I've been a Civil Servant for 34 years, starting as an AO in what was DHSS, processing benefit claims. This was a real baptism of fire, dealing with desperate people and desperate situations and exposed me to parts of the population that were a long way from my life. I learned good people skills from this and a real focus on how important good customer service is-doing what you say you will and still having to deliver even when things are difficult or unpopular. This gave me a good grounding for moving onto National Insurance in a compliance role for business and individuals. HMRC merged in 1999 with NI and that was the start of my accidental career. I'm proud to have worked my way up from the bottom as I believe it made me who I am. Whilst no against direct entrance programmes, gaining experience within different grades and roles creates a rounded person.

Career progression requires effort - expressing a wish to advance ones' career is the bare minimum; however, you have to do all the groundwork, the homework and make all the effort that comes with it - make friends, link with people, search for contacts, browse opportunities, keep applying, find a mentor, volunteer for even the most mundane activities - you never know whom you're going to meet. Learn the Civil Service job application process and practice it, tailoring the applications to each role - and foremost: read the job ad thoroughly, this will help you avoid disappointment further down the line.

I really believe that if you work hard and give your very best in your career path then you will succeed in the role you want to get to. I took every opportunity in my career to develop my skills and learn new skills which helped me to progress in my career.