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OUR CRITERION CORE AND ENHANCED PQS
These two questionnaires were designed to act as our standard,
off the shelf questionnaires, to be used by clients who did not have the appetite to create a
bespoke questionnaire. They also ensure compatibility with some of our model-based
reports.
The Criterion Core (21 Scales)
Comprehensive insight into the typical preferences and tendencies for behaviours, feelings,
values and motivations that are important in the workplace. This questionnaire takes about
20 minutes for the candidate to complete. Alongside all of our standard reports, using the
Core questionnaire will give you access to the Team Strengths Report and the Sales Report.
The Criterion Enhanced (30 Scales)
Builds on the Criterion Core, offering a deeper insight across a breadth of elements of
personality in an occupational setting. This questionnaire will take candidates approximately
30 minutes to complete. The Enhanced questionnaire is compatible with all Psycruit profile
reports, including our Leadership Report.
Criterion Core & Enhanced Scale Selection (Blue scales only appear in Enhanced PQ)
Interpersonal Style
Thinking Style Emotional Style Motivations Culture Fit
Assertive Rational Optimistic Striving Competition
Listening Decisive Self-esteem Variety Order
Gregarious Creative Stress management
Friendship Humour
Influential Strategic Calm Status Change
Poised Rigorous Internal Control Self-development Profit
Adaptable Caring Ethics
+ Social Desirability
Why were these scales chosen?
● The scales encompass some of the most commonly used and popular scales from
our Criterion Personality Questionnaire (CPQ) scales library
● The scale combination is applicable across a wide range of contexts and is not
specific to a certain role type or level
● Both questionnaires only use the strongest scales with good reliabilities
● They work with our off the shelf, type-based reports (Team Strengths, Sales and
Leadership Reports (Enhanced only))
● The scales are great for use with the Onboarding report, delivering a profile that
gives the individual and manager a good overview of preferences and style at work
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● An even number of scales across the five core headings
helps to give a well-rounded view of the individual
When to use one of these questionnaires:
● If the role/placement does not fit with any of the industry/role specific questionnaires
● If you want a good, general overview of the candidate’s preferences and tendencies
at work
● If you want to use the Sales Strengths, Team or Leadership report
● If you do not have a person specification, competency framework or values
framework to work with
● If you are using it solely for development purpose - e.g. helping to build a candidate's
self-awareness/offer feedback
● If you’re used to working with other tools such as OPQ or Saville Wave (the headings
are similar in these questionnaires, without Motivations or Culture Fit)
3
INDUSTRY SPECIFIC QUESTIONNAIRES
Our industry specific questionnaires have been put together as a
first step in the creation of the Psycruit "marketplace", which is designed to give clients the
opportunity to select a pre-designed personality questionnaire, aligned to some common
industry/role profiles. These have been developed through role research and the expert
knowledge and experience of our Business Psychologists.
Our current offering:
1. Remote Working
2. Sales
3. Call Centre
4. Customer Service
5. Graduates
6. Recruitment Industry
7. Project Manager
8. Legal Sector
9. IT Professionals
10. Engineering
11. Workforce
12. Human Resources
13. Administrative Role
14. Marketing
15. Education Role
16. Hospitality
How were the headings/scales chosen?
Every personality questionnaire is based on extensive research into the typical role and
person profile for the role type. This process includes:
● Reviewing a large number of job specifications for similar roles, to then collate
together the most common competencies organisations look for. Thematic analysis is
then carried out to group these together into the headings you see
● Reviewing our own 25 years of experience of working on these role profiles and what
role profiles we have found to link highly with job performance
● Literature reviews of research which links certain personality traits to job performance
in certain role types
When to use one of these questionnaires:
● If it fits the placement you are recruiting for. For example, if the role type is the same,
and if, looking at the scales/headings, it feels like a good fit to your needs and
expectations
● If you are unsure of exactly what you’re looking for in a candidate, and need some
guidance
● If you do not have a person specification, competency framework or values
framework to work with
Below is a description of each of our off the shelf personality questionnaire offerings,
alongside heading descriptions, the scales used and example job roles you may wish to
utilise the questionnaire for. Note that all off the shelf Personality Questionnaires also
include a social desirability scale to highlight any candidate who may have tried to positively
manage their impression with the answers they give.
For a well-rounded overview of a candidate’s suitability for a role, we recommend combining
a personality questionnaire with cognitive ability tests such as a verbal, numerical, abstract,
mechanical or checking test. These assessments are available at three levels and you can
find more information here.
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Industry Specific Personality Questionnaire Library
Remote Working
This personality questionnaire is designed to assess a candidate's behavioural suitability
and attitudes towards working independently from home or away from a formal office
environment.
Adaptability Autonomy Confidence Self-management
Positively adjusting to
changing
circumstances.
Ability to work and
achieve independently.
Feeling sure of
themselves and their
ability to work alone.
Taking responsibility
for their workload and
personal wellbeing.
Adaptable
Optimistic
Creative
Change
Gregarious
Self-sufficiency
Internal control
Praise
Self-esteem
Stress management
Decisive
Independent
Rigorous
Structured
Tenacious
Striving
Use this questionnaire for roles where the candidate will be based entirely from home.
