Philip Civil Investigator

Firstly, when I joined HMRC I knew very little about tax and my initial training as a compliance officer lasted for 12 months. That foundation of knowledge gave me the confidence to be able to carry out my first tax enquiries. Over the past six years I have developed that knowledge by working a wide range of enquiries and investigations, completing additional tax technical training as part of my Continuous Professional Development, and having access to mentors at more senior grades to call upon for assistance and advice.

If you work in a tax compliance role, once you have completed your first two or three years, you will probably feel ready to commit to your current role or ready to move into a different part of HMRC which suits your skills and what you enjoy doing. Because I wanted to work in the Fraud Investigation Service (FIS) I could see a path which could take me there which for me meant requesting more complex and challenging cases to develop my skills and resilience. Seeing that you could continue carrying out investigations in each grade from O, HO, SO, G7 and G6 in FIS without having any management responsibilities was exactly what I was looking for in my career.

I have had managers who have understood how determined I was to join FIS and helped me transfer on secondment before I secured a permanent role. Similarly, managers in FIS have been open-minded about bringing someone into the team from another area of Compliance to assist my development and to assist the team because of the skills and experience I could bring.

There is now a well-developed network of colleagues from across all grades and all areas of HMRC who volunteer their time to help colleagues draft job applications and how to prepare for interview. On a regular basis we are seeing people who've obtained that assistance gain promotion and take the next step on their career. In the two government departments I worked in prior to HMRC I never saw anything similar to that, or that determination from so many people across HMRC to help others move towards where they want to get to in their careers.

02 November, 2022 14:40