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Aethel

For hiring teams

Interview government and public service candidates with one link

Send a government or public service candidate one link. An AI interviewer asks about their real work, and you decide from the quoted scores.

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Free to start while Aethel is in early access. No card needed.

Hiring for government and public service

What makes this hard to screen

Public roles need people who apply rules the same way for everyone and keep records exact, while staying patient with frustrated residents. Civil service exams and resumes show little of that. You want to hear how they handle a case that does not fit.

Roles this field covers: city clerk, court clerk, caseworker, eligibility specialist, permit technician, policy analyst, 911 dispatcher.

Listen for these in a transcript

  • Applies the rules accurately and the same way for everyone.
  • Keeps records complete and on time, and explains decisions in plain words.
  • Finds a fair path when a case does not fit, and knows when to escalate.

Warning signs

  • Bends rules for some people and not others.
  • Lets records or deadlines slip.
  • Gives answers they have not checked, or is impatient with the public.

How it works

How to interview with a link

  1. Step 1: Create a link for the role

    Choose Government and public service, the level, and a specialty such as city clerk or court clerk.

  2. Step 2: Send it to your candidates

    Share it wherever you already find government and public service candidates.

  3. Step 3: Candidates interview on their own time

    It takes about 15 minutes, and they know the interviewer is an AI.

  4. Step 4: Review and decide

    Mark each one Advance, Not a fit, or Undecided.

The interview

What the interviewer covers

It follows up on each answer and picks the government and public service topics that fit the role.

  • A resident or applicant who was frustrated with a rule or decision
  • A case that did not fit the usual rules
  • Keeping records accurate and on deadline
  • Explaining a policy or decision in plain words
  • A process they made faster or clearer for the public
  • Working with another department or agency
  • Handling a mistake in a record or decision

What the scoring looks for

Strong work: the candidate applies the rules accurately and the same way for everyone, keeps records complete and on time, explains decisions in plain words, finds a fair path when a case does not fit, and knows when to escalate.

Warning signs: the candidate bends rules for some people and not others, lets records or deadlines slip, gives answers they have not checked, or treats members of the public with impatience. The scoring AI is told that an area showing one scores below 60.

Your questions

Sample must-ask questions

Up to three per link. The interviewer is told to ask each one as written, and every result shows whether it was asked word for word, asked in other words, or not asked. Examples:

  1. Tell me about a case that did not fit the usual rules. What did you do?
  2. Walk me through how you explained a decision to a resident who disagreed with it.
  3. Describe how you keep records accurate and on deadline when the workload is high.

Starter templates

Starter roles

Start a link from one of these and edit anything.

  • Caseworker

    Focus: Managing a caseload, connecting people with services, case notes and deadlines, working with other agencies

  • City clerk

    Focus: Public records and requests, council agendas and minutes, election support, helping residents

  • Eligibility specialist

    Focus: Reviewing applications, applying program rules fairly, accurate case files, explaining decisions to applicants

  • Permit technician

    Focus: Reviewing permit applications, checking plans against codes, answering questions at the counter, tracking permits

Results

What you see for each candidate

  • The full transcript

    Every answer, in order.

  • “Not enough evidence”

    Shown instead of a guess, never as a low score.

  • Your decision and private notes

    Only your team sees them.

The four scored areas

Each out of 100, with quotes.

Problem solving (cases, requests, fixes)
Counts as evidence when the candidate describes a specific case, request or problem from public service work: what was needed, what they found out, what they did, and what happened.
Rules and fairness (laws, policies, records, deadlines)
Counts as evidence when the candidate describes how they apply laws, regulations, policies or procedures fairly and accurately: records, deadlines, eligibility, approvals, and what they do when a case does not fit the rules.
Communication (residents, notices, reports, meetings)
Counts as evidence when the candidate describes explaining rules, decisions or information to residents, applicants, officials or coworkers: in person, by phone, in letters, notices, reports or public meetings. Answers that respond to the question asked, in a clear order, with a concrete example, also count, but only up to 80 on their own. Grammar, word choice and fluency are never judged.
Working with the public and agencies (residents, officials, other departments)
Counts as evidence when the candidate describes working with residents, coworkers, officials, other departments or agencies, including handling a frustrated member of the public or a disagreement. Saying "we" is not, by itself, collaboration evidence.

Aethel never scores faces, voices or accents, and does not verify degrees, licenses or work history. How Aethel uses AI

FAQ

Questions hiring teams ask

Does it replace a civil service exam or required process?

No. Follow your agency's hiring rules. Aethel gives you a transcript and scores to read alongside them, if your process allows it.

Can it fit dispatch and caseworker roles?

Yes. Set the specialty and the questions follow the job: calls under pressure for a dispatcher, case files and eligibility for a caseworker.

Can residents' private details stay out of answers?

Yes. The interviewer is told not to ask who a resident is, so a case file can be described without names.

See also the questions companies ask and the pricing page.

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