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Administrative Officer 2017 Campaign

The_Conductor

New 2017 Campaign Announced this morning
Advertisement here

Closing date for applications is the 19th of October.

Best of good luck everyone!

Edit: Familiarisation / information booklet attached

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donkey_kong

Shopassistant wrote: »

Hi all. I was wondering if someone could help me with a question I have about the assessment centre for this year's AO competition. Is the assessment centre basically just retaking the online tests but in a controlled environment? Is there an interview alongside the test taking or is that the next stage of the competition? TIA.

For the 2016 competition, the assessment centre comprised retaking the tests in a supervised room + an additional test in situational judgement, a presentation exercise, and a competency-based interview, all on the same day. Those who passed all segments of the assessment centre were then put onto a panel ranked on order of merit.

Kamu

Hi everyone, when do they, if at all, take in consideration your application form? during the interview?
Also,
Should I bring a C.V. if I make it to the interview section? as I completed a Masters in September, technically I have only been working a month according to the application, though I've nearly 8 years of work experience that I mentioned in the extra section.

Australia33

Local Government Graduate Programme 2017

Section B Application Form

'Please give a brief outline that demonstrates your capacity in any skill area(s) you wish to be considered for.'

I wish to apply for all key skiils and mentioned this at the top of the page. So far I have given a brief outline of my capacity of each area I am applying for and I have listed down each of the competancies and given one / two examples for each of these competencies.

My question is should I list competencies here? and if so what information are they then looking for in the supplementary information section?

Thanks

job seeker

Riskymove wrote: »

Just to add there is also a seperate campaign at AO level for Graduate Economists/EValuators launched today

https://www.publicjobs.ie/publicjobs/campaignAdvert/61531.htm

I applied for this, but I just don't think my degree and work experience qualifies me. So, I'm not holding my breath..

jano1

Hi,

The closing date for this competition was today Thursday 19th Oct at 3pm yet when I tried to apply yesterday Wed 18th, the application could not be made as it stated "this job is not available or the closing date has passed". I emailed graduaterecruitment2017@publicjobs.ie but still have had no replied! Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance

Conqueror

Try this link? https://www.publicjobs.ie/publicjobs/campaignAdvert/61255.htm

Closing date has been extended until Monday.

jano1

Thanks so much - I see that now

busy1975

Does anyone know why the salary for an AO is starting point of circa €48k for working in an ETB and in other gov dept starts at circa €31k....

Sparks15

busy1975 wrote: »

Does anyone know why the salary for an AO is starting point of circa €48k for working in an ETB and in other gov dept starts at circa €31k....

My understanding is that it’s:
Same jobs title, however this competition is for AOs in the civil service which a graduate entry role where you 'work your way up', hence it’s probably the reason for lower salary range. The AO payscale for civil servants applies in this case. The AO role in the civil service stereotypically has little, if any, staff management skills. It has been typically more of a policy/research role.

AO in ETB is a middle management role in the public sector. Public sector payscale applies (Local authorities, ETBs [formerly VECs]). The person would be assigned responsibility for the management of one or more sections within a Department.

The_Conductor

Guys- anyone who has been dithering about getting those application forms in- the deadline was extended to 12 noon on Monday the 23rd of September- so you have the weekend to fill out the form........ So guys- 12 noon on Monday..........!!!!

Red Wolf

Graduate Opportunities 2017
Please be advised that the deadline to apply for AO Civil Service, AO IGEES and Graduate Opportunities
in Local Government has been extended to[/B]3pm Monday 23rd October 2017[/B]

rostalof

Sparks15 wrote: »

My understanding is that it’s:
Same jobs title, however this competition is for AOs in the civil service which a graduate entry role where you 'work your way up', hence it’s probably the reason for lower salary range. The AO payscale for civil servants applies in this case. The AO role in the civil service stereotypically has little, if any, staff management skills. It has been typically more of a policy/research role.

AO in ETB is a middle management role in the public sector. Public sector payscale applies (Local authorities, ETBs [formerly VECs]). The person would be assigned responsibility for the management of one or more sections within a Department.

You're right, they may use the same title, but one is civil service the other is public service, two totally different animals. Public servants generally have higher leave entitlements than their roughly equivalent grade civil service counterparts. But, in the case of local authorities, flexi leave entitlements are quite a bit less.

The_Conductor

rostalof wrote: »

You're right, they may use the same title, but one is civil service the other is public service, two totally different animals. Public servants generally have higher leave entitlements than their roughly equivalent grade civil service counterparts. But, in the case of local authorities, flexi leave entitlements are quite a bit less.

The extra leave entitlements are a bit of an animal in their own right.
Traditionally (read 'in the midst of time') staff in the public sector didn't work holy days- whereas civil servants did (with the exception of Good Friday). When someone made a deal with the public sector that they would forthwith work holy days- it was agreed the days would be converted into annual leave for the public sector- however, the civil service worked the days anyway- so they got no extra leave. So a public sector equivalent grade- gets 4-5 days more leave than their civil service counterparts.

