication. The role can be rewarding for applicants with a genuine passion for helping others.

DWP Work Coach Job Description Example

Post A DWP Work Coach Job

HOW TO HIRE A CENSUS OFFICER

To hire a Census Officer, state the region of work, the shift pattern, if the role is part or full-time, and if the candidate will need their own vehicle. Creating a candidate specification can be helpful and include skills such as communication, physical fitness, attention to detail, and proficiency in using data collecting technology.

Job duties might entail speaking with the public at their homes, relaying the importance of the census, and collecting and updating data.

Census Officer Job Description Example

Post A Census Officer Job

HOW TO HIRE A HOUSING OFFICER

To hire a Housing Officer, your job description should highlight your company culture and objectives. Outlining critical duties will spark interest in job seekers, including attending tenant meetings, managing antisocial behaviour, arranging property maintenance, assigning houses, and collecting rent.

The housing officer role may require knowledge of social housing schemes, so it may be helpful to denote if candidates must have this expertise or if training is provided.

Housing Officer Job Description Example

Post A Housing Officer Job

HOW TO HIRE A PROPERTY MANAGER

To hire a Property Manager, your job ad should describe your office and property portfolio and include a website link where candidates can discover more. Desirable education and skills include a property management degree, leadership, negotiation, and problem-solving.

Enticing job duties include interviewing tenants and tenant selection, resolving disputes, scheduling maintenance, and following eviction protocols.

Property Manager Job Description Example

Post A Property Manager Job

HOW TO HIRE A COMMUNITY MANAGER

To hire a Community Manager, begin by describing the resources and services the department offers. Public speaking, empathy, and communication skills are helpful, and you can encourage applications by providing details of future career development opportunities.

The role of a community manager might involve meeting with community members, promoting community initiatives, and ensuring social programmes reach the individuals who need them.

Community Manager Job Description Example

Post A Community Manager Job

HOW TO HIRE A COMPLIANCE OFFICER

To hire a Compliance Officer, define the regulations, policies, and departments that fall under the scope of the governance. Responsibilities include working with managers and departments to minimise risk, recommending actions to align business activities with local or national regulations, escalating areas of concern, and updating procedures and best practices.

It will help to include a person profile, detailing qualifications and personality traits, such as attention to detail, organisation, and concentration.

Compliance Officer Job Description Example

Post A Compliance Officer Job

HOW TO HIRE A FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST

To hire a Forensic Psychologist, describe the scope of services and to whom they support. The role usually requires advanced education, including a Master’s or Bachelor’s degree in forensic psychology. Research and planning skills are desirable, along with a commitment to continually update their knowledge.

Tasks that encourage applicants to apply include researching crimes and cases, consulting with legal teams, collating and explaining evidence, and providing court testimony. 

Forensic Psychologist Job Description Example

Post A Forensic Psychologist Job

HOW TO HIRE A SECURITY OFFICER

To hire a Security Officer, define the nature of the security services, which may be mobile or stationary, premises or individuals. Career development and training opportunities will encourage applications, and your job ad should relay the desirable characteristics, such as physical fitness, politeness, concentration, and attention to detail.

Duties include directing traffic, patrolling buildings, controlling access, recording visitors, and contacting the emergency services if an incident occurs.

Security Officer Job Description Example

Post A Security Officer Job

HOW TO HIRE A POLICE OFFICER

To hire a Police Officer, you should develop a job description describing the role’s seniority, required training, or specific expertise. Responsibilities that entice candidates include providing public services and protecting local communities, responding to emergencies, deterring crime, conducting investigations, and implementing local crime initiatives.

The job profile might indicate that employees need a driving licence, analysis and observation skills, and physical stamina. Police candidates may also need to pass a background check and medical.

Police Officer Job Description Example

Post A Police Officer Job

Advertising Your Civil Service Positions: Referral Schemes, Social Media, & Job Boards

Advertising To Attract A Diverse Range Of Professionals

With your job ad in hand, you are ready to find your new staff. Your hiring strategy might include posting your jobs:

Internally (Employee Referral Schemes)

A non-incentivised or incentivised employee referral scheme is extremely valuable when you want to recruit for civil service roles. You will turn your existing staff into motivated recruiters, sharing that you are hiring a new employees across their social and professional networks (LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter).

Employee referral schemes often bring in promising talent, with your team’s connections including like-minded professionals and industry contacts. To engage this business hiring strategy, share your job descriptions with your team and reward referrals from existing employees.

You can discover tips on how to introduce and manage employee referral schemes by reading Introducing An Employee Referral Scheme.

On Social Media

Hiring through social media sites is effective, with free and paid advertising options. Our guidance is to ensure your social network messaging is consistent with your employer brand and conveys a positive image. An active social media channel is helpful if you want to build a talent pool waiting for an opportunity to join your organisation. You can develop an active social media channel by posting news, expert opinions, updates, and industry insights.

Our tips and advice for implementing a successful social media hiring strategy include:

  • Marketing yourself first
  • Joining industry networks and groups
  • Engaging with respondents and nurturing discussions
  • Using advanced search tools and Recruiter Lite on LinkedIn
  • Using Twitter’s advanced search tool and direct messaging technology
  • Building activity on your company’s Facebook page and encouraging engagement from current employees, turning them into business advocates

We explore finding qualified employees through social media further in our articles Social Media Hiring Strategies For SMEs and Job Advertising On Social Media.

