How Do I Use the Questionnaire Builder in KCM GRC?

The Vendor Risk Management (VRM) module in KnowBe4's KCM Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) platform lets you centralize your third-party risk management processes. You can prequalify risk, assess your vendors, and conduct remediation efforts all in one platform. The VRM module is available to Platinum subscriptions.

This article includes instructions for the following:

• How to use the questionnaire builder to create questionnaires with custom questions or with the industry-standard questionnaire templates offered in your platform
• How to configure your questions so vendors can be scored on their responses
• How to change the order of the questions in your questionnaire 
• How to finalize questionnaires so they're ready to send
• How to clone questionnaires that you've created

Use the jump links below to learn more about creating, configuring, and finalizing the questionnaire assessments that you create in the KCM GRC questionnaire builder. 

Jump to: 

Pre-Assessment and Planning

Creating Questionnaires

• Method 1: Adding Questions from System Templates
  • Configuring System Template Questions
• Method 2: Importing Custom Questions
  • Configuring Imported Questions
• Method 3: Creating and Configuring Custom Questions

Sorting Questions

Reviewing and Finalizing Questionnaires

Custom Questionnaire Templates

Exporting Questionnaires

Cloning Questionnaires

Pre-Assessment and Planning

As part of your vendor or third-party risk management program, before onboarding with your VRM module, your team may want to identify the types of questionnaires you'll need to build for the various vendors or third-parties you work with.

The KCM GRC questionnaire builder allows you to create questionnaires from custom questions, or you can use questions from the industry-standard templates offered in the console. You can also create questionnaires using a combination of custom questions and questions from templates.

Once you have an idea of the types of questionnaires you'll need, see the sections below to build them.

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Creating Questionnaires

You'll create your vendor questionnaires from the Questionnaires section of your console. Use the questionnaire builder to create fully-custom questionnaires, use questions from the industry-standard templates provided, or create questionnaires composed of both custom questions and questions from the system templates.

Follow the steps below to create a new questionnaire:

1. Navigate to the Questionnaires section of your console by clicking Vendor Management, then Questionnaires from the navigation panel on the left-hand side.
   
2. Click the Create New Questionnaire button toward the top-right of the Questionnaires page.
   
3. From the New Questionnaire page, add the details outlined below:
   Note: We recommend that you avoid including the < and > special characters in these fields.
   
   
   1. Give the questionnaire a Name. The vendor will be able to see the questionnaire name in the email notification they receive when you send the questionnaire. They will also see this name when they log in to their vendor portal to work on the assessment.
   2. Give the questionnaire a Description. The description is only visible to the internal user(s) working in your VRM module (Vendor Administrators). The Description field has a 1000 character maximum.
   3. Select a Type. Select Public for external vendors or Internal for internal departments.
4. Click the Next button. 

Now you will create or add questions using one or more of the methods offered in the questionnaire builder. You can create custom questions in a variety of answer formats, import custom questions from a CSV file, or add questions from one or more of the system templates provided. 

See the following sections for details about the different methods for adding and configuring questions: 

• Method 1: Adding Questions from System Templates
• Method 2: Importing Custom Questions
• Method 3: Creating and Configuring Custom Questions
  

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Method 1: Adding Questions from System Templates

We offer several industry-standard questionnaire templates for you to include in your questionnaires.

Follow the instructions below to add one or more questions from a system template:

1. On the left side of the page, in the Add Questions From: area, select the first button on the left, as shown below.
   
2. The available templates are listed on the left side of the Questionnaire Templates modal window. Click the arrow on the left-hand side of the desired template to expand all sections within the template.
   
   
   1. To add an entire system template in your questionnaire:
      
      
      1. With the template name selected on the left, click the top-level checkbox on the right-hand side. 
      2. Then click Select all questions in "[Template Name]".
   2. To select individual template questions:
      
      
      1. Click the checkbox to the left of each question that you want to add.
      2. To sort through all of the questions in the template, use the pagination at the bottom of the modal window, and/or click through the template sections on the left-hand side.
      Tip: The Total Selected count at the top tells you how many questions you currently have selected.
3. Once you've selected all desired questions, click the Add button on the bottom of the modal window.  
   
4. To view the questions you have added, click All. Then, click the name of the system template from which you have added the questions, as shown below.
   

Now, configure your questions by adding point values to each. See the next section for details.

Configuring System Template Questions

Once you've added System Template questions to your questionnaire, you will configure points for each answer in order to "score" your vendor on their assessment responses.
Your organization will need to determine an approach for measuring the points or "weight" of the questions in your assessments. Each of the vendor's correct or partially-correct answers count towards the total score for the questionnaire. The total score is then calculated into the vendor's Vendor Score. See here for more information about Vendor Scores.

