Assessing Leadership Skills Questionnaire (Free, Scored, and Actionable)

What this leadership skills questionnaire covers (and why it matters)

What this leadership skills questionnaire covers (and why it matters)

This assessing leadership skills questionnaire is designed to provide structured insight across multiple leadership competencies—rather than a single, definitive “leadership score.” The intent is developmental: leaders can be strong in one area (e.g., strategy) and still have clear growth opportunities in another (e.g., coaching or decision-making under pressure).

Competency framework (informed by common workplace models)

This assessment is informed by common leadership competency families used in workplace development programs, along with widely discussed research themes (e.g., psychological safety, inclusion, coaching). It covers 10 core competencies:

• Communication & Clarity – Sets direction, shares context, reduces ambiguity.
• Coaching, Feedback & Talent Development – Builds capability through observation, feedback, and coaching.
• Delegation & Empowerment – Distributes decision-making appropriately; avoids bottlenecks.
• Decision-Making & Judgment – Makes timely decisions with appropriate rigor.
• Emotional Intelligence & Self-Management – Regulates emotion, demonstrates empathy, stays effective under stress.
• Conflict Management & Candor – Addresses tension early; navigates disagreement productively.
• Strategic Thinking & Systems Perspective – Connects dots, anticipates second-order impacts, prioritizes.
• Execution & Operational Discipline – Converts plans into outcomes; establishes accountability.
• Influence & Stakeholder Leadership – Aligns without relying on authority; manages tradeoffs.
• Inclusion, Psychological Safety & Ethics – Creates a safe, fair environment; acts with integrity.

Optional add-on module: Remote/Hybrid Leadership—async communication, trust, outcomes-based management, and team cohesion.

Assessment methodology (how to use it responsibly)

Response scale

Rate each statement using a 1–5 scale:

• 1 = Rarely true (0–20% of the time)
• 2 = Sometimes true (21–40%)
• 3 = Often true (41–60%)
• 4 = Usually true (61–80%)
• 5 = Almost always true (81–100%)

Best practices (to reduce self-report bias)

To make results more useful:

• Answer based on observed behavior in the last 60–90 days, not intention.
• If you’re unsure, default to the lower score and validate via feedback.
• For higher-stakes decisions (e.g., promotion or selection), do not rely on self-assessment alone—use structured feedback, work samples, and other appropriate tools.

Recommended formats

• Self-assessment (10–12 minutes): fast insight for development.
• Manager evaluation: helps calibrate against expectations.
• 360 (self + manager + peers + direct reports): improves perspective on observed impact.

The questionnaire (sample items + scenarios)

Below are 10 challenging sample questions/scenarios that reflect the style of the full questionnaire. In a full version, you would use 3–5 items per competency (30–50 items total).

1. Communication & Clarity
   Scenario: Your team is executing a cross-functional project with shifting priorities.

• Item: “I consistently translate shifting priorities into a clear ‘what changes / what stays’ message and confirm shared understanding.” (1–5)

2. Coaching, Feedback & Development
   Scenario: A strong performer is plateauing and avoiding stretch work.

• Item: “I give behavior-based feedback within one week of observing an issue or opportunity, and I confirm the next behavior I want repeated.” (1–5)

3. Delegation & Empowerment
   Scenario: You’re overloaded and your team waits for approvals.

• Item: “I delegate outcomes with decision boundaries (what success looks like, constraints, check-in cadence) rather than delegating tasks.” (1–5)

4. Decision-Making & Judgment
   Scenario: Data is incomplete and stakeholders disagree.

• Item: “I choose a decision method (autocratic, consultative, consensus) intentionally and communicate it up front.” (1–5)

5. Emotional Intelligence & Self-Management
   Scenario: A deadline slips due to another team.

• Item: “Under pressure, I stay direct and calm; I avoid sarcasm, blame, or emotional spillover that damages trust.” (1–5)

6. Conflict Management & Candor
   Scenario: Two high-value colleagues are in persistent tension.

• Item: “I surface conflict early and facilitate a conversation that clarifies interests, agreements, and next steps—without taking over or avoiding.” (1–5)

7. Strategic Thinking & Systems Perspective
   Scenario: Your leadership asks for a plan to improve performance metrics.

• Item: “I identify the few highest-leverage drivers, test assumptions, and anticipate second-order impacts (capacity, morale, customer experience).” (1–5)

8. Execution & Operational Discipline
   Scenario: Work is busy but outcomes are inconsistent.

• Item: “I run a lightweight operating cadence (priorities, owners, due dates, risks) that prevents surprises and makes progress visible.” (1–5)

9. Influence & Stakeholder Leadership
   Scenario: You need alignment without authority.

• Item: “I map stakeholders (interests, power, concerns), build the case in their language, and secure commitments—not just verbal agreement.” (1–5)

10. Inclusion, Psychological Safety & Ethics
    Scenario: A junior teammate hesitates to challenge a flawed approach.

• Item: “I actively invite dissent, reward risk-raising, and respond to bad news with curiosity rather than punishment.” (1–5)

