Working with Government and the Civil Service

How to get what you want

Do

• Do be patient. The most powerful force in the Civil Service is inertia.
• Do be polite. The Minister’s best ideas are his own, then the party’s (Manifesto) then those put forward by interested parties and only where they chime with his or his party’s thinking. Make sure you know where their thinking is, what relevant policy decisions they have taken already, and what they have already decided on before you engage. When you engage, listen.
• Do be prudent. Use a syringe or a screwdriver. Never use a sledgehammer.
• Do tell someone who cares. Find a minister or senior official who holds power or influence and cares about one or more of the benefits that will result from the implementation of your proposal. Look for allies at all levels or people who are likely to be more influential than you.
• Do tell your story in plain English. If ‘they’ don’t understand, it’s because you aren’t using plain English. Keep the concept simple. Never use jargon.
• Do tell the same story all of the time. Keep to the same story stressing different aspects according to your audience. See the world from their perspective and answer their question, “What’s in it for me?”
• Do face to face first. Aim to secure meetings off the back of short letters or reports. Never try to fight a war on paper.

Don’t

• Don’t tell Ministers or senior officials that they are wrong or that they have misunderstood. This never happens. Deal with it.
• Don’t try to win the war with your opening shot. Focus on small victories that you are confident you can win before tackling the real target.
• Don’t gloss over weaknesses in your argument, set up false choices or make over-extravagant claims about what your proposition would achieve. Deploy your strongest arguments but, before you do, think, “What’s not to like” and acknowledge this at the outset.
• Don’t use adverbs; use numbers.

Kevin Harrington

I’m a UK-based B2B marketing consultant, specialising in strategic advice for SME business owners. I bring extensive hands-on expertise to every client engagement. Senior leadership roles across technology, media, payments, and publishing have shaped my practical approach. Highlights include serving as Chief Marketing Officer at The Panoply plc (now TPXimpact), Chief Commercial Officer at Tungsten Network, and Global Marketing Director at BBC Worldwide. Over the years, I’ve guided numerous SMEs through transformation and value creation. Helping businesses evolve and thrive is a genuine passion. Practical marketing insights and succession planning strategies are at the heart of what I do, as I believe growing a business’s asset value should be a rewarding and positive journey for every entrepreneur.

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