1. Introduction

How easy is it to cross from private to public sector and vice versa?

Not as difficult as you may think. Public sector people do not have two heads and do not co-exist with the rest of society in a parallel universe. It is a short step from one sector to another in the world of work.

The trick is being able to fulfil the requirements of a person specification. These specifications will of course vary depending on the type and level of job. If a local authority wants a qualified social worker, it is likely that the successful candidate will be working or have worked in the public sector because there are not many private sector organisations employing such people. By the same token, up until recently the likely recruiting ground for councils with customer care/care centres was the private sector.

Other jobs functions, such as administrative, secretarial, accountancy and HR, can and do cross regularly back and forth across the divide, which is more like a trickling brook than the Grand Canyon.

The emphasis is on skills to do the job - if you do not have them you will not get the job. One of the main problems is that candidates do not realise that the experience they have gained in the private sector is transferable to the public sector. Someone who has worked in retail will hopefully have excellent interpersonal skills, be able to handle money, and problem solve. Such accomplishments could be relevant for untold other jobs so all potential candidates should be looking at what skills they actually have, rather than making assumptions about the employer's requirement for experience in their own particular sector.