Optional Remote/Hybrid sample:

• “I design work to be async-first (clear owners, written decisions, decision logs) so remote teammates have equal access to context and influence.” (1–5)

Scoring system (transparent and easy to run)

Step 1: Map items to competencies

In the full questionnaire, each item belongs to exactly one competency. Example structure:

• 10 competencies × 4 items each = 40 items total
• Each competency score is the average of its items (1.0–5.0)

Step 2: Compute competency scores

For each competency:

• Competency Average = (Sum of item ratings in that competency) / (Number of items)

Example:

• Delegation items (4 items): 3, 4, 2, 3 → sum 12 → average 3.0

Step 3: Compute an overall leadership index (optional)

Because leadership is multi-dimensional, the overall score is secondary.

• Overall Leadership Index (OLI) = Average of all competency averages

Optional weighting (role-priority weighting):
If you’re a people manager, you may choose to weight certain competencies more heavily based on what your role currently requires (for example, Communication, Coaching, Delegation, and Inclusion/Safety). If you apply weighting, document your rationale so you can interpret changes over time consistently.

Step 4: Identify priority focus areas (the “Top 3 Rule”)

Use a two-factor filter:

1. Lowest scores (largest gaps)
2. Highest practical impact for your role and current goals

Rule of thumb: choose 2–3 competencies to focus on for 60–90 days.

Interpretation bands (what your score suggests)

Interpret scores at the competency level first.

Score bands (1.0–5.0)

When to validate with feedback

If you score yourself high (4+) in most categories but experience high turnover, recurring conflict, missed deadlines, or low engagement, consider a 360-style feedback approach. Self-scores can differ from observed impact.

Competency-by-competency guidance (what to do next)

Below are outcome links, common derailers, and high-leverage practices.

1) Communication & Clarity

When low, you may see: misalignment, duplicated work, anxiety, slow execution.
Common derailers: over-talking, under-documenting, unclear decision ownership.
High-leverage practices (next 30 days):

• Start meetings with: purpose, decision needed, and success definition.
• Use “What I heard / What I’m deciding / What happens next” recaps.
• Publish a one-page weekly priorities update.

2) Coaching, Feedback & Development

When low, you may see: performance stagnation, repeated mistakes, dependency on you.
Common derailers: feedback avoidance, vague praise, only coaching in crises.
Practices:

• Deliver feedback using SBI (Situation–Behavior–Impact) + “next time.”
• Schedule biweekly 1:1s with a coaching agenda (wins, blockers, growth goal).
• Identify one stretch assignment per person with guardrails.

3) Delegation & Empowerment

When low: bottlenecks, leader burnout, slow decisions.
Derailers: delegating tasks not outcomes; taking work back; unclear authority.
Practices:

• Use a simple decision-rights matrix (Recommend/Decide/Consult/Inform).
• Delegate with: outcome, constraints, check-ins, and “definition of done.”
• Track “work I should not be doing” weekly.

4) Decision-Making & Judgment

When low: thrash, delays, political tension.
Derailers: analysis paralysis, inconsistency, hidden decision rules.
Practices:

• Declare the decision method: D (decide), C (consult), A (agree).
• Maintain a decision log (decision, owner, date, rationale, revisit trigger).
• Use pre-mortems for high-risk decisions.

5) Emotional Intelligence & Self-Management

When low: fear, silence, defensiveness, escalations.
Derailers: reactivity, mood-driven leadership, avoidance.
Practices:

• Name the pressure: “Here’s what’s at stake; here’s how we’ll handle it.”
• Use a 10-minute buffer before responding to triggering messages.
• Ask: “What outcome do I want, and what behavior supports it?”

6) Conflict Management & Candor

When low: passive-aggressive behavior, unresolved tension, hidden rework.
Derailers: triangulation, rescuing, equating conflict with disrespect.
Practices:

• Address within 48–72 hours of noticing a pattern.
• Separate intent vs impact; clarify agreements in writing.
• Create team norms for dissent (e.g., “disagree and commit”).

7) Strategic Thinking & Systems Perspective

When low: reactive leadership, short-term fixes, unclear priorities.
Derailers: mistaking activity for progress; ignoring constraints.
Practices:

• Translate strategy into 3 priorities + “not doing” list.
• Identify leading indicators, not just lagging KPIs.
• Ask: “What breaks if we scale this?”

8) Execution & Operational Discipline

When low: missed deadlines, confusion, brittle processes.
Derailers: unclear owners, no cadence, hero culture.
Practices:

• Weekly operating review: priorities, risks, decisions, dependencies.
• Use RACI lightly (Owner/Contributor/Approver/Informed).
• Make work visible (Kanban board or simple tracker).

9) Influence & Stakeholder Leadership

When low: stalled initiatives, misalignment, political surprises.
Derailers: relying on logic only; not listening for constraints.
Practices:

• Stakeholder map: power × interest × risk.
• Secure commitments: “What will you do by when?”
• Socialize early drafts; avoid “big reveal” meetings.