If you're not already working in your questionnaire, see steps 1-3 below, to navigate to the questionnaire builder.

1. From the navigation panel on the left, click Vendor Management > Questionnaires.
2. Click on the name of the questionnaire needing attention.
3. Click the Configure button under the Questionnaire Versions section of the page.
   
4. You have two options for assigning points to your questions:
   
   1. Assigning the same points to all questions:
      
      1. Add a point value in the field next to the Set For All button. The Points value must be a whole number.
         
      2. Click Set For All. Then, click Accept when prompted.
         The maximum possible score of the questionnaire is displayed at the top of the questionnaire builder (Total Points).
         
         Note: If you've also included questions in the checkbox format, the Set For All feature will assign the specified point value as the Weight of each checkbox answer option (click to view example).
   2. Assigning different points to each question:
      
      1. Click the pencil icon button to edit a question.
         
      2. Add a value to the Points field, and click the check icon button. The Points value must be a whole number.
         
      3. Repeat the two above steps until you've assigned points to all of your questions.
         The maximum possible score of the questionnaire is displayed at the top of the questionnaire builder (Total Points).
5. Once you have assigned points to all questions and you are satisfied with your questionnaire, click the Mark as Configured button. This will change the questionnaire status to "Configured".
   

Now, as a final step, the questionnaire must be marked as "Reviewed". Depending on your organization, your supervisor or another individual on your team may need to perform the review. Skip to the Reviewing and Finalizing Questionnaires section for instructions.

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Method 2: Importing Custom Questions

You can upload a CSV file containing custom questions and the answer format you'd like to provide for each.

Once you've uploaded your custom questions you'll configure answer options (if applicable) and add points for each question. Follow the steps below for instructions:

1. From the Add Questions From: portion of the page, click the Import Questions from CSV button (the second button in the group), as shown below.
2. From the Import Questions modal window, use the Click to Upload button to locate your CSV file. Ensure that your file is properly formatted. Expand the below menu to see the CSV file specifications. 
   
   CSV File Specifications

   Ensure your file meets the following specifications:

   • The separator should be a comma (,) and the file should be a valid CSV. Click here to download an example CSV file.
   • The file should have the following header line: question, type, is_informational
     • The question and type fields are mandatory. The is_informational field is optional. 
   • The question fields have a limit of 1,000 characters.
   • The type field entries must be in one of the formats italicized below:
     • free - Free Form Text
     • checkbox - Checkbox
     • multi - Multiple Choice
     • boolean - Yes/ No/ N/A
     Note: If the type input fields do not match one of the formats listed above, the question will default to the Free Form Text answer format. For more information on the answer formats, see step 4 in the Configuring Imported Questions section, below.
   • If you choose to include the is_informational header, the field entries should be one of the following:
     • 0 - Questions that are not informational
     • 1 - Questions that are informational
     Tip: You can include questions that are solely for informative purposes, and therefore do not need to be assigned a point value for the questionnaire.
     As an alternative to using the is_informational header in your CSV import, from your console, click the Informational checkbox (click to view) to omit a point value for the question.
     Note: If you are using Excel, your CSV must be saved in the CSV UTF-8 format.
3. Once you've successfully imported your file, click the Add button. 
   
4. To view the questions that you have imported, click All. Then, click Custom Questions, as shown below.
   

Now you will configure and assign point values to each of your imported questions. See the next section for details.

Configuring Imported Questions

Once you've imported questions to your questionnaire, you will configure and add points for each question in order to "score" your vendor on their assessment responses.
Your organization will need to determine an approach for measuring the points or "weight" of the questions in your assessments. Each of the vendor's correct or partially-correct answers count towards the total score for the questionnaire. The total score is then calculated into the vendor's Vendor Score. See here for more information about Vendor Scores.

If you're not already working in your questionnaire, see steps 1-3 below to navigate to the questionnaire builder.

1. From the navigation panel on the left, click Vendor Management > Questionnaires.
2. Click on the name of the questionnaire needing attention.
3. Click the Configure button under the Questionnaire Versions section of the page.
   

See the following steps to configure your questions and add point values:

4. From the Questions area on the right side of the page, click the pencil icon button to edit and configure each question.  
   
5. Depending on which question format(s) you're using, the configurations settings will vary slightly. Expand each drop-down for more information. 
   
   
   Free Form Text

   User Experience: Users are provided with a blank answer field (users cannot leave this field blank).

