Civil Service Leadership Example at HEO Grade
A worked STAR example for the Leadership behaviour at HEO grade, showing ownership of a workstream and influencing colleagues.
**TL;DR.** At HEO grade, Leadership is about independently leading a defined piece of work and influencing colleagues beyond your immediate team. Assessors look for judgement in ambiguity, measurable outcomes, and evidence of personal accountability.
Worked HEO Leadership example (250 words)
*As an HEO I was asked to lead my team's input into a cross-department review of casework standards. I was the most junior lead on a working group chaired by a Grade 7 from the Cabinet Office. I drafted my team's contribution by first consulting all six caseworkers on their observed issues, producing a prioritised list of four proposals, and defending the list at the working group. Two of my four proposals were challenged — one from a peer team who disagreed with the detail and one from the Grade 7 who questioned the evidence. I arranged a one-to-one with the peer team lead to understand the objection, refined the proposal in light of their concerns, and submitted additional supporting data to the Grade 7. All four proposals were eventually adopted in the working group's final recommendations. My line manager subsequently asked me to lead the implementation of two of the recommendations across our team. This evidences HEO Leadership: leading a substantive piece of work independently, influencing colleagues and seniors, and taking personal responsibility for the outcome.*
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Frequently asked questions
What is HEO Leadership in the Civil Service Success Profiles?
At HEO, Leadership is about independently leading a piece of work end to end, influencing colleagues beyond your immediate team, and taking personal accountability for the outcome. It is a step up from EO-scope informal leadership.
How do I evidence HEO Leadership without direct reports?
Describe leading a workstream, chairing a working group, leading a project, or representing your team at a cross-team forum. Formal line management is not required at HEO — what matters is leading work and influencing decisions.