Sales
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure four key personality areas that are
shared by successful salespeople. These four areas cover the work styles and preferences
that contribute to effective sales at each stage of the sales process.
Our Sales questionnaire maps onto the quadrant model used in our Sales Report so ensures
compatibility with this report which is of particular relevance for evaluating potential Sales
staff.
Focus Empathy Grit Appetite
Preference to creating
unique and intelligent
sales solutions.
Ability to build and
maintain good
relationships with
clients.
Thriving under
pressure and resilient
in the face of adversity.
Effective influencing
skills and a sense of
competition.
Calm
Rigorous
Creative
Strategic
Rational
Variety
Gregarious
Poised
Adaptable
Listening
Self-esteem
Humour
Resilient
Optimistic
Stress management
Internal control
Self-development
Change
Influential
Decisive
Striving
Profit
Competition
Assertive
Status
Use this questionnaire for sales based roles e.g. high volume Sales Representatives, Sales
Solution Consultants and Sales Directors.
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Call Centre
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure
personality characteristics which may lend themselves to good performance in a phone or
web based support role within a call centre environment.
Empathetic Solving customer complaints Resilience
Ability to understand and share the feelings of a customer to quickly build relationships.
Effectively finding solutions to customer queries to ensure high customer satisfaction.
Ability to withstand adversity and bounce back from difficult situations or calls.
Approachable Listening Cooperation Caring Ethics
Tenacious Detail focused Order Decisive Adaptable
Calm Resilient Optimism Cautious Self-sufficiency
Use this questionnaire for Call Centre based roles e.g. Customer Service Call Centre
Representatives.
You may also wish to consider Psycruit’s Call Centre Scenarios assessments alongside this
personality questionnaire as part of your recruitment battery.
Customer Service
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure a candidate’s aptitude for Customer
Service, incorporating personality characteristics that are often indicative of capacity to
provide customer satisfaction.
Making customers happy Delivering great service Bouncing back
Ability to put customers first,
increasing customer
satisfaction and engagement.
Dedication to customers with
the goal of surpassing their
expectations.
Resilience and positivity when
faced with difficult situations
and learning from experiences.
Poised
Approachable
Adaptable
Listening
Humour
Rigorous
Tenacious
Decisive
Striving
Order
Calm
Resilient
Internal control
Optimistic
Use this questionnaire for roles with a heavy reliance on Customer Services e.g. Customer
Service Advisors and Customer Support Representatives.
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Graduates
This personality questionnaire is designed to assess a
candidate's characteristics and potential in four key areas key to most graduate roles.
Initiative Motivation Commercial Awareness Interpersonal Skills
Ability to assess,
decide and initiate
positive actions
independently.
A strong desire to
succeed and surpass
expectations for the
job.
Ability to understand what
makes a company
successful.
Communicates
positively and
effectively with others.
Originality
Self-development
Variety
Tenacious
Internal control
Stress management
Competition
Authority
Listening
Strategic
Adaptable
Approachable
Poised
Gregarious
Resilient
Use this questionnaire for Graduate programmes or roles.
Recruitment Industry
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure a candidate's personality profile
against characteristics seen as important in the recruitment industry.
Empathy Focus Results Orientation Resilience
Ability to build and
maintain good
relationships with
clients.
Determined, structured
and detail focused
approach to tasks.
Eager to succeed,
consistently setting
and achieving high
standards.
Calm, composed and
positive in the face of
challenge and difficult
situations.
Adaptable
Approachable
Listening
Detail focused
Structured
Tenacious
Striving
Stress management
Competition
Calm
Resilient
Optimistic
Use this questionnaire for predominantly recruitment roles e.g. Recruitment Consultants.
You may also wish to consider other Recruitment Industry assessments Psycruit have to
offer including a Recruitment Industry Scenarios Assessment, Numerical Test and Verbal
Test.
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Project Manager
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure key
personality attributes that provide the base for effective project management.
Relationship management Planning Delivery
Builds and maintains good
relationships with all
stakeholders.
Plans, organises and manages
resources for successful
project completion.
Capacity to get things done
and deliver against
expectations or responsibilities.
Assertive
Influential
Diplomatic
Approachable
Calm
Structured
Strategic
Decisive
Creative
Rigorous
Resilient
Variety
Striving
Internal control
Use this questionnaire for project management roles within any industry or sector.
Legal Sector
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure personality areas key to success
within the legal sector.
Interpersonal Style Thinking Style Environment
Communicates clearly and
effectively with others, using
influence when suitable.
Determined, structured and
detail focused approach to
tasks.
Is prepared to take risks and
remains calm and composed
when challenged.
Influential
Listening
Direct
Intelligence
Poised
Detail focused
Rational
Rigorous
Structured
Tenacious
Considered
Risky
Resilient
Calm
Self-development
Order
Use this questionnaire for roles based within the legal sector e.g. Solicitor, Barrister,
Paralegal and Legal Secretary.
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IT Professionals
This personality questionnaire is designed to incorporate
personality characteristics of particular relevance to a role within the IT sector.
Problem Solving Analytical Communication
Ability to think systematically
and analyse and consider the
broader context.
