Circular No 2005/6: Improving Senior Executive Service selection processes

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This circular advises of some changes to be applied to selection arrangements for Senior Executive Service (SES) employment.

Public Service Commissioner’s representative

2. Under existing arrangements, the Public Service Commissioner’s representative in the selection process, who is a full member of the selection committee, must be from an agency outside the portfolio in which the employment opportunity exists. The Public Service Commissioner’s representative has an important role in SES selection exercises, including ensuring recruitment and promotion decisions are not taken in isolation, but rather in the context of APS-wide management objectives for the SES. The Public Service Commissioner’s representative is also the key protector of the merit principle, one of the APS Values. In that regard, it is clearly important that the Public Service Commissioner’s representative take an active part on all stages of the process, including shortlisting.

3. For many years it has been accepted practice that selection committees should include at least one member at a classification substantively higher than the level of the employment opportunity being advertised.

4. In order to ensure that the best possible outcomes are achieved in SES selection exercises, the Public Service Commissioner has decided that her representative on all SES selection processes must be at a classification level substantively higher than the one being advertised. In addition, as a general guide, it is also the Public Service Commissioner’s view that it is preferable that all members of selection committees should also be at a substantively higher classification than that being advertised.

5. The effect of these new arrangements is represented in the table below:

Level of advertised duties	Level of Commissioner’s Representative
Senior Executive Band 1	Senior Executive Band 2
Senior Executive Band 2	Senior Executive Band 3
Senior Executive Band 3	Secretary (or, in some circumstances, other agency heads may be agreed)

6. The Public Service Commissioner expects these requirements to be satisfied in all but a small number of cases where it proves impossible to locate a suitable person at the appropriate level, perhaps due to timing and location factors. It is important to remember that the Public Service Commissioner’s representative, as well as certifying that the selection process complied with all relevant requirements of the Public Service Act 1999 and the Public Service Commissioner’s Directions 1999, is in all respects a full and equal member of the selection committee whose views must be taken fully into account.

7. In all cases, agencies should ensure that they have the Public Service Commissioner’s agreement to the proposed representative before proceeding with the selection exercise. As well as ensuring that the proposed representative is acceptable, this also provides the Australian Public Service Commission with the opportunity to write to the chair and representative explaining important aspects of the process, including the requirement for the Commissioner’s representative to certify that the selection process has complied with the requirements of the Public Service Act 1999.

Quality of SES fields of applicants

8. It is important that SES employment opportunities attract high quality fields that will provide the best opportunity to select individuals with the high level leadership and management skills required at SES level. To address this, the Public Service Commissioner will ask each of her representatives to consider carefully the quality of the field of applicants in the selection exercise concerned. Where representatives regard the quality of the field as below an acceptable standard, the Public Service Commissioner will expect them to contact her or the Deputy Public Service Commissioner directly to discuss the situation. Depending on the outcome of such a discussion, the Public Service Commissioner or her Deputy may contact the relevant agency head to discuss options, including measures that might assist in strengthening the field, or whether it might be preferable to readvertise the employment opportunity.

9. It is therefore important that agency heads are kept informed on the quality of fields attracted to advertised SES employment opportunities. Where they too are not satisfied with the overall quality of the field, measures should be considered to strengthen it, including readvertising and executive search options.

Further Information

10. Further information on the matters raised in this circular is available from the APS Commission’s Employment Policy Adviceline—by phone on (02) 6202 3859 or e-mail employmentadvice@apsc.gov.au. It may be appropriate for more complex or sensitive queries to be dealt with in writing.

Ngaire Hosking
Acting Group Manager
Policy Group

19 December 2005