10) Inclusion, Psychological Safety & Ethics

When low: silence, low innovation, fear of speaking up, inequity.
Derailers: favoritism, interrupting, punishing bad news, inconsistent standards.
Practices:

• Rotate airtime; explicitly invite dissent.
• Reward early risk-raising (“thank you for flagging this”).
• Use consistent decision criteria; document rationale for fairness.

Development roadmap (30/60/90-day plan by result tier)

If most scores are 1.0–2.6

Goal: stabilize trust and execution.

• 30 days: pick 1 competency (often Communication or Inclusion/Safety). Implement 2 routines (weekly priorities + decision recap).
• 60 days: add one Coaching or Delegation routine (biweekly 1:1s or decision-rights).
• 90 days: gather lightweight feedback (manager + a few peers/direct reports) to check what has changed.

If most scores are 2.7–3.4

Goal: improve consistency under pressure.

• 30 days: build a basic operating system: weekly priorities, decision logs, 1:1 cadence.
• 60 days: practice one “hard conversation” per week (feedback or conflict).
• 90 days: take on a cross-functional initiative to strengthen Influence + Strategy.

If most scores are 3.5–4.2

Goal: scale impact through others.

• 30 days: formalize delegation (decision boundaries) and development plans.
• 60 days: improve strategic leverage: stop 1 low-value initiative; invest in 1 higher-leverage system.
• 90 days: mentor another leader; document playbooks; track team signals (cycle time, engagement, quality).

If most scores are 4.3–5.0

Goal: broaden enterprise-level leadership impact.

• 30 days: focus on culture multiplication (coach managers, not just ICs).
• 60 days: lead change: align stakeholders, communicate narrative, manage resistance.
• 90 days: sponsor a capability-building program (coaching norms, inclusion norms, execution cadence).

Benchmarks and standards (how to compare responsibly)

Because free questionnaires don’t provide universal norms without a validated dataset, treat comparisons as contextual reference points rather than fixed standards.

Practical comparison guidance (optional)

• New managers (0–12 months): it’s common for competencies to land in the 2.8–3.6 range while routines are forming.
• Experienced people managers (2+ years): many teams benefit when Communication, Coaching, Delegation, and Inclusion/Safety are consistently strong (often reflected by mid-to-high 3s or above in a 1–5 self-rating scale).
• Senior leaders: expectations often include strong Strategy, Influence, and Change Leadership behaviors with consistency under stress.

Comparison methods you can implement

• Self vs others: compare self-scores to average rater scores (360). A gap ≥ 0.7 can indicate a perception mismatch worth exploring.
• Time-based: retest every 90 days and look for movement in focus competencies (for example, +0.3 to +0.5 can be a meaningful shift when paired with observed behavior change).

Career advancement strategies based on your results

Use your scores to make your growth story clearer—especially in performance reviews and promotion conversations.

• If you’re Developing in key areas
  • Pitch a scoped leadership project (clear deliverables, stakeholder map, operating cadence).
  • Ask for a single capability goal (e.g., delegation or feedback) with observable success criteria.
• If you’re Proficient
  • Position yourself for broader scope: “I can lead through others.”
  • Build proof: team metrics, succession bench, documented playbooks.
• If you’re Advanced
  • Expand influence beyond your function: lead cross-org change, mentor leaders, and improve shared standards.
  • Make impact visible: executive summaries, decision logs, and stakeholder feedback.

Curated resources (credible, high-signal)

Choose based on your lowest competencies.

Books

• Coaching/Feedback: The Coaching Habit (Stanier); Radical Candor (Scott)
• Psychological Safety: The Fearless Organization (Edmondson)
• Execution: High Output Management (Grove)
• Influence: Influence (Cialdini); Crucial Conversations (Patterson et al.)
• Strategy: Good Strategy/Bad Strategy (Rumelt)

Courses & tools

• Manager fundamentals programs (internal L&D or platforms like Coursera/edX/LinkedIn Learning) focusing on coaching, delegation, and communication.
• Simple operating tools: decision log template, weekly priorities doc, meeting agenda standard, RACI/DRI.

Optional: Make this a 360 leadership assessment (best practice)

If you want broader perspective, run a lightweight 360:

• Raters: 1 manager, 2–4 peers, 2–6 direct reports (as applicable)
• Anonymity: keep direct report feedback anonymous when N < 3
• Aggregation: average per competency; compare self vs others
• Debrief: one strengths theme, one growth theme, one 90-day plan

Suggested cadence: baseline → 90 days → 6 months.

Responsible use and limitations

This is a development-first tool designed to support reflection, coaching, and planning. For hiring/selection decisions, use appropriate validated assessments, structured interviews, and job-relevant work samples.

Leadership is contextual: a low score may reflect role constraints, unclear authority, or misaligned incentives—interpret results with your environment in mind.