Qualifications recognized under the Qualifications Framework (QF) are outcome-based and are not confined to academic attainment. In the case of the academic sector, the outcome standard of qualifications is mainly the knowledge and skills a person possesses. Generally, these standards are set by scholars. In the vocational sector, the outcome standards of qualifications are set by individual industries. To identify the specific outcome standards required for different levels of qualifications, these industries need to develop SCSs.

The SCS for an industry mainly comprises the competency standards required at various levels. These competency standards represent the industry benchmarks for the skills, knowledge and attributes required to perform a job at a certain level. The competency standards will be grouped together to form a qualification at a particular level. The assessment guidelines for the outcome standards will also be stipulated in the SCS.

The development of SCSs is an important step in implementing the QF and its associated quality assurance mechanism. Industries play a pivotal role in the process through participation in the Industry Training Advisory Committees (ITACs), which are tasked to develop, maintain and update the SCSs.

To ensure continued relevance of an SCS, the ITAC concerned must review and update the SCS regularly to keep abreast of the latest manpower requirements. Minor amendments to the competency standards may also be required annually. The SCS should furthermore be flexible enough to be of assistance to both small and large companies as well as to meet the full range of education and training needs of the industry.

The competency standards applicable to an industry are presented as "units of competency" in its SCS. Every "unit of competency" comprises eight basic items:

1. Name
2. Code
3. Level
4. Credit
5. Competency
6. Range
7. Assessment Criteria
8. Remarks