DWP Recruiting Again - 2012

mommarat

northerntake wrote: »

Yes it will be interesting,to see how many get promoted.At least if its not many the AO backfill exercise should nt take long.Then WE will be asked to train them along side helping the new EO's.

That's what gets to me. Not competent for the job but competent enough to train new staff. Don't think I will bother

emmapearson

Lorac05 wrote: »

As you have an interview is it worth the effort to complain? You won't get another interview with West of Scotland as your Glasgow one covers all areas you applied to. I suspect the 5x2's are the same as the 5x1's a lot of people are getting in England - removing you from the sift process in West of Scotland as you qualified under Glasgow. Call the recruitment help line and let them know your issues - they will then - if you still want to complain - provide an e-mail address specifically for complaints.

Not sure what you mean about Glasgow one covering all areas i applied to? I work in West of Scotland so would like the opportunity to get interview there as I know the areas we cover but also Glasgow is close. What I disagree with is the obvious difference in the same compentency statements.

Janabiyah-Jane

northerntake wrote: »

I dont mean competencies in general , I mean using examples of things you have done whilst employed by DWP.

I get the impression we may have been marked down using competencies to do with job roles in DWP.

2 of my lowest scored competencies were on the only 2 where I used my previous job when band c at JCP... so you could have something there.

newbyteacher

With regards making a complaint regarding the competency scores people have received, you basically can't. I have received an email stating this, however if you feel the handling of the process has been mismanaged then you can. This is for both for external and internal candidates. I am dismayed at the the way the whole exercise has been processed, to say it has been run by the DEPARTMENT FOR WORK and pensions!! I have applied I am currently a FTA as a AO. I am still waiting to hear if I have a job come April. I really enjoy my work but at the moment I am feeling really fed up about the whole situation. Good luck to all of you who have got interviews.

Holly37

Still waiting to find out if Iv'e been selected for interview..This process is taking such a long time

Will there be another test to pass if we are selected for interview?? How many hurdles do we have to jump - we will probably end up being interviewed by Lord Sugar's recruitment team ! :rotfl:

TC54

Janabiyah-Jane wrote: »

2 of my lowest scored competencies were on the only 2 where I used my previous job when band c at JCP... so you could have something there.

Yes, the ones I put DWP experience were 1 point lower

gvw121

Can't see anything in London for working for DWP. Maybe I saw this to late..

mommarat

newbyteacher wrote: »

With regards making a complaint regarding the competency scores people have received, you basically can't. I have received an email stating this, however if you feel the handling of the process has been mismanaged then you can. This is for both for external and internal candidates. I am dismayed at the the way the whole exercise has been processed, to say it has been run by the DEPARTMENT FOR WORK and pensions!! I have applied I am currently a FTA as a AO. I am still waiting to hear if I have a job come April. I really enjoy my work but at the moment I am feeling really fed up about the whole situation. Good luck to all of you who have got interviews.

Hi. They have given an email address on the helpline if you are not happy with your comp scores because of all the inconsistancies.

Lorac05

emmapearson wrote: »

Not sure what you mean about Glasgow one covering all areas i applied to? I work in West of Scotland so would like the opportunity to get interview there as I know the areas we cover but also Glasgow is close. What I disagree with is the obvious difference in the same compentency statements.

The way I understand the procedure is that if you put in multiple applications and get an interview offered you in one area then you will not be invited for interviews in any other areas - your results from the interview will be propogated to the other areas. What I was told is that only your 'home' areas should be sifting your competency scores (though this seems to be a relatively new occurrance) and that other areas will refer to these results. Though the way they have gone about that is pretty inconsistent and farcical to say the least.

I agree that the 5 2's is way down on your Glasgow scores but I was wondering if the West of Scotland knows you have an interview in Glasgow and so they don't sift your scores and have given you all 2's as default to remove you from their sift group? Call the recruitment help line and ask them - I had to do that when my B'ham scores were changed from 7's and 6's to 1's as Staffs and Shrops is my 'home' area and they will be marking my competencies. To say I was not happy would be an understatement and they gave me an e-mail address to contact with a complaint on the scoring system. And I am still waiting for scores from Staffs/Shrops to determine if I even get offered an interview!!

SmithsoniusUK

northerntake wrote: »

I dont mean competencies in general , I mean using examples of things you have done whilst employed by DWP.

I get the impression we may have been marked down using competencies to do with job roles in DWP.

I did an extra module in career and development in my last year at uni (graduated last year) which was taught by a man who worked in HR for different large businesses and he stated that when sifting through applicants, if their competencies lacked diversity, then they were usually put to the bottom of the pile if not sifted out altogether on the basis that it indicated either a lack of wider or long term personal development or a lack of imagination/thought in terms of how their actions outside of say work/education impacted on others.

Originally it was ok to use just a single reference point such as work, but now that there are more and more people entering work without prior experience, it has become more focused on diversifying your choices to show not only how you have performed in the past but also give an indicator of the kind of person you are.

For example, say you have two applicants. One whose competencies are solely based around work experience in one job (such as the DWP) that no doubt meet some/all of the criteria. Then you have another who may not have had as much work experience due to unemployment/age/being in education, but has competencies that cover a range of activities, say part time/temp work as well as voluntary work, community engagement and university/extra curricular learning or development that show they also meet the criteria through a range of other activities.

It may not be right or fair, but the applicant who shows diversity in their competency choices seem to increasingly be doing better in the sifts, not just in this case. I think it is due to the fact that HR can get a better idea of the kind of person you are as well as your performance potential in the job.

If you had to short list one of those two candidates would you choose the one who had written about how they met the criteria in a job they had been doing for many years yet had not showed anything that indicated personal development or who they are, or would you choose the other candidate who had met the exact same criteria, even if not in a work setting, but had also shown that they were interested in personal development that was not mandatory, engages in their community and as a result gives an indication as to who they may be in addition to what they can do?

A bit long winded but that's the direction competency usage seems to be heading in now. My lecturers, HR people and most recently the jobcentre have all said this about competencies, that they should focus on an event in a setting be it work/education/community but that between competencies, they should be diverse in their settings so a couple competencies in work settings, a couple in university and one in an education setting say.

At least that's what I've been told the last few years now, I'm just trying to make the effort to keep a constant eye out for suitable volunteer/community work and education opportunities to flesh out what I can say when it comes to competencies and what to put on the CV. It's no wonder it's so hard to get a decent job these days!