I wish I was joking about the above- but I'm not...........

galgal07

Silly question but do we sign the form and upload a scanned copy? The form states "Before you return the form to the Public Appointments Service please ensure that you have completed all sections of it and that you have signed the declaration below"

The_Conductor

galgal07 wrote: »

Silly question but do we sign the form and upload a scanned copy? The form states "Before you return the form to the Public Appointments Service please ensure that you have completed all sections of it and that you have signed the declaration below"

Put a tick in the box, type your name in, add the date you completed it- and submit. I don't think they are expecting people to scan in the form etc- seems a bit extreme.........

beauf

The_Conductor wrote: »

Put a tick in the box, type your name in, add the date you completed it- and submit. I don't think they are expecting people to scan in the form etc- seems a bit extreme.........

Its HR roulette. Ours does the same. Sometimes they want a manual sig, sometimes they want and electronic form, but still leave the manual sig section.

Mr_Muffin

Are these positions 'easy' in the sense that they are public sector jobs? I know a few people/relatives who are currently or have worked in the public sector and the general consensus is that they were never worked to hard - although none were working in this position.

I don't mean this as a jab at this position or any other in the public sector, I'm just asking out of curiosity.

The_Conductor

Mr_Muffin wrote: »

Are these positions 'easy' in the sense that they are public sector jobs? I know a few people/relatives who are currently or have worked in the public sector and the general consensus is that they were never worked to hard - although none were working in this position.

I don't mean this as a jab at this position or any other in the public sector, I'm just asking out of curiosity.

Mr_Muffin- you may not mean it 'as a jab at this position'- however, that is, to put it mildly, exactly what your question is.

The answer is- the nature of the post will depend entirely on the Department/Division/Section you find yourself in. You cannot assume that if one AO is worked to the bone in a post- that it is similar elsewhere- or vice versa- if an AO in a particular post has a relatively easy time (as you put it)- it is not a fair or reasonable assumption that its similar elsewhere.

AO is a junior/middle management post- and should be viewed in this light.
You will get some Departments/Divisions- where you could on occasion have a very considerable work load- and on other occasions a not so heavy work load. Think of DPER in the run-up to budget time- for example (that's an obvious one)- but so too- AOs in the Houses of the Oireachtas (who technically aren't civil servants)- who might have very busy schedules at particular times.

When specific programmes/schemes come up- its not unusual for EOs/HEOs/AOs/APs to do 12-14 hour days- to get over specific hurdles- or urgent matters can arise (including at weekends)- with no warning- its part of the job- and it depends on where you end up.

I'm not trying to be mean to you- but any prospective AO should expect to have a reasonable workload- and also- that could be asked to do overtime etc- on occasion (as opposed to on a regular basis) as matters or business needs arise.

Its not terribly unusual to get a phone call on a Sat/Sun- giving you 24 hours notice to catch a flight to council working groups in Brussels etc- that's just an example- it depends on where you end up- and the nature of the post you're in.

svei

The_Conductor wrote: »

Mr_Muffin- you may not mean it 'as a jab at this position'- however, that is, to put it mildly, exactly what your question is.

The answer is- the nature of the post will depend entirely on the Department/Division/Section you find yourself in. You cannot assume that if one AO is worked to the bone in a post- that it is similar elsewhere- or vice versa- if an AO in a particular post has a relatively easy time (as you put it)- it is not a fair or reasonable assumption that its similar elsewhere.

AO is a junior/middle management post- and should be viewed in this light.
You will get some Departments/Divisions- where you could on occasion have a very considerable work load- and on other occasions a not so heavy work load. Think of DPER in the run-up to budget time- for example (that's an obvious one)- but so too- AOs in the Houses of the Oireachtas (who technically aren't civil servants)- who might have very busy schedules at particular times.

When specific programmes/schemes come up- its not unusual for EOs/HEOs/AOs/APs to do 12-14 hour days- to get over specific hurdles- or urgent matters can arise (including at weekends)- with no warning- its part of the job- and it depends on where you end up.

I'm not trying to be mean to you- but any prospective AO should expect to have a reasonable workload- and also- that could be asked to do overtime etc- on occasion (as opposed to on a regular basis) as matters or business needs arise.

Its not terribly unusual to get a phone call on a Sat/Sun- giving you 24 hours notice to catch a flight to council working groups in Brussels etc- that's just an example- it depends on where you end up- and the nature of the post you're in.

