Conflict of Interest Standard

Purpose

An LII decision is valid only if the people who make it are independent of the person or organisation assessed. This standard explains how LII identifies and manages conflicts of interest and how it keeps assessment separate from its commercial activity.

Scope

This standard applies to everyone who assesses, moderates, quality-reviews, ratifies or hears an appeal on an LII case, across professional certification, LEM Organisational Accreditation and Programme Recognition.

The principle

Independence is a condition of a valid decision, not a matter of procedure. A decision made by someone who was not independent of the candidate or applicant is not a valid LII decision, however good the evidence.

What counts as a conflict of interest

A person has a conflict of interest where they have a financial, professional or personal relationship with the candidate or applicant that could compromise their independent judgement.

Professional certification. For an individual candidate, a conflict includes where the assessor:

• is employed by, contracted to or financially dependent on any provider through whose programme the candidate prepared;
• has acted as the candidate's coach, mentor, supervisor or programme tutor during the evidence period or within the previous 24 months;
• has a personal relationship with the candidate, such as close friendship or family, that a reasonable observer would consider capable of compromising independence;
• has any financial interest in the outcome, including any fee or reward that depends on the result;
• has previously assessed the same candidate's evidence in any component.

LEM Organisational Accreditation. For an organisation, a conflict includes employment, consultancy, a commercial or financial relationship, board membership, a close personal relationship or a competing interest involving the applicant, its senior leaders or any interviewee, within the previous three years. A person is not independent if they have advised, trained, coached or consulted for the applicant within the previous three years.

Programme Recognition. An assessor must have no financial, professional or personal relationship with the organisation running the programme that could compromise their independence.

Declaring conflicts

• An assessor's independence is checked before they are appointed.
• Assessors declare any conflict before taking part in a case. For LEM Organisational Accreditation, a declaration is made for each case before any evidence is received.
• The duty to declare is active and continues throughout the case. A conflict discovered during a case is declared at once.
• Staying silent about a known or reasonably discoverable conflict is itself a breach of LII's standards.

When a conflict exists

• A person with a conflict takes no part in the case.
• Where it is uncertain whether a conflict exists, the Standards Committee (professional certification) or the Head of Assessment (LEM Organisational Accreditation) decides, and the decision is recorded.
• Where a conflict emerges after work has started, the person is replaced and LII decides whether any work must be repeated. The candidate is told if the assessment is paused for this reason.

Independent review

• The Assessment Panel for professional certification always includes at least one assessor with no earlier involvement in the candidate's assessment.
• Moderation, quality review, replacement panels and appeals are carried out by people who had no role in the original decision.

Separation from commercial activity

• Fees fund the assessment; they never determine the result.
• No person involved in a decision may have a financial interest in its outcome, including any fee or reward that depends on the result.
• LII's sales, commercial and partnership functions cannot instruct assessors or influence any case, and take no part in assessment decisions.
• No training provider, sponsor or employer can influence an assessment decision.

Recording and oversight

Declarations, decisions on conflicts and any replacements are recorded. The Standards Committee oversees how conflicts are managed. A breach of these requirements can lead to the suspension or removal of an assessor.

Raising a concern

A conflict of interest or lack of independence is a recognised ground of appeal. Anyone who believes a decision has been affected by a conflict may raise it under LII's published Complaints and Appeals Policy.

Status of this public edition

This public edition states the requirements communicated to candidates and users of LII certification. LII maintains more detailed controlled documents for assessment administration and quality assurance. Those documents must be consistent with this public edition. If LII identifies a material inconsistency between this public edition and a controlled document, the inconsistency is resolved before the disputed provision is relied on in any assessment decision. No requirement is applied retrospectively to a candidate.

Related public documents

• Quality Assurance and Moderation
• Leadership Certification Framework
• Governance