Civil Service Making Effective Decisions Behaviour Guide
Making Effective Decisions is about how you reach a judgement and show your working. Panels score your reasoning, the information you used, the people you involved and how you handled the consequences, not just the outcome. This guide explains what it asks for, how the expectation changes across every grade from AA to Director General, what strong evidence looks like, the mistakes that lose marks, and how to use STARR and how strengths relate to it.
What does Making Effective Decisions really ask for?
It asks you to make sound, fair and timely decisions based on good information, and to explain them. The descriptors keep mentioning checking information, asking for advice, weighing options, costs and risks, and the diverse needs of the people affected.
It is also about knowing which decisions are yours. At higher grades that includes deciding at the right level and inviting challenge.
How does the expectation change from AA to Director General?
Paraphrasing the official Cabinet Office wording, the main shifts are these.
- AA and AO. Use guidance, analyse relevant information and ask colleagues for input, deal with errors or gaps before deciding, consider the needs of those affected, and ask for clarification when a decision is unclear.
- EO. Take responsibility for fair and timely decisions, research further information, seek advice when unsure, explain how you reached the decision, and consider options, costs, risks and wider implications including accessibility.
- HEO and SEO. Empower others to decide where appropriate, draw on credible internal and external information, invite challenge, show confidence in difficult decisions, consult on the impact on end users, and present timely recommendations covering options, costs, benefits and risks.
- Grade 7 and Grade 6. Clarify stakeholder expectations, make sure decisions happen at the right level without needless bureaucracy, welcome challenge, interpret data from various sources, identify the positives, negatives and risks of each option, and reach reasonable conclusions from complex, incomplete evidence.
- Deputy Director (SCS1). Make bold, unbiased strategic decisions, make sense of political and national pressures to develop strategies, communicate the reasons for decisions clearly, consult so decisions meet diverse needs, respond constructively to challenge, and recommend the best option with its risks and impacts.
- Director and Director General (SCS2 and SCS3). Develop departmental or functional strategies amid national and international pressures, mitigate evaluated risks, be transparent and welcome challenge, give unbiased evidence-led advice to Ministers, make unpopular decisions and defend them at the highest level, and engage the right stakeholders early.
Scope and uncertainty grow as grades rise, so choose an example that matches the wording for your target grade.
What does strong written evidence look like?
Strong evidence is specific about the decision, your reasoning and the result. The examples below are invented illustrations, not templates.
Example at EO. "I had to decide whether to accept a late grant claim from a small charity. Guidance allowed discretion but did not cover this case. I checked scheme rules and past cases, asked a senior colleague about a similar claim, and confirmed with IT that our own outage caused the delay. I accepted the claim and noted on the file the cost, the precedent risk and fairness to other claimants, and flagged the outage so other late claims were handled consistently. The charity was paid."
Example at Grade 7. "Six weeks before a funding decision, survey data suggested a pilot was working while administrative data showed flat uptake. I asked analysts to reconcile the two and found the survey over represented one region. I recommended ending the pilot in two regions and extending it in one, set out options, costs and the remaining evidence gaps, and proposed a review point. I met partners who objected to explain the evidence. The director accepted the recommendation."
Example at Director (invented and illustrative). "Ministers wanted a quick announcement on a new inspection regime, but my analysis showed two of three options would worsen regional delays. I consulted regional leaders and user groups, then advised the Minister on the options, risks and evidence limits, recommending a phased approach I knew would disappoint their office. I explained my reasoning openly to my board and invited challenge. The Minister adopted the phased option."
What mistakes lose marks?
- Right behaviour at the wrong level. Evidence that suits Grade 7 can look thin against the Director wording, so check it against your target grade.
- Team actions instead of your own. "We decided to pause the project" hides your reasoning.
- Duties instead of outcomes. "I make decisions about casework every day" describes a job. Pick one decision.
- Outcome without reasoning. A good result with no options or risks gives the panel nothing to score.
- Forgetting the people affected. Most descriptors mention end users, so show you considered them.
How do you evidence it with STARR?
Use the Situation to explain what had to be decided and why it was difficult. In the Task, make clear the decision or recommendation was yours. Spend most of the answer on Action, where your reasoning shows. The Result should say what happened.
Reflection, the second R, is expected from SEO upwards. Below that it is optional but can strengthen an answer if genuine. At interview, a behaviour answer runs around five minutes spoken, so choose one example you can tell clearly in that time.
How do strengths relate to this behaviour?
Strengths are a separate part of Success Profiles. Some sit close to this behaviour, such as Analytical, which is seeking evidence before drawing conclusions, and Decisive, which is making clear decisions without excessive deliberation.
Strengths are not named in adverts and are assessed mainly at interview. Answer them quickly and naturally from real moments.
Where Koda fits
Koda helps you apply this to your own experience. It works from your real evidence and matches it to the role and grade, with nothing invented, and you stay in control of every word.
Frequently asked questions
Does the decision have to have turned out well?›
No. Panels score your reasoning, the information you used and how you handled the consequences. A decision with a mixed outcome can be strong evidence if you explain your process honestly and show what you learned.
How do I show a decision when most of my work follows guidance?›
Choose a moment when the guidance was unclear, information was missing or you had to weigh competing needs. At AA, AO and EO the descriptors value checking information, asking for advice and explaining your reasoning, so a careful judgement within the rules counts.
What if I only made a recommendation and someone else decided?›
That is valid evidence, especially at HEO and SEO, where the descriptors ask for strong recommendations covering options, costs, benefits and risks. Be clear about your own part and what your analysis contributed to the final decision.
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Official framework reference: Success Profiles on GOV.UK. Grade requirements and processes vary by campaign, so always follow the specific vacancy advert.