ABSTRACT
The Civil Service is a career service which in general provides employment for its staff throughout their working lives. Most entrants in the generalist grades are recruited as young men or women. There are different streams of entry, to the clerical grades, to the executive grade and to the administration trainee entry. The Civil Service is one of the most clear-cut examples of a career employer, but nearly all large organisations including those outside the public sector have numbers of staff who make their careers with the company. A pitfall for management development is to plan and execute the steps at a distance from line management. Managers may have careers planned in personnel departments, or be trained on formal courses inside or outside the company, or be assessed at assessment centres. The staff report and appraisal interviews which bring together the information from line management upon which Personnel Division could plan an individual's career progression have already been fully described.
