The APS Recruitment Game: A Practical Guide to Sharpen Your Strategy, Learn the Rules, and Progress Your Public Service Career

The APS Recruitment Game is a practical and strategic guide for anyone navigating recruitment in the Australian Public Service. It is written for people who are tired of putting in significant effort without getting traction and who want a clearer, more effective way to approach applications and interviews.

APS recruitment often feels opaque and inconsistent. You can meet the requirements, submit a strong application, and still fall short without understanding why. This book introduces a different way of thinking about recruitment. It positions the process as a game that can be understood, learned and played with intent. Once you understand how the game works, your approach becomes more focused, your examples become sharper, and your confidence grows.

Drawing on years of experience working in and alongside the APS, Brendon Le Lievre provides a detailed look at how recruitment decisions are made. He brings insight from chairing panels, supporting hiring managers as an external scribe in more than 300 interviews and coaching APS to SES level staff to successful recruitment outcomes. This perspective offers a clear view of what panels are looking for, how evidence is assessed, and why some candidates progress while others do not.

The book combines this behind the scenes understanding with practical guidance that you can apply immediately. It focuses on helping you move from guesswork to strategy, so each step in the recruitment process is deliberate and aligned to the role you are targeting.

Inside, you will learn how to:

• Clarify your career direction and target roles that align with your experience, strengths and aspirations
• Explore how to respond to selection criteria and pitches with clear, relevant and evidence based examples
• Translate your experience into strong, structured responses that demonstrate capability at the right level
• Prepare for interviews with a clear plan, including how to manage nerves and maintain presence under pressure
• Recognise how panels evaluate candidates and what influences their decisions in real time
• Avoid common mistakes that limit otherwise strong candidates
• Build a repeatable and sustainable approach that you can use across multiple applications

The guidance in this book reflects the reality of APS recruitment. It acknowledges the pressure, the uncertainty and the high stakes involved, while offering a calm and practical way forward. It is grounded in the belief that candidates perform best when they understand what is required and can present their experience with clarity and structure.

Whether you are applying for your first APS role, working towards promotion, or preparing for senior leadership opportunities, The APS Recruitment Game provides the tools, language and confidence to approach recruitment with purpose. It helps you step into each stage of the process with a clear plan and a stronger sense of control.

While the focus is on the APS, the principles extend to broader public sector and professional recruitment contexts. Structured selection processes share common foundations, and the strategies in this book can be applied wherever roles are assessed against defined capabilities and criteria.

If you want to stop guessing, strengthen your approach, and give yourself the best possible chance of success, this book will show you how to play the game with clarity and confidence.