Civil Service Work Strengths Test Civil Service Behaviours Underpinning Strengths Syllabus

What are the key actions of the 'Working Together' behaviour?

Encouraging collaboration and team working, building supportive and trusting relationships, valuing difference and inclusion, sharing information across boundaries, and creating an environment of wellbeing and mutual respect.

Which strengths align with the 'Working Together' behaviour (collaboration and team working)?

Strengths such as Team Working, Relationship Builder, Inclusive, Collaborative, and Mediator. These reflect a natural motivation to work with and support others.

Which Civil Service Behaviour underpins communicating and influencing others?

Communicating and Influencing. It focuses on conveying information clearly and persuasively, choosing the right method, and influencing others to achieve outcomes.

What are the key actions of the 'Communicating and Influencing' behaviour?

Communicating clearly and concisely (orally and in writing), choosing appropriate communication methods, presenting information persuasively, influencing and negotiating, listening actively, and respecting diverse audiences.

Which strengths align with the 'Communicating and Influencing' behaviour?

Strengths such as Influence (Persuasive), Explainer, Storyteller, Connector, Listener, and Compelling. These reflect a natural ability and motivation to convey ideas and win others over.

Which Civil Service Behaviour underpins empathy and supporting others?

Developing Self and Others (with elements of Working Together). Developing Self and Others focuses on coaching, supporting growth, giving feedback, and helping people fulfil their potential.

What are the key actions of the 'Developing Self and Others' behaviour?

Identifying development needs, coaching and mentoring, giving constructive feedback, supporting wellbeing, encouraging continuous learning, reflecting on one's own development, and helping others build skills and confidence.

Which strengths underpin empathy and supporting others?

Strengths such as Empathic, Developer (Coach/Mentor), Enabler, Compassion, and Personal Responsibility. These reflect a natural drive to understand and help others grow.

Which Civil Service Behaviour underpins building and sustaining networks?

Working Together (with Communicating and Influencing). Building and sustaining networks falls under forming partnerships and relationships across organisational boundaries to achieve shared goals.

Which strengths support building and sustaining networks?

Strengths such as Networker, Relationship Builder, Connector, Rapport Builder, and Collaborative. These reflect a natural motivation to create and maintain wide professional relationships.

Which Civil Service Behaviour underpins analytical and critical thinking?

Making Effective Decisions. It focuses on using sound judgement, analysing evidence and data, evaluating options, considering risks, and reaching well-reasoned conclusions.

What are the key actions of the 'Making Effective Decisions' behaviour?

Gathering and analysing relevant evidence and data, weighing up options and risks, considering wider implications, consulting appropriately, applying sound judgement, and making timely, transparent and accountable decisions.

Which strengths underpin analytical and critical thinking?

Strengths such as Analytical, Detail, Problem Solver, Judgement, and Inquisitive (Learner). These reflect a natural motivation to examine evidence and reason logically.

Which Civil Service Behaviour underpins strategic and big-picture thinking?

Seeing the Big Picture. It focuses on understanding how your work fits within wider organisational and government priorities, and aligning activity to long-term strategic goals.

What are the key actions of the 'Seeing the Big Picture' behaviour?

Understanding organisational and government objectives, keeping informed of wider economic/political/social context, focusing on priorities that add greatest value, aligning activities to strategy, and anticipating future trends and impacts.

Which strengths underpin strategic and big-picture thinking?

Strengths such as Strategic, Visionary, Big-Picture Thinker, Curiosity, and Mission. These reflect a natural orientation toward long-term, contextual and outward-looking thinking.

Which Civil Service Behaviour underpins sound judgement and effective decision making?

Making Effective Decisions. It directly captures the use of evidence, judgement, and risk evaluation to make sound, timely and accountable decisions.

What distinguishes 'sound judgement' within the Making Effective Decisions behaviour?

It is the ability to weigh evidence, balance competing priorities and risks, apply appropriate values and policy context, and reach a defensible conclusion even under uncertainty or incomplete information.

Which strengths underpin sound judgement and effective decision making?

Strengths such as Judgement, Decisive, Analytical, Responsibility, and Courage. These reflect a natural confidence and motivation to make and stand by well-reasoned decisions.

Which Civil Service Behaviour underpins creativity and innovation?

Changing and Improving. Creativity and innovation are core to seeking better ways of working, generating new ideas, and championing improvement and transformation.

Which strengths underpin creativity and innovation?

Strengths such as Creative, Innovator, Idea Generator (Ideation), Curiosity, and Improver. These reflect a natural drive to generate original ideas and novel solutions.

Which Civil Service Behaviour focuses specifically on leadership and setting direction?

Leadership. It focuses on showing pride and passion for public service, creating an inclusive and motivating environment, leading by example, and engaging people in a shared vision.

What are the key actions of the 'Leadership' behaviour?

Promoting an inclusive culture, leading by example with integrity, communicating a clear vision and purpose, motivating and empowering teams, valuing diversity, and taking visible responsibility for outcomes and standards.

Which strengths align with the 'Leadership' behaviour?

Strengths such as Leader, Motivator, Inspirer, Mission, Inclusive, and Integrity. These reflect a natural drive to guide, energise and align people toward shared goals.

How can a single behaviour be supported by multiple underlying strengths?

Each behaviour describes required actions, but people can deliver those actions through different combinations of strengths. For example, 'Communicating and Influencing' might be powered by an Explainer strength in one person and a Persuasion/Influence strength in another.

In a strengths-based Civil Service interview, what kind of questions are asked compared with a behaviour-based interview?

Strengths-based questions explore what you enjoy, what energises you, and what you do well and often (e.g. 'What do you find yourself doing well at work?'), whereas behaviour-based questions ask for specific past examples (e.g. 'Tell me about a time you...').

What does it mean if a Civil Service candidate shows a 'learned behaviour' rather than a strength?

A learned behaviour is something a person can do competently but does not naturally enjoy or feel energised by. They perform it well through effort, but it may drain rather than motivate them, making it less sustainable than a true strength.

How does the strengths concept of 'realised' versus 'unrealised' strengths apply in the Civil Service?

Realised strengths are ones you use often and are recognised for; unrealised strengths are ones you are good at and energised by but use less frequently. Identifying unrealised strengths highlights development and deployment opportunities.

For each Civil Service Behaviour, how are candidates typically scored at interview?

Each behaviour example is usually rated against the relevant level descriptor on a numeric scale (commonly 1-7, where 7 is outstanding and 1 is no evidence). Scores across behaviours and strengths are combined to assess suitability.

Why are strengths often assessed faster and less rehearsably than behaviours?

Strengths questions are asked rapidly and probe authentic, instinctive responses about energy and enjoyment, so they are harder to pre-prepare or fake. Behaviour questions rely on rehearsed STAR examples, which can be more easily prepared in advance.