How do you assess “fit” for recruitment in the public sector?
"Fit" is a real thing. It’s just not what most panels think it is.
“Fit” as a vague sense of compatibility is not a merit criterion, and using it as one invites review. But “fit” as a precise set of behavioural capabilities the APS genuinely requires is legitimate, assessable, and defensible.
The APS environment requires specific behaviours: operating under the APS Values and Code of Conduct, navigating ministerial and stakeholder contexts, working within hierarchical accountability, delivering on the public interest rather than private preference. These are real capabilities. They can be defined, probed through behavioural questions, and rated against a scale.
The rule: if you can name the behaviour, describe what good looks like, and assess it with evidence, it is a legitimate criterion. If it is a feeling the panel has after the interview, it is not.