"My old mentor at work used to repeat over and over again that I am in charge of my own development. So I took that to heart and made a habit of regularly checking in once a month to determine my growth opportunities and better ascertain my strengths. Now I do it in a less pestering way. I check in with my peers and my teams to make sure I am providing, for my part, a positive working experience. Sometimes I am offered feedback, mostly I am offered appreciation. But my primary aim is to ensure everyone is engaged."

Your interviewer is trying to assess your emotional intelligence and how you respond to feedback. How you answer will inform them of whether you respond defensively and feel victimized, or whether you learn from what it offers. Additionally, how you answer could inform them of whether you wait for feedback to come to you, or if you are truly taking charge of your professional development and proactively seeking out feedback on a consistent basis.

Here are several statements on the expectations of those serving in the civil service; "Identify gaps in your skills and knowledge and make plans of how to develop these. Take time to achieve development objectives. Listen to and act on feedback from colleagues to find areas you can develop. Share knowledge and skills learnt with colleagues to contribute to the learning and development of the whole team. Regularly review own and team's work and take the initiative to suggest ideas to make improvements. Give feedback on changes in a constructive manner. Take a positive, open approach to the possibility of change and encourage others to do the same. Help others to understand changes and the reasons they are being put in place. Identify and act on the effects changes are having on your role and that of the team. Look for ways to use technology to achieve efficient and effective results. Consider accessibility needs of the diverse range of end users."