Appointment Policy Considerations

Selection and Appointment

In making a decision on selection and appointment, deputy heads may want to consider that:

• Although all of the essential qualifications established for an appointment must be met, only as many of the other merit criteria identified at the outset of an appointment process as are needed to make a selection decision need to be applied.
• Merit criteria may be applied in any order to provide for the efficient management of the appointment process.
• Additional merit criteria should not be added after the advertisement has been made if this would increase the number of potentially qualified persons in the area of selection.
• Managers will be expected to be able to explain selection decisions.
• Before making an appointment from an internal non-advertised appointment process, managers should ensure that the selected person is within the area of selection.
• An appointment from an external appointment process should not normally be effective before the assessment of merit of all persons considered in that process is complete. Exceptions to this might be appropriate in advertised processes where the organization knows it can appoint all persons in the area of selection who meet the merit criteria and in processes where applications are accepted on a continuous basis.
• Since appointments or deployments of persons not already employed under the PSEA cannot be effective before the administration of the oath or solemn affirmation, deputy heads may want to establish an organizational process to ensure the timely administration and documentation of the oath or solemn affirmation.
• Offers of appointment which clearly set out all the terms and conditions of the offer provide persons all information necessary to make an informed decision to accept or reject the offer.