You’ve just watched the full walkthrough of a 250-word statement for Seeing the Big Picture at Administrative Assistant (AA) and Administrative Officer (AO) grade. Here are the key insights to help you shape your own example.
Applying for a Civil Service AA or AO role? If your interview will assess Success Profile behaviours, our AA/AO Civil Service Behaviour Interview Pack contains 18 full B-STAR model answers covering all nine behaviours, with two realistic questions for each behaviour.
Why this behaviour matters
At AA and AO level, Seeing the Big Picture is about understanding how your work supports your team, your department, and the wider goals of the Civil Service. Recruiters want to see that you understand the purpose behind your tasks, consider how your work affects others, and align what you do with organisational priorities. It’s also about being aware of different needs and perspectives and contributing to outcomes that serve the public effectively.
How to shape your own statement
Think of a time when you understood how your work fitted into a bigger goal or supported wider priorities. Use the B-STAR method to structure your response:
🌍 Belief – show that you value purpose, awareness, and contribution to wider goals.
🎯 Situation and Task – describe when you worked on something that supported a team, project, or organisational objective.
🛠️ Activity – explain how you gathered information, collaborated with others, or considered the wider impact of your actions.
🏆 Result – share how your work helped your team, customers, or organisation achieve its goals.
Practical tip
Show that you think beyond your immediate tasks. Recruiters are looking for candidates who understand how their role fits within the bigger picture and who act in ways that support wider success.
Next step
Use the example from the video above as a guide. Apply the same structure to your own experience to show how you stay aware of purpose, context, and impact in your work at AA/AO grade.