On Job Boards

Whether your new hire is your first or your hundredth, advertising on the top job boards is essential if you aim to recruit in an acceptable timeframe. You can post civil service roles on one job board, or many using an Applicant Tracking System. Job board resellers help you advertise your civil service job across multiple general, geographical, and niche job sites using their integrated ATS software, minimising the hassle and time of developing leads and hiring a good worker.

Top Job Boards:

Niche Job Sites:

Aggregator Job Sites:

Geographical Job Sites:

You can advertise your job on these job boards today.

Reducing Civil Service Hiring Costs And Time: Recruitment Companies & ATS

Reducing Civil Service Hiring Costs

Budgets, deadlines, and administration require careful consideration whenever you instigate the recruitment process. To get results that make a difference, you may decide to work with a recruitment agency with a UK wide focus, a global recruitment partner, or niche recruitment agencies.

We discuss agency fees and recruiters in these three articles; How Much Do Recruitment Agencies Charge?, How To Avoid High Recruitment Agency Fees, and The Pros And Cons Of Having A Recruiter On Retainer.

Fixed Cost Recruitment

Fixed-cost recruitment allows you to recruit at a flat fee governed by the level of service and functionality you desire.

The success of fixed-cost recruiting depends on the company offering the service, the methodologies they deploy, and their expertise and knowledge of your industry or sector. You will need to determine which actions you need assistance with to use flat-fee recruitment successfully.

Four steps to leveraging fixed cost recruiting to find civil service staff:

  1. Place ads across leading job boards
  2. Search CV databases and social media channels
  3. Headhunt and shortlist new candidates
  4. Receive interviewed and qualified leads

Useful resources:

Applicant Tracking Systems

Automatic Tracking Systems can significantly reduce the costs of hiring civil service staff by creating efficiency. Candidate, vacancy, and advert management fall within the parameters of this technology.

Team access creates a unified place to work, helping you organise and lead a seamless recruitment process and candidate experience.

Five steps to centralising recruitment with ATS:

  1. Find staff online
  2. Review candidate scores
  3. Distribute personalised messages to a large candidate pool
  4. Automate the delivery of responses
  5. Direct candidates to application forms or your website

To explore all the features and benefits of Automatic Tracking Systems, read Centralising Recruitment With ATS.

Screening Job Seekers & Conducting Interviews

Screening And Interviewing Civil Servants

Before interviewing commences, you need to shortlist applicants by reviewing their CVs or resumes. Indications that you have civil servants worth interviewing include:

  • Quantifiable evidence of past achievements and skills
  • The individual has steady career progression
  • The candidate is not job-hopping
  • The CV is free from spelling and grammatical errors
  • The candidate has the relevant experience and specific skills to meet the job requirements

Decision-makers and hiring managers need to be prepared to deliver a consistent interview experience. It helps to ask the same interview questions to each prospect, to aid candidate scoring. Ensure anyone who has candidate contact is on the same page and understands the brand’s vision, values and opportunities. Interviews should be challenging, supportive, positive, and engaging.

Video interviews are an increasingly popular recruitment solution, saving on resources and speeding up recruiting. Video sharing, shortlisting, and feedback from hiring and line managers ultimately generate more successful outcomes. If your department has not conducted a video interview before, read How To Conduct A Remote Interview.

Our article Defining Your Interview Process, discusses interview questions, avoiding unconscious bias, and interviewing tips.

Presenting A Job Offer & Onboarding Civil Servants

Presenting An Offer To Serve In Civil Services

When you have finished interviewing candidates and believe you have the right person for your role, you will need to present an offer and onboard the employee:

Making An Employment Offer

The process of presenting the offer to UK civil service professionals varies depending on what has occurred before. If you don’t already understand the individual’s current salary, expectations are better managed over the phone. Phone offers should be confident but be prepared to make changes if the individual’s circumstances have changed. Reaffirm that the candidate is happy with the offer, clarify their acceptance, and proceed to a formal written offer, in the same way you would for any company employee.

A formal offer letter from your office can be conditional (dependent on a background check, etc) or unconditional and should include:

  • Job title
  • Candidate name
  • Your conditions – i.e., this offer is made subject to…
  • Official start date, time, and location
  • Probationary period
  • Offer terms
  • Candidate actions and acceptance instructions – i.e., signed copy of job offer
  • Terms and conditions of employment (issued within two months of the start date)

You can read further on Presenting A Job Offer here.

Onboarding Civil Service Staff

The onboarding process should support the worker as they become part of your team.

Actions for onboarding civil servants and government employees might include:

  • Creating an employer identification number
  • Presenting the individual with an employee handbook
  • An office tour, introducing the person to their manager, team, and senior executives
  • Informing the person of the communication methods and software to use in the new role
  • Presenting clear responsibilities and duties
  • Defining new role expectations, standards, and performance indicators
  • Gathering feedback from new staff

Civil Service Recruiting FAQs

Here we answer your recruiting questions.

Where can I advertise jobs?

Hiring managers of government departments can post jobs on/in:

1. General job boards
2. Niche job boards
3. Geographical job boards
4. Local newspapers
5. Social networking sites

What are the steps in the hiring staff?

Hiring steps include:

1. Assess departmental needs and write a job description and advert
2. Leverage social networks and staff referrals
3. Post jobs on job boards
4. Use a fixed cost recruitment services
5. Present a government employment offer

How To Hire Staff In Different Sectors

Find our recruitment guides for different sectors below:

All Civil Service Job Descriptions

Post All Civil Service Jobs

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