A

Awareness ?Learn more about skills levels

As you move into the SCS, there is an expectation that you already have an awareness of all ODP core skills and therefore the minimum expectation is that you would be at Working Level / Developing Level. 

Recognising that you do not require ‘Awareness’ this is foregone and you progress through the 7 capabilities assessing your current expertise from the minimum expectation for SCS ‘Working’ through to ‘Expert’ level. 

W

Working ?Learn more about skills levels

SCS1: 

• Is adept at positioning issues and asking difficult questions to enable informed judgements protecting service delivery to the customer, balancing different views.
• Has awareness of the impact that decisions have within the organisation and empowers their team to make decisions.

SCS2:

• Manages relationships with key stakeholders within the organisation and outside the scope of their immediate role to support and endorse decisions taken at speed, applying sound judgement to protect the integrity and effectiveness of service delivery and the customer experience. 
• Feeds lessons learned into decision making and builds relevant structures and governance to support a culture of delegated decision making.

SCS3: 

• Ensures efficiencies in ways of working across area of responsibility factoring in potential views from challenging stakeholders, operational delivery colleagues, ministerial input and employee relations when making decision.
• Balances the culture of delegated decision making with their overarching responsibility for reputational and operational impact of decision making on wider government, third sector organisations, customers and colleagues.

P

Practitioner ?Learn more about skills levels

SCS1: 

• Implements timely decisions derived from a range of sources to deliver improved outcomes for the customer, managing expectations as necessary.
• Recognises when information sources are limited and seeks additional perspectives to inform decision making, whilst empowering staff to the deepest level of the organisation.

SCS2:

• Comprehends and anticipates the impact of degradation of service and acts to stop things going wrong, effectively managing the relationship and expectations of Ministers/Perm Secs and other stakeholders when making decisions at pace. Creates systems that factor lessons learned from previous decision making into their design.
• Demonstrates ability to rapidly assess the decision needed, factoring in a large range of information sources while monitoring and pre-empting the impact of decision making across government and beyond. 

SCS3: 

• Holds final accountability for decisions made around area of responsibility whilst balancing effective delegation amongst senior leaders within business area and across other relevant areas of the department connected to their workstream. Takes responsibility for managing senior stakeholders following decision making.
• Mindful of longer-term impacts on customer, government, and country, making quality decisions to increase efficiency. Uses both judgement and knowledge of digital, commercial, policy etc. to inform complex handling of decision making and drive value for money.

E

Expert ?Learn more about skills levels

SCS1: 

• Demonstrates ability to lead through ambiguity and is confident making spend to save decisions impacting service delivery.  Balances advice from experts, opinions and data and recognises the impact of decisions both internally and externally.
• Fosters a culture of empowering staff to make decisions, evidencing high levels of trust for staff to make nuanced decisions and recognising when senior intervention is appropriate.

SCS2:

• Calculates the vast complexities contributing to decision making at this level and factors in potential views from challenging stakeholders, operational delivery colleagues, ministerial input and employee relations when making decision.
• Balances the culture of delegated decision making with their overarching responsibility for reputational and operational impact of decision making on wider government, third sector organisations, customers and colleagues.

SCS3: 

• Holds final accountability for functional, high-quality decision-making. Managing multiple complex issues simultaneously with excellent judgement on when to focus and lean in on issues and when to delegate with the personal resilience to cope well under pressure in rapidly changing environments.
• Actively horizon scans and seeks views and inputs from a wide range of senior stakeholders and the external market at all levels. Maintains a strong mutually respectful relationship with senior stakeholders such as the Cabinet Office, ministers and press office and manages their reactions following difficult decision making.