Able to think analytically and
use an ordered approach to
draw insights.
Communicates positively and
effectively with others, taking
time to listen as well as talk.
Tenacious
Rational
Rigorous
Independent
Detail focused
Order
Approachable
Direct
Listening
Use this questionnaire for IT professional roles e.g. Technical Support, Software Analyst,
Technical Consultants, Web Developers and Software Engineers.
Engineering
This personality questionnaire is designed to assess a candidate's personality and
behavioural tendencies in four key areas when recruiting for an engineering sector role.
Creativity Commitment Analytical Teamworking
Tendency to generate
alternative solutions to
a task or problem.
Strong sense of
responsibility to the
job, remaining calm
when challenged.
Ability to think
analytically and use an
ordered approach to
develop solutions.
Works collaboratively
by building and
maintaining good
working relationships.
Originality
Creative
Change
Tenacious
Resilient
Stress management
Calm
Structured
Detail focused
Rigorous
Concrete
Listening
Adaptable
Intelligence
Direct
Use this questionnaire for roles within the Engineering Industry e.g. Mechanical Design
Engineers, Technical Engineers, Manufacturing Engineers and Civil Engineers.
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Workforce
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure 9 scales
which reflect the personality and motivational requirements of people working in operative,
apprenticeship and team-leader/supervisory positions.
Interacting with people Approach to tasks Self
Comfortable working with
people and machines.
Methodological and systematic
approach to work with an aim
for perfection.
Optimistic and resilient with a
high level of physical energy.
Team membership
Leadership
Mechanical empathy
Structured
Quality
Energy
Self-development
Cheerful
Resilience
Use this questionnaire for job roles within operative, apprenticeship and team-
leader/supervisory positions in more manual, blue collar roles.
Human Resources
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure personality areas we have found
relate to high performance within a HR role.
Communication Leadership Self-discipline Integrity
Communicates
positively and
effectively with others,
taking time to listen.
Ability to effectively
and positively lead
others, remaining calm
under pressure.
Strong personal drive
to perform well and
produce quality
outputs.
Holds a strong moral
principle and cares
about making a
difference.
Adaptable
Approachable
Listening
Calm
Resilient
Creative
Stress management
Low praise orientation
Change
Detail focused
Decisive
Tenacious
Variety
Caring
Ethics
Authority
Use this questionnaire for Human Resources roles.
10
Administrative Role
This questionnaire is designed to measure a candidate’s
personality and behavioural tendencies related to an administration-based role.
Support Quality Process driven
Supportive communication
style, taking the time to listen to
others.
Rigorous and detail focused
approach to tasks.
Strong drive and enthusiasm
for a structured, orderly
environment.
Supporting
Listening
Adaptable
Approachable
Detail focused
Rigorous
Tenacious
Calm
Structured
Striving
Order
Use this questionnaire for Administrative roles e.g. Admin Assistants, Secretaries, Personal
Assistants, Receptionists and Payroll Assistant.
Marketing
This personality questionnaire was designed to assess a candidate's personality and
behavioural suitability for roles in marketing.
Communication Innovation Project Management
Communicates positively and
effectively with others, taking
time to listen.
Tendency to generate creative
alternative solutions to a task
or problem.
Plans, organises and manages
resources for successful
completion of a project.
Adaptable
Influential
Listening
Gregarious
Poised
Calm
Creative
Originality
Spontaneous
Rational
Detail focused
Rigorous
Resilient
Striving
Strategic
Stress management
Use this questionnaire for roles within the marketing industry e.g. Marketing Managers,
Marketing Executives and Marketing Assistants.
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Education Role
This personality questionnaire is designed to measure four key
personality areas deemed essential for success within the education sector.
Dedication Conflict Management Approachability Task Style
Commitment to helping
others through
education.
Effectively solves
conflicts between third
parties.
Makes an effort to be
friendly and easy to
talk to.
Rigorous but creative
approach to tasks and
problems.
Caring
Ethics
Intelligence
Assertive
Optimistic
Resilient
Stress management
Adaptable
Approachable
Listening
Poised
Tenacious
Detail focused
Creative
Rigorous
Calm
Use this questionnaire for roles within Education e.g. Teachers, Lecturers, Professors, Head
teachers, Teaching Assistants, Mentors, Tutors, Education Officers, Librarians, Careers
Advisors and Nursery Workers.
Hospitality
This personality questionnaire is designed to assess a candidate's personality and
behavioural suitability for roles in Hospitality.
Commitment Teamwork Customer Orientation Adaptable
Dedication to helping
others and attending to
every detail.
Works collaboratively
by building and
maintaining good
working relationships.
Enthusiasm for
delivering excellent
customer service.
Positively and quickly
adjusting to changing
circumstances.
Detail focused
Tenacious
Variety
Caring
Authority
Cooperation
Friendship
Approachable
Gregarious
Listening
Humour
Calm
Resilient
Stress management
Use this questionnaire for roles within the hospitality sector eg. Waiting Staff, Bar Staff, Hotel
Receptionists, Restaurant Managers, Chefs, Hotel Managers, Housekeepers, Porters, and
Baristas.