Personality tests and staff development

Max Du Pree

What’s the most crucial decision you’ve made as a leader of Herman Miller? “…to make Herman Miller a truly inclusive organization – participative – everybody sharing in the gains and savings, everybody a stock holder, people having the opportunity to reach their potential at the same time that the company reached its potential.

Max Du Pree

“… The way in which an organization reaches its potential is through the vehicle of individuals’ reaching theirs.”

Uses of Personality Assessments

• Hiring • Evaluation and promotion • Matching people and tasks • Conflict diffusion • Diversity understanding

Variety of personality inventories

• Circumplex Model• Five Factor Model (FFM)• Predictive Index (PI)• Strengthsfinder (Gallup)• Myers-Brigg (MBTI)• 360 feedback / Belbin Team roles• Clinical– Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)– Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III (MCMI-III)– Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF)

Circumplex Model

+ History back to 1946- Terminology judgmental

Five Factor Model (FFM)

+ Simple to administer- Seems “corporate” and perhaps too simple to capture human diversity

Five Factor Model

1.Surgency/Extraverson

2.Agreeableness

3.Conscientiiousness

4.Neuroticism

5.Openness to Experience

Predictive Index(PI)+ Widely used by corporate human resources + History going back to 1955+ Simple to administer- Tends to be used in hiring situations-Seems too simple to capture human diversity-Cost to administer http://www.piworldwide.com

Predictive Index1.Patience2.Dominance3.Extroversion4.Formality

StrengthFinder

• “New” (2001)• Positive terminology• Based on broad Gallup

survey• Some consider it

arbitrary• Somewhat complex• One must pay for the

formal instrument http://strengths.gallup.com

Futuristic Harmony Ideation Inclusiveness Individualization Input Intellection Learner Maximizer Positivity Relator Responsibility Restorative Self-Assurance Significance Strategic Woo

Achiever Activator AdaptabilityAnalyticalArranger Belief CommandCommunication Competition Connectedness Context Deliberative Developer Discipline Empathy Fairness Focus

Myers-Briggs: helpful for staff interaction• History back to

1942, and Jung• Fee and Free

versions available

• Team building• Group dynamics• Professional

development

- Complex questionnaire

- Cultural bias- Some axises

seem more important than others

Belbin Team Roles / 360 feedback• Plant• Resource Investigator• Co-ordinator• Shaper• Monitor Evaluator• Teamworker• Implementer• Completer Finisher• Specialist

• Which are useful in library settings?• Anyone have a brief comment of how

personality tests have been helpful in your experience?