The Cabinet Office

Fast Stream Recruitment at the Cabinet Office

In 2003 Parity was awarded the contract to provide candidate administration services for the Civil Service Fast Stream, a training and development programme for high calibre graduates with the potential to reach senior positions.

Parity delivers the Fast Stream recruitment administration programme consisting of a series of challenging tests, including online application and sift test which are delivered via a specially developed Web site, and an invigilated exercise (e-tray) run at Parity centres throughout the United Kingdom.

The recruitment process includes three separate specialist schemes for Economists, Statisticians and GCHQ as well as a single scheme for Central Departments, Science and Engineering, Europe, Diplomatic Service and Clerkships in Parliament. All schemes and sub-options have highly specific entry requirements for recruits. The challenge for Parity is to track and handle up to 30,000 candidates a year.

Parity put in place a dedicated Fast Stream team to provide the administrative services required to support the recruitment programme from end-to-end, delivering marketing material to recruitment fairs and career events; arranging assessment events nationwide and providing scheme statistics.

Parity also took responsibility for booking and paying the assessors on the Cabinet Office panel who work at the assessment centres.

Having taken on the service, Parity worked with the Cabinet Office on the implementation of a redevelopment programme to modernise the recruitment process, to reflect best practice and install new, more focussed, online communication and testing facilities. This has also provided the opportunity to build into the processes and systems the flexibility to allow for future changes to requirements and on-going continuous improvement.

All existing systems were replaced with an integrated candidate website and an administration system based on Microsoft .Net technology providing:

• a clear recruitment path for candidates to follow, variable by scheme and option
• online self assessment, practice and selection test software provided by 3rd parties and integrated by Parity
• online application form completion and submission
• feedback to candidates on their performance as they progress
• a candidate / service team messaging system
• full assessment event management
• management of invigilators, assessors, interviewers for events
• external websites for communication to external resources.

Parity’s development and service teams balance skills from throughout the company, with 10 Fast Stream service delivery specialists, 16 application development staff and 3 managers working fulltime on the Fast Stream programme.

The continually evolving Fast Stream recruitment programme has modernised the recruitment lifecycle for the top graduate jobs in the Civil Service, improving communication and helping to reduce the number of withdrawals during the recruitment process. In addition, by utilising Parity’s nationwide footprint the Cabinet Office has successfully maintained the reach of the programme to ensure it reaches the widest pool of the nation's talent.