I am a huge proponent of utilizing various personal profiles and assessments in the leadership development programs I create for my clients.  Among my favorites are DiSC, The Strengthfinder 2.0, Workplace Big 5, and the LBAII (Situational Leadership).  These instruments are tools that can have a profound effect at helping individuals learn more about themselves as well as their co-workers and team members.  If used properly, they can create a common language within the culture and assist in helping individuals move from their current state to a more desirable state.  The key is to use them as tools that support the organizational vision, goals, topic and/or objectives that I am addressing.  I believe that when they (assessments) become the basis of a course, it might create confusion for the participants.  In other words – they may be asking “why do I need to know this?”

Just recently a participant of one of my “Strategic Communication: Utilizing the DiSC Profile” workshops come up to me after the session to tell me that they were apprehensive about coming to this session because they had been to other DiSC workshops in the past.  Prior companies she had worked for had mandated that everyone attend a session on DiSC, and even though it was good information she didn’t understand the rationale for the session.  However, she said that I focused a lot more on DiSC as being a tool that can be used to strengthen relationships within the team and to improve your overall effectiveness as a leader.  She said my session was her fourth DiSC session, but now the “light bulb” has finally gone off.  She continued by saying that she mentally checked out of the prior sessions because she got bored with all the theory.

I frequently receive inquiries by current and potential clients to do sessions on MBTI, or DiSC, or Workplace Big 5, but it is important for me to know why they want this particular session?  What do they want the instrument to do for them?”  These are vital questions because I have learned that they have a vision or outcome they are looking for as a result of this session.  It is my job to get them to articulate this vision and then determine if and how an assessment will help them achieve it.   It is similar to if I go into a Home Improvement Store and I ask the Salesperson for a hammer.  Most Salespeople I encounter would ask me “what do you want to spend?”  Then they give me a hammer in my price range.  However, the excellent Salesperson would first ask me “what do you want to use the hammer for?”  Based on my response, they will show me the hammer I need to do the job properly, or they may tell me “based on what you want to do, a hammer is not what you need – you need a drill”?

So in my opinion, I believe reliable and valid assessments and profiles are great – only when used to help you achieve your objective!

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