I completely agree with the Conductor, it totally depends on which department you end up in but you also have to remember that this is a management role and there will be pressure. I am currently an AO (came in on the 2016 panel) and I find it a very stressful position. I am leaving for commuting reasons, not because of the role, but if anybody thinks this is a "cushy number" they should look somewhere else for work. Some of my fellow AO's fly to Brussels on a regular basis, others have had 12-14 hour days (as the Conductor said) because of the budget or other deadlines. I am not too bad where I am as my AP understands that I have a very long commute and I have to get the bus, but when PQs come in that understanding flies out the window and the job has to get done.

Also, lots of people don't know this but you have to do the AO graduate programme during your first year which consists of x amount of days training which means your own work is piling up. You will also have to do a cross-departmental project (unless they change the format for this year) which will also take up some of your time.

One of my colleagues in my AO graduate programme has 8 staff reporting to her. Now, that is very unusual as AOs very often don't have staff, but it just shows how varied the role can be.

Mr_Muffin

The_Conductor & svei, thank you for your informative answers.

I think you have both answered my question.

Mister R

Agree with what is mentioned above, depending on Dept and section some AOs can have an enormous work load, some departments treat it as a catch all grade that can fulfill roles from clerical work one day, to policy analysis the next day. Even within departments the workload can vary a lot depending on section, some AOs can do 9-5 every day whereas others may have more erratic workloads. Some other areas it can be feast or famine, intense weeks and then dead periods.

As mentioned above some AOs are in Brussels every two weeks or so, having spoken to them it can become a real drag.

In many ways it can give you more exposure to things you wouldnt face in private sector (due to understaffing rather than any desire on Departments to give you this exposure) but it can also be very draining mentally. In my own role I go to things nobody at a grad entry level would be sent to from private sector, this has both positives and negatives. Though on the other hand some AOs have very internal type roles and wouldn't experience what I do either. So it is very varied.

CMR23

Hey just a question.. for those in the CS .. I know if accepted and offered position one cannot choose their department.. but just for fun and curiousity sake .. I would love to know what are the "best" departments one can hope to be placed in? Which is least favourite among current CS? Obviously it's all subjective, I understand that, but even just as a general overview .. I heard DSP is very difficult to move up in and Revenue is usually a very taxing post (no pun intended, haha well maybe) Also which depts generally involve loads of travel and which tend to be more 9-5 styling?

daithi84

svei wrote: »

You will also have to do a cross-departmental project (unless they change the format for this year) which will also take up some of your time.

Can you elaborate more on this. What does this entail.

svei

daithi84 wrote: »

Can you elaborate more on this. What does this entail.

You do a group project with other AOs from other departments. We had to find our own sponsor and come up with the topic ourselves (based on themes for government). The aim is to do a memorandum for government and you will present your project to the rest of your cohort of the AO graduate programme. The top projects get chosen for a further presentation and the winner gets a prize. Last year's winners got a day in the Curragh (I think). You are meant to spend 2 hours a week on this.

SFC1895

daithi84 wrote: »

Can you elaborate more on this. What does this entail.

As part of project management and development, you are split into groups of 6-7 people (from a varierty of Depts) whereby you initiate and develop a policy proposal over the course of 7-8 months. The policy is then presented to a cohort of senior civil servants for evaluation.

Mister R

CMReilly wrote: »

Hey just a question.. for those in the CS .. I know if accepted and offered position one cannot choose their department.. but just for fun and curiousity sake .. I would love to know what are the "best" departments one can hope to be placed in? Which is least favourite among current CS? Obviously it's all subjective, I understand that, but even just as a general overview .. I heard DSP is very difficult to move up in and Revenue is usually a very taxing post (no pun intended, haha well maybe) Also which depts generally involve loads of travel and which tend to be more 9-5 styling?

I believe in terms of moving up the grades DPER is quite good for internal promotion competitions, I'm told they have quite a few. Given they come up with CS renewal and all they're probably one of the more modern departments in terms of culture, don't work there though so just speculating from what I've seen from a distance.

Kamu

Got a message from PublicJobs today about the online assessments.
It's happening now, looking forward to it now!

Zoot1530

Any idea of numbers who applied for this campaign

The_Conductor

Zoot1530 wrote: »

Any idea of numbers who applied for this campaign

It comes under the 'bulk recruitment' team- however, I strongly suspect the numbers may be as low as half last year's level.

There seem to have been a few interesting twists and turns with external and internal competitions in the last few months- including but not limited to- reopening some confined panels- and, unless I'm greatly mistaken, reinterviewing some borderline candidates who just didn't quite make the cut at interview last time around. Of course- PAS will never admit/elaborate on this..........

job seeker

The_Conductor wrote: »

It comes under the 'bulk recruitment' team- however, I strongly suspect the numbers may be as low as half last year's level.

There seem to have been a few interesting twists and turns with external and internal competitions in the last few months- including but not limited to- reopening some confined panels- and, unless I'm greatly mistaken, reinterviewing some borderline candidates who just didn't quite make the cut at interview last time around. Of course- PAS will never admit/elaborate on this..........

Out of interest, where did you read that?