Creating a Supporting statement
A supporting statement is used to outline your suitability for a particular role and is your chance to speak directly to the employer's wants and needs. Although any employer can request one, supporting statements are particularly common when asked to complete an application and will highlight examples and skills show your career pathway so far.
A supporting statement evidences your experience matched to the accountabilities and person specification.
What should be included?
Use the job description alongside the personal specification to help you get started.
What is the role you are applying for?
What skills do I need to evidence?
What examples can I use? (picking at least 5 different examples supports transferability in roles and experience of using skills in different settings)
Where have I used them before?
Group skills together and ensure you have covered all essential criteria and desirable where appropriate.
Use clear and concise examples giving evidence of where you have developed the skills highlighted in the specification
Using the STAR technique will allow you to draw on a clear structure and help you explain how you have effectively developed the transferable skills they are asking you to evidence. Employers like examples of failure as an end result as long as you explain how you have used reflection to ensure this does not happen again. Please see videos below:
Try and use professionally gained examples or extra curricular or volunteering examples.
STAR Technique in applications
Using the STAR method, allows you to set the scene, show what and how you did and the overall outcome. The job holder (and later the interviewer) will use this method to gather all the relevant information about a specific capability that the job requires.
Situation - Describe the situation you found yourself in. You must describe a specific event or situation. Be sure to give enough detail for the job holder to understand.
Where are you?
Who was there with you?
What had happened?
Task - The job holder will want to understand what you tried to achieve from the situation you found yourself in.
What was the task that you had to complete and why?
What did you have to achieve?
Actions - What did you do? The job holder will be looking for information of what you did, how you did it and why. Keep the focus on you. What specific steps did you take and what was your contribution? Remember to include how you did it, and the behaviours you used. Try to use “I” rather than “we” to explain your actions that lead to the result. Be careful not to take credit of something that you did not do.
Results - Don’t be shy about taking credit for your behaviour. Quote specific facts and figures easily understandable.
What results did the actions produce?
What did you achieve through your actions and did you meet your goals?
Was it a successful outcome? If not what did you learn from the experience?
Keep the situation and task parts brief. Concentrate on the action and the result. If the result was not entirely successful describe what you learned from this and what you would do differently next time. Make sure you focus on your strengths.
Remember- if you are a school leaver or out of employment, and feel that you don’t have the experience to apply for this role then do this-
Make a list of your skills, strength and experience
Focus on your education/day-to-day life/extra-curricular activities such as team sports
Highlight anything that would help you perform in the job that you are applying for
Also remember: Learning from a failed experience is just as powerful as succeeding in every task. Employers will look at how you reflected on the example and what changes you made to ensure the same mistake didn't happen twice.
Ensure:
Use of examples are specific and clear to the role you are applying to.
Be specific in examples. Lengthy descriptions will not be read and do not show effective writing skills.
Make sure where possible you use different examples to reflect the skills you have been asked to evidence.
Be clear how you have met all essential and where possible desirable criteria.
Avoid:
Writing every skills you are good at. Be clear and concise and stick to what they have asked you to evidence; using keywords is a good way to complete this.
Do not lie on your statement. Making something up will be a red flag in your interview and will result in disciplinary or gross misconduct if successful for a job.
Ignore the word count. This is strategically done and demonstrates your ability to write effectively to a brief.
Review the statement.
Have I given enough context?
What skills and experience does the example show?
Does it provide a STAR structure and have I offered a result of the experience?
If I have provided a failed result, what lessons have been learned?
Have I covered all essential and desirable (linked to my experience) criteria?
Have someone else review the statement. What feedback can they offer?
Have I given enough context?
What skills and experience does the example show?
Does it provide a STAR structure and have I offered a result of the experience?
If I have provided a failed result, what lessons have been learned?
Example questions and answers
Knowledge
I understand the importance of the project stages and ensure I consider them in my work. I recently completed a review of our business process for managing complaints for which I agreed specific objectives with my Manager and a time frame in which I would complete the work. I sent a survey out to our recent customers about their experience of the complaints process and used these to map out a revised process. Having obtained feedback from my colleagues and manager, I set up the new process and we are still using it now. In the last month, our resolution time for complaints has been halved.
Skills and Abilities
IT tools
I use Microsoft office packages regularly including Word to prepare letters and use Excel to track orders and monitor any complaints.
Improving customer service
I am committed to providing a good customer experience and always seek to resolve any issues promptly and effectively. I listen to the customer, check understanding and make sure they feel their issue is being taken seriously. I am responsible for customer care within our team and regularly seek feedback from existing and new customers on their experience of our service and what we could do to make it even better. I especially listen to bad feedback and do my best to not only resolve their issues but also improve our processes to avoid other people having the same experience. As a result of this, I have made changes to both our tracking spreadsheet and our complaints process.
Communication skills and building relationships
One complaint I dealt with recently involved a man who was extremely angry about his order not being delivered. I listened to him and made sure I took all the information I needed to investigate his query in the first phone call. I assured him I would look into it and gave him a time I would call him back. I investigated his delivery and identified that the address we had was not complete, I was able to rectify this and arrange for it be sent out as a special delivery. I contacted the man back to confirm I had found his parcel and arranged the delivery and I contacted him the following day to confirm it had been delivered. He was very pleased with his parcel and thanked me for taking the responsibility to resolve his problem.
Administration and organisation
I am able to balance my workload effectively and manage my own time. I use a weekly to do list, prioritising, negotiating and carrying forward tasks, as necessary. I work closely with my team to ensure we can cover our work as a team. This ensures I can meet my own objectives as well as our team’s objectives. Relevant Experience Practical business support skills Whilst studying, I completed temporary assignments in 3 different offices, which taught me the practical skills of working in an office environment such as following processes, finding, using and setting up equipment, working with a team and customer care. In all the work I have done I have worked with customers ensuring they receive a good level of service and support. By being professional, efficient and courteous in my own work and referring customers appropriately I feel this improves their experience of our service.
Analysing information
I am responsible for monitoring and tracking new orders and have set up an Excel spreadsheet that the whole team can access and input into, which allows us to see clearly which orders are close to the time limit for processing. I produce weekly reports for my manager on the volume of orders, any risk areas and recommendations to manage any issues to improve our service. Since the spreadsheet was set up we have reduced our delayed orders by 18%. Solving queries I regularly record and analyse information and use this to show how effectively the team are processing orders and resolving issues. I also help customers with their queries on things such as how to order, delivery times and the returns process based on our policies and procedures.
Source:
For more information for specific apprenticeship scheme guidance, including BAE systems click here,
For more information on interviews and how to answer questions please click here.