The CIQ is structured as follows:

The candidate is given a competency definition, for instance:

PLANNING AND ORGANISING: The ability to plan and execute a task or project by setting goals, identify action steps to achieve these goals, identify and co - ordinate the resources needed to achieve these goals, the ability to prioritise and to adjust plans as needed.

The candidate is then asked to rate him/herself with respect to the competency (in this example planning and organising). and to provide a practical example of his/her planning that would support the rating.

The competency is then probed further by four follow up questions that assess some of the behavioral indicators associated with the competency. In the case of Planning and Organising the follow up questions are:

  • What specific goals, objectives and resources did you identify as being necessary to your plan?
  • What did you do to obtain input and buy - in from the stakeholders involved in the project/task?
  • Tell us about the action steps you identified to execute the project?
  • What measures did you put in place to measure the progress towards your goals?

You have been provided with the candidate's responses that are all based on the same format as described above, on various competencies.

Please carefully read the general example of his/her behavior on each competency, plus his/her answers given on the four follow - up probes. Then rate the candidate on each competency, using the scale provided in the drop down boxes. The scale is:

  • 5 - Outstanding
  • 4 - Exceeds Expectations
  • 3 - Competent
  • 2 - Needs Improvement
  • 1 - Unacceptable

Please bear in mind that you are required to make a subjective judgement about the candidate's competence. This judgement should be formed taking into account:


  • What your expectation is with respect to the competence (in the above example planning and organising). Simply put, what do you expect with respect to planning and organising from a candidate you would be willing to appoint into the position.
  • You own experience. Based on your own experience of planning and organising versus the examples the candidate gave you, how would you rate him/her?
  • The level of the job which the candidate is being considered for. The more complex and advanced the position is, the higher you need to set the bar.


Whilst the ratings given in the CIQ are subjective, this is offset by two factors:

  • Multiple raters are used, so various judgements will be made about the candidate on each competencies and tallied up into an overall rating.
  • You have the option of revisiting any of the competencies if you need to probe it any further. You will be provided with a structured interview on any CIQ competency that the candidate completed, should you wish to probe him/her further in an interview. 

Thorough initial probing, multiple raters and the opportunity to revisit competencies in an interview make this a rigorous process of forming a meaningful judgement about a candidate's competencies. Click here to proceed with scoring the candidate's CIQ.