Following the CBT tests for the AST1 competition, I was extremely surprised and happy to receive a letter in my EPSO account inviting me to attend the assessment centre. However, when I looked at the date, my heart sank as I realised that I was not going to be available.

At that time I was extremely busy and the original assessment centre date coincided with one of my marking deadlines, so there was no possible way I could go. Fearing the worst (that it would just be ‘tough luck’), I emailed the EPSO candidate contact service...

The way most European institutions communicate and the mindset of the interactive web 2.0 communications is in utter contradiction. There is a compelling story to tell, but most EU institutions should learn how to say it.

True, the European Parliament is still much better than other EU bodies such as the Council of Ministers in understanding how online communications work: they have set up their own TV channel, regularly host live chat events, and try to speak the citizens' language, even if there is still a lot of room for improvement. EPSO, the recruitment office, has also been a rare exception within the Commission, but...

(Click to see the comparison chart of bureacratic vs. web 2.0 cultures!)
 

EPSO certainly wishes to attract a large pool of candidates for its contract agent (CAST) exams, but the way information is presented seems quite inefficient. Here are some pain points I suggest improving:

'Call for Expression of Interest’ : would an average candidate know whether this is a simple indication of interest or an actual application for a selection exam? Would be worth clarifying what each term means already on the main page in one bullet point so that prospective applicants can have a quick overview

CAST or cast: the expre...

Seth has written a great piece on Six things about deadlines. Though he essentially talks about business, it is worth considering for EPSO job applicants and EU affairs professionals, too.

Enough to look at his chart: when a deadline is announced, the eager ones rush and get it done right away. EPSO candidates sign up, create a profile, validate their applications and presto, it's done! Late risers, on the other hand, risk having a server slowdown, missing the last bus home from work to finalise their application two hours before the clos...