Civil Service Behaviour: Communicating and Influencing

What the Communicating and Influencing behaviour means

The Civil Service Success Profiles framework describes Communicating and Influencing as communicating in a straightforward, honest and engaging manner and choosing the right method for the audience. Civil Service communication is distinctive in several ways: it must be politically neutral, evidence-based and calibrated to whoever is reading it, from a technical expert to a Secretary of State. It often has to work around sensitivities regarding disclosure, commercial confidentiality or legal constraints. Influencing here usually means persuading without authority, so the case has to be carried by the quality of the argument and the evidence rather than by rank.

What good looks like at each grade

EO / HEO: At EO/HEO level, you communicate clearly and accurately in writing and verbally, tailor your messages to your audience and check for understanding. You present information confidently in team settings and contribute constructively in meetings. You can draft clear, concise emails, briefings or reports at the level required of your role.

SEO: At SEO level, you adapt your communication to a wide range of audiences, including senior officials, external stakeholders and delivery partners. You influence others through well-reasoned argument and evidence, navigate difficult conversations professionally and build credibility through the consistency and quality of your work. You draft ministerial correspondence, briefing notes and policy papers to a high standard.

Grade 7: At Grade 7 and above, you communicate complex or sensitive information confidently to ministers, permanent secretaries and parliamentary select committees. You manage the reputational dimensions of communication, anticipate the reactions of different audiences and deploy strategic influence to advance policy objectives. You coach your team on effective communication and set high standards for written output.

Example interview questions

Success Profiles questions want evidence, not opinion. Every answer needs a real situation underneath it.

• Tell me about a time you had to communicate complex or technical information to a non-specialist audience.
• Give me an example of when you successfully influenced a stakeholder or decision-maker to adopt your recommendation.
• Describe a situation where you tailored your communication style to a particular audience and explain why.
• Tell me about a time you had to deliver an unpopular message or manage a difficult conversation. How did you handle it?
• Give me an example of when your written communication was particularly effective in achieving a desired outcome.

A STAR example answer

Situation: I was an SEO in the Department of Health and Social Care, working on a policy consultation about changes to GP contract arrangements. The proposed changes had generated significant concern from the British Medical Association, and I was leading the stakeholder engagement process to explain the policy rationale and gather feedback before the consultation closed.

Task: I needed to communicate a technically complex policy position clearly to clinicians who were sceptical of the department's intentions, whilst remaining within the boundaries of what the minister had publicly committed to say.

Action: I prepared a briefing pack in plain English, deliberately avoiding bureaucratic language, that set out the problem we were trying to solve, the rationale for the proposed approach and the specific questions we were seeking input on. I organised three regional engagement events and opened each with a short verbal presentation followed by a facilitated Q&A. When questions touched on areas of genuine uncertainty in the policy, I acknowledged that uncertainty openly rather than deflecting. I also provided a dedicated email address for written responses and committed to an acknowledgement turnaround of three working days. After each event, I drafted a concise summary note for the director outlining the key themes, concerns and constructive suggestions that had emerged.

Result: The consultation received over four hundred substantive responses, significantly above the expected volume. The BMA formally acknowledged that the engagement process had been conducted in good faith and agreed to continue constructive dialogue. Two of the key concerns raised at the events, on transition funding and on data-sharing requirements, were incorporated into the final policy proposal, which the minister cited in the written ministerial statement.

Tips for a strong answer

Read these, then say your example out loud and time it. Panels notice the moment an answer starts drifting.

• Say why you picked that method. Why this format, this channel and this much detail for this particular audience?
• Show that you listened and adjusted while it was happening, rather than simply delivering a message at people.
• For a written example, talk about the quality and the impact of the document, not just the fact that you wrote it.
• Be clear and brief in the interview itself. On this behaviour, how you answer is part of the evidence.

Frequently asked questions

What does "influencing without authority" mean in a Civil Service context?

Influencing without authority means getting stakeholders, colleagues or decision-makers to adopt your recommendation on the strength of your argument, your evidence and the credibility you have built with them, rather than by pulling rank. It is a critical skill at every grade in the Civil Service, because most of the people you need are not yours to instruct.

What makes a good Civil Service briefing note?

An effective Civil Service briefing note is concise, structured and action-oriented. It states the issue clearly, provides relevant context, sets out the options with their pros and cons and makes a clear recommendation. Above all it is calibrated to the reader, because a minister's briefing note looks nothing like a technical briefing written for a policy analyst.

How important is written communication in Civil Service roles?

Written communication is critically important across most Civil Service roles. Policy work, stakeholder correspondence, ministerial briefings and parliamentary questions all require clear, accurate and politically sensitive writing. Many Civil Service application processes include a written exercise for this reason, and written examples are often discussed at interview.