If you have applied for NSW Government roles before, you will have seen capabilities all through the job ad, role description, and application process.
Most applicants know the framework matters. Far fewer actually know how to use it well.
That is where people get stuck.
They read capability names like Communicate effectively, Deliver results or Think and solve problems and then write broad claims that sound nice but do not really prove anything.
That is not how panels use the framework.
The NSW Public Sector Capability Framework is there to help agencies define what good performance looks like at different levels. It gives the sector a common language for recruitment, role design, development and performance. The current version is the NSW Public Sector Capability Framework, Version 3: 2026, published by the Office of the Public Service Commissioner and last updated on 20 January 2026. It keeps the same 20 capabilities across 5 groups and the same 5 capability levels: Foundational, Intermediate, Adept, Advanced and Highly Advanced.
For applicants, that means two practical things:
- you need to identify which capabilities matter most in the role
- you need to give examples that match the level of capability the role is asking for
That second point is where most people either lift their application or sink it.
How to actually use the framework in your application
When I look at an application through a hiring manager lens, I am not asking whether the candidate has memorised the framework.
I am asking:
- Have they understood what this capability means in this role?
- Have they chosen examples that actually match the level required?
- Have they shown the right behaviours, not just the right buzzwords?
That is why the behavioural indicators matter.
The indicators are not there for you to copy into your cover letter. They are there to help you reverse-engineer the kind of example you need.
For example, if the capability is Communicate effectively at an Adept level, you are usually moving beyond basic clarity and into things like tailoring communication, explaining more complex ideas well, and communicating with different audiences in a way that gets traction.
That is very different from a Foundational example, which is more about speaking clearly, listening, asking questions, and writing logically.
The five capability levels in plain English
Here is the simplest way to think about them:
- Foundational: you can do the basics reliably
- Intermediate: you can do the work independently in more typical situations
- Adept: you can handle more complexity, judgement and adaptation
- Advanced: you can lead, influence, and operate through higher ambiguity or organisational complexity
- Highly Advanced: you shape direction, culture, systems or enterprise-wide outcomes
That progression matters a lot when you choose examples.
One of the most common mistakes I see is a candidate using a perfectly decent example, but it only proves the capability at a lower level than the role needs.
The capability groups
The 20 capabilities sit across five groups:
Personal Attributes
Relationships
Results
Business Enablers
People Management
These are only relevant where the role has real people-management responsibilities:
- Manage and develop people
- Inspire direction and purpose
- Optimise business outcomes
- Manage reform and change
Recent changes you should know about
The framework was revised in January 2026. The official guidance says the review particularly strengthened:
- customer service
- diversity and inclusion, including cultural capability
- digital and data literacy
It also strengthened areas such as leadership, change management, ethical behaviour, strategic workforce planning and psychological safety. Agencies have until 29 January 2027 to fully update role descriptions and systems, but for new recruitment through 2026, the official guidance recommends using the revised framework.
I break that down properly here:
Final advice
The framework is not there to make your application sound more official.
It is there to help you prove that you can do the role at the level required.
So do not just repeat capability names back to the panel.
Use the behavioural indicators to work out:
- what the capability actually looks like in practice
- what level the role is really asking for
- what example will best prove that level
That is how you turn the framework into an advantage instead of a wall of jargon.