   Add a value for the question in the Points field. The point value must be a whole number.

   Tip: If you're setting the same point values for all questions, skip this step and use the Set For All button instead.

   Multiple Choice

   User Experience: Users will select one multiple choice answer.

   1. Click + Add Option and add each answer option.
   2. Select a radio button under Correct to specify the correct answer.
   3. Add a value in the Points field. The point value must be a whole number. 
      Tip: If you're setting the same point values for all questions, skip this step and use the Set For All button instead.

   Checkbox

   User Experience: Users can pick one or more checkbox answers.

   1. Edit each default answer option. Click + Add Option to add additional answer options.
   2. Add a Weight for each answer option. Each weight value must be a whole and positive number. The total of all weight values determines the maximum possible point value for the question. 
      
      Tip: As a best practice for checkbox answers and Vendor Scores, the undesired answer options should have "0" weight.

   Yes / No / N/A

   User Experience: Users will select one answer.

   1. Select a radio button under Correct to specify the correct answer.
   2. Add a value in the Points field. The point value must be a whole number.
      
      Tip: If you're setting the same point values for all questions, skip this step and use the Set For All button instead.
6. Repeat steps 4-5 above, until you've configured all imported questions. Then, if you have not done so already, set a point value for all questions. 
   The maximum possible score of the questionnaire is displayed at the top of the questionnaire builder (Total Points).
7. When you are satisfied with your questionnaire, click the Mark as Configured button. This will change the questionnaire status to "Configured".
   

Now, as a final step, the questionnaire must be marked as "Reviewed". Depending on your organization, your supervisor or another individual on your team may need to perform the review. Skip to the Reviewing and Finalizing Questionnaires section for instructions.

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Method 3: Creating and Configuring Custom Questions

You can create custom questions and specify the types of answer formats the assessee–or the individual completing your questionnaire–can respond with.

Follow the steps below to create and configure custom questions in your questionnaire builder.

1. From the Add Questions From: area of the page, click the Add Custom Question button (the third button in the group), as shown below.
   
2. From the Create Question modal window, type your question in the Type your question here... field. 
   Tip: You can format your questions on multiple lines. When typing, press the Return or Enter button on your keyboard and your formatting will be saved.
3. Then, use the drop-down menu to the right (shown below) to select the type of answer you want the questionnaire assessee to respond with.
   
4. Set Points and configure your question (if applicable). Question configurations will slightly vary, depending on which question format you're using. Expand the drop-downs below for configuration details, and for details about the user experience with each question format. 
   
   Free Form Text

   User Experience: Users are provided with a blank answer field (users cannot leave this field blank).

   Add a value to the Points field. This value must be a whole number. 

   Tip: If you're setting the same point values for all questions, skip this step and use the Set For All button after all questions have been added.

   Multiple Choice

   User Experience: Users will select one multiple choice answer.

   1. Add each answer option. Click + Add Option to add additional answer options.
   2. Select a radio button under Correct to specify the correct answer.
   3. Add a value to the Points field. This value must be a whole number.
      
      Tip: If you're setting the same point values for all questions, skip this step and use the Set For All button after all questions have been added.

   Checkbox

   User Experience: Users can pick one or more checkbox answers.

   1. Add each answer option. Click + Add Option to add additional answer options.
   2. Add a Weight for each answer option. Each weight value must be a whole and positive number. The total of all weight values determines the maximum possible point value for the question.
      
      Tip: As a best practice for checkbox answers and Vendor Scores, the undesired answer options should have "0" weight.

   Yes / No / N/A

   User Experience: Users will select one answer.

   1. Select a radio button under Correct to specify the correct answer.
   2. Add a value to the Points field. This value must be a whole number.
      
      Tip: If you're setting the same point values for all questions, skip this step and use the Set For All button after all questions have been added.
   Tip: You can include questions that are solely for informative purposes, and therefore, do not need to be assigned a point value. Click the Informational checkbox (click to view) to omit a point value for the question.
5. Click the Add button to add the question to your questionnaire.
   
   Note: If you'd like to create another question, click the Add Another checkbox before clicking Add.
   
   
6. Repeat steps 2-5, above, until you've created all questions. Then, if you have not done so already, set a point value for all questions. The maximum possible score of the questionnaire is displayed at the top of the questionnaire builder (Total Points).
7. When you're satisfied with your questionnaire, click the Mark as Configured button. This will change the questionnaire status to "Configured". 
    

Now, as a final step, the questionnaire must be marked as "Reviewed". Depending on your organization, your supervisor or another individual on your team may need to perform the review. See the Reviewing and Finalizing Questionnaires section below for instructions.

