FREE CSJT Working Together and Collaboration Questions and Answers

Question 1

You have joined a cross-departmental project team.
During the initial meetings, you observe that team members are hesitant to share ideas and tend to defer to the most senior person in the room.
What is the most effective action to foster a more collaborative environment?

Accepted Answer

Propose using a structured brainstorming technique, like a round-robin, where each person has a dedicated turn to speak.

Answer

Privately message the senior person and suggest they take a less active role to allow others to contribute.

Answer

Focus on delivering your own tasks to a high standard to demonstrate your competence and lead by example.

Answer

Wait for the project manager to identify the issue and implement a solution for the team's communication.

Question 2

A colleague from another team, with whom you work on an ad-hoc basis, asks for your help with a task. You are currently very busy with your own team's urgent priorities. What is the most appropriate response?

Accepted Answer

Explain that you are unable to help at the moment due to your workload but direct them to another colleague or resource that might be able to assist.

Answer

Agree to help them immediately, as fostering good inter-team relationships is a top priority.

Answer

Inform them that you are too busy and that they should ask their own line manager for support.

Answer

Ask your line manager for permission before agreeing to help the colleague from the other team.

Question 3

Which of the following statements BEST describes the core principle of 'Working Together' within the Civil Service framework?

Accepted Answer

To form effective partnerships with a diverse range of people to share information and support the delivery of better public services.

Answer

To build a network of contacts to make your own work easier to deliver.

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To ensure a pleasant and conflict-free working environment for all staff.

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To divide tasks among team members to ensure workloads are distributed fairly and evenly.

Question 4

Your team is collaborating with another department on a policy document. The other department consistently misses deadlines for their contributions, which is putting the entire project at risk. What is the most effective initial step?

Accepted Answer

Arrange a meeting with your counterpart in the other team to understand the reasons for the delays and collaboratively agree on a new timeline or way of working.

Answer

Immediately escalate the issue to your line manager and the project sponsor.

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Take on the other department's work yourself to ensure the project is completed on time.

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Send a strongly worded email to the head of the other department, copying in your own manager.

Question 5

You discover a more efficient way to process a type of data that is common across several teams in your directorate. What is the most effective way to share this best practice?

Accepted Answer

Offer to host a short, informal session or workshop for any interested colleagues to demonstrate the new process.

Answer

Keep the process within your team to improve your own team's performance metrics.

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Wait to be asked about your team's high performance before sharing the new method.

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Write a brief email to your manager outlining the new process and suggest they share it.

Question 6

When working on a project with external stakeholders from the private sector, a civil servant's primary collaborative goal should be to:

Accepted Answer

Build a relationship based on shared understanding and trust to achieve the best possible outcome for the public.

Answer

Ensure the external partners deliver exactly what is in their contract, with no deviations.

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Learn about private sector methodologies to apply them within the Civil Service.

Answer

Assert the government's position clearly to ensure the project aligns strictly with departmental priorities.