Are your Teams set up for Success?

If you analyzed the traits of a football team, you’d find that there were a lot of different personalities on the squad. The same can be said for business. If you sat down with your employees and asked them to complete surveys or personality tests, it’s very unlikely that they would all emerge with the same results. Variety is the spice of life, and different personalities can work together to form the perfect combination. As a manager or an HR professional, personality should always play a role when it comes to recruiting new members of staff or building a team, but how do you know what personality type is missing and what kind of person your company needs?

Techniques used to evaluate team composition

Managing a team is notoriously difficult, and often, this is because people have different personalities. To achieve success in business, you have to have a strong, focused team, but achieving a balance is also key. If you’ve got a group of people who all have the same personality types and traits, you may not be as successful as you would be with a group that contains different personality types. If you feel like your team is lacking in something, recruiting people with specific personality types could prove beneficial. So, how do you analyze the composition of your team, and how can this help to drive your business forward?

Personality tests

There are various tests and profiling processes that can be used to identify personality types. In most cases, these tests use a series of questions or scenarios to discover more information about an individual and determine their personality type.

The Myers-Briggs indicator is one of the most commonly used assessments. This test focuses on introversion versus extroversion, how you process information, how you make decisions and how open you are to new information or different options. The results of the test can provide employers with data about a candidate’s personality, and also what they would need to succeed in the role. A personality test like the Myers-Briggs indicator could give you an insight into what motivates that individual, for example.

The Caliper Test is a test that has been around for approximately 50 years. This test gives you an insight into how employees adapt to a working environment and can help you to get an idea of flexibility, leadership skills and capabilities, and how a candidate would respond to a scenario like a networking event, for example.

Gallup StrengthsFinder

This test uses a series of 177 statements, which correspond to 34 different personality traits. The aim is to identify the five traits, which are most relevant to you. By doing this, you can see whether or not potential candidates have got the traits needed to succeed in the industry in which you operate.

Another test employers may use is the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF). This assessment was developed in 1949, and it is based on the assumption that we all possess 16 key personality traits in varying degrees. By answering 170 questions, you can find out how well your personality is suited to specific roles, as well as how well you’d adapt to different scenarios, for example, high-pressure environments.

Interviews

This is a less scientific approach, but it often proves incredibly valuable. When you’re interviewing somebody, you can learn a lot more about them than by reading a personal statement or a list of academic achievements. Many employers use interviews to learn more about skills and qualifications, but more importantly, to gain an insight into what makes that candidate tick and to determine whether they have the right mentality and personality to thrive in the role. A candidate can have the best grades in the world, but that doesn’t always guarantee their ability to succeed. Personality is a key factor in the vast majority of roles. 

What personality type is missing on your team?

It’s hugely beneficial for managers, HR professionals and senior members of staff to analyze and evaluate the performance of the team as a whole and to monitor progress. Organizing group meetings and individual appraisals can help to keep you on track in terms of deadlines and objectives, but it can also highlight potential obstacles and issues. If the team isn’t working together, why is there a disconnect, and what can be done about it? Tensions, conflict and disagreements can all hold a team back. Sometimes, different personalities don’t get along, but the solution isn’t always to change personnel. Often, altering the dynamic can reap rewards. If you’ve got a personality type missing, for example, you’re lacking a natural leader or a visionary, this can set the entire team back. To identify missing pieces in the puzzle, observe the team, look at results, see how people interact with other and how meetings play out, and analyze the role each individual plays. Have you got a complete picture or do you need somebody who offers something different?

How managers can use these tools to find and identify the right personality types

As a manager, you want to create a strong, cohesive team, which works to the best of its ability. Managing a team of any type can be challenging, and this is largely due to the fact that personalities clash, people work in different ways and different personality types approach tasks in varied ways. If you’ve got a team that is full of head-strong individuals who speak their mind without a second thought, you may find that you don’t get the results you want even though there’s no doubt that the team is full of talent. Often, the key to success lies in finding the right balance. If you’ve got a bunch of extroverts and every meeting ends in arguments or heated debates, which never seem to reach a satisfactory resolution, it may be useful to add a peacemaker or somebody with a level head into the mix. In contrast, if you’ve got a group of introverts, and its difficult to get people to speak up and be heard, recruiting somebody who doesn’t hesitate to speak their mind and bounce ideas around may encourage others to get involved and contribute to more engaging, productive discussions.

If you think you’ve got a personality type missing on your team, it’s useful to try and plug gaps to create a well-rounded group that will function better together. You can use personality tests and interviews to identify people with the traits you’re looking for and enhance the team. As a manager or an HR manager, you don’t want every person in the group to be exactly the same. Using the findings of tests, assessments and interviews could help you pinpoint candidates who will not only excel in the role, but also bring something extra to the group to improve the performance of the entire team. If you know exactly what you want or need, you can set about trying to find that missing puzzle piece. Use the interview process to ask questions, learn more about individuals and gain an insight into how they react to real-life scenarios and adapt to different work environments.

The Best Recruitment Strategies

Acquiring new talent for your business has always been difficult. But in 2018, the process has taken on a new identity and with it new challenges. The vast majority of successful businesses rely on teams of people. It’s very common to work with people who don’t necessarily have the same personality type as you. Sometimes, personalities clash, but often, a mixture of people achieves the best outcomes.

If you think your team is missing certain personality types, consider working with a specialized recruiting firm who can help you identify and hire candidates with the missing traits. If your business is looking to hire more talent and considering using recruiting services, contact us today.