Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 17 December 2024 to Question 18945 on Ministry of Defence: Recruitment, how his Department measures the performance of those executive search firms.

For Senior Civil Servant (SCS) appointments using an Executive Search firm, performance is measured as described in the commercial agreement. Each commercial agreement (via the cross-Government Executive Search RM6290 framework) includes clear terms of business and expectations, and fees are only paid on completion of agreed deliverables.

All SCS recruitment activity, including those managed by an Executive Search firm, is overseen by either a Civil Service Commissioner (SCS Pay Bands 2 to 4) or a Ministry of Defence Campaign Manager (SCS Pay Band 1), including regular meetings with appointed Executive Search firms throughout various operational stages to check in on process, candidate support and adherence to policy.