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Sorting Questions

Before you mark your questionnaire as "Reviewed", you have the option to change the order of the questions in your assessment.

By default, the questions are listed in the order they were added to your questionnaire. The order field (shown below) displays the position of each question.

If you'd like to change the position of a question, follow the steps below:

1. From the questionnaire builder, navigate to the question that you want to reorder.
2. Click the order field to the right of the question.
3. Click the arrow buttons or type a number to specify a new position for the question.
   
4. Press the Enter key on your keyboard to save the new position.

The question instantly takes the specified position and the question that previously resided in that position is automatically moved to the subsequent position. For example, if you have Question A as the 7th question, and then change Question B to the 7th question, Question A will now be question 8.

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Reviewing and Finalizing Questionnaires

As a final step before sending a questionnaire, a Vendor Administrator or an Account Administrator must mark the questionnaire as "Reviewed".

Follow the steps below to review the questionnaire:

1. If you're not already working in the questionnaire, click Vendor Management > Questionnaires from the navigation panel on the left-hand side.
2. Click on the name of the questionnaire that needs to be reviewed.
3. Click the Review button under the Questionnaire Versions section of the page.
   
4. Review your questions from the questionnaire builder (the Update Questionnaire page) or from the Questionnaire Preview page–as outlined below.
   
   
   1. From the Update Questionnaire page, review all of the questions by clicking through each of the question sets on the left-hand side of the page (if applicable). All imported and manually created questions are found under Custom Questions, and any system templates you've used are listed below.
   2. If the questionnaire contains questions from a system template, use the arrow to the left of the template name to expand all of the sections within the template. 
   3. As an alternative to reviewing the questionnaire from the questionnaire builder (the Update Questionnaire page), click the Preview button to view the template in a more user-friendly format, similar to what your questionnaire assessee will see in their vendor portal.
5. Once you've reviewed the questions and ensured that the correct points have been assigned to each, click the Mark as Reviewed button toward the top-right of the questionnaire builder.
   

The questionnaire is now finalized and ready to be sent. You will send questionnaires from the applicable Vendor Profile. See our Sending Vendor Questionnaires article to learn how to send your questionnaire.

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Custom Questionnaire Templates

Once your questionnaire is in "Reviewed" status, you have the option to save the questionnaire as a custom questionnaire template. By doing so, you will be able to reuse the questionnaire template in a new questionnaire. 

Follow the steps below for details about creating custom questionnaire templates:

1. Open the questionnaire that you want to save as a template. From the left navigation panel, click Vendor Management > Questionnaires, then, click the questionnaire name to open it in the questionnaire builder.
   
   Note: Questionnaires must be in a "Reviewed" status to create a template.
2. Click the Create Template button on the right-hand side of the page.
   
3. Then, click Yes when prompted. 

Once you have created a custom template you can add it to a new questionnaire. From the questionnaire builder, in the Add Questions From: area, click the first button on the left, as shown below.

Your custom template will be listed on the left-hand side of this modal window. Click the template name to select some or all of the questions from your custom template.

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Exporting Questionnaires

Once a questionnaire is marked as "Configured" you can export the questionnaire into a CSV file.

Follow the steps below to export your questionnaire:

1. Navigate to your questionnaire by clicking Vendor Management > Questionnaires from the navigation panel on the left-hand side of the page. 
2. Click on the name of the questionnaire you'd like to export.
3. From the Questionnaire - [Questionnaire Name] page, click the Export button to download your CSV file.
   

To see details about the CSV file, expand the Export Details menu, below.

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Cloning Questionnaires

Once a questionnaire is marked as "Configured" you can clone the questionnaire to make a duplicate copy. The cloned questionnaire can then be modified as needed.

Follow the steps below to create and modify a questionnaire clone:

1. Navigate to your questionnaire by clicking Vendor Management > Questionnaires from the navigation panel on the left-hand side of the page. 
2. Click on the name of the questionnaire you'd like to clone.
3. From the Questionnaire - [Questionnaire Name] page, click the Clone button.
   
4. Then, the cloned questionnaire opens in the questionnaire builder (Update Questionnaire page). The questionnaire will have the same name as the original version, but with "-Cloned" added at the end. If you'd like, use the Name field to change the name of the questionnaire at this time. 
5. Use the questionnaire builder to edit your questions, change point values, and to add additional questions to your cloned questionnaire. If you do not wish to make changes to the cloned questionnaire at this time, the cloned questionnaire will be available from the Questionnaires page in your account. 

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