Government pitch and selection criteria guide

01

Treat instructions as an assessment criterion

Page limits, file requirements, referee instructions and closing times are not administrative trivia. Following them demonstrates judgement and attention to detail. Government processes vary by jurisdiction and vacancy, so never assume the format from a previous application.

• Document type and page limit
• Capabilities or criteria assessed
• Required attachments
• Referee and eligibility conditions
• Closing date, time and timezone

02

Identify the role’s real problems

Read the duties, capability framework and organisational context together. Group repeated requirements into three or four themes. A typical EA pitch may need to prove priority judgement, written quality, stakeholder confidence and integrity.

03

Use compressed evidence

A pitch is not a sequence of full-length STAR answers. Establish context quickly, spend most words on your actions and close with the result and relevance. The selection panel must be able to find the evidence without decoding it.

• Situation: only enough context to understand the risk
• Task: your responsibility
• Action: decisions and behaviours you personally demonstrated
• Result: outcome, feedback, risk reduced or deadline met
• Relevance: why it predicts success in this vacancy

04

Write for merit assessment

Panels can assess only the evidence available. Avoid “I am an excellent communicator” unless the next sentence proves it. Use active language that distinguishes your actions from the team’s work.