In this article, I’m going to talk about the importance of knowing yourself and the personalities of your team in order to maximize everyone’s contribution to the work of your company.
Remember a time when you were frustrated with a coworker or employee? There’s Ted the talker who always has something to say. Last word Lucy thrives on having the final say and of course there is quiet agreeable Andrew who sees the good in every point and doesn’t make waves. Such dynamics can be a circus, the subject of water-cooler conversations and roadblocks to getting things done and building the best team possible. The importance is learning to recognize these strong personality traits and turn them into assets.
Strength and personality tests are becoming more important in staff hiring and employee development. Before, the focus was centered on the job description and the past experience of the applicant. Today, it’s less about experience but more about how a person approaches their work or project. What is your style, can you adapt, are you a big picture thinker or a person who loves getting it done? For example, give a doer a clearly defined simple job and they work head down and focused until it’s done. Whereas, give the same job to a visionary person, and they question the job at hand and think about the impact every small task will have on future ideas or systems.
We do a short exercise in CO.STARTERS to assess individual working styles as one of four types – the doers, the leaders, the learners and the lovers. It’s a really simple exercise but it makes its point; we are all unique in what we love to do, what we dislike, how we work best and what can get in our way and hinder productivity.
At some point during the growth of your business, you will need to hire your first employee. Perhaps when you launched your company, you did everything and wore every hat. Now you’re in a good cash position to make that first hire.
Here are various tips to help you learn more about yourself or get you on the right track when hiring and maximizing your team.
Job Description
Yes, it’s still important to have written job descriptions. However, it doesn’t have to be just a list of responsibilities. Try telling the story of the job. Here’s what is on Apple’s jobs website about a position in support:
“When a customer becomes an owner, it’s the beginning of a relationship. And this team helps make sure that relationship thrives. You’ll make the most of your own passions to help customers bring their personal projects to life. You might help one customer sync music with video, show another how to retouch their photos, or even teach a child to code. If you have a talent for hands-on problem solving, you can address customers’ technical issues to reconnect them with the Apple experience they love.”
So think about your company in the same way. Be prepared to share the story of your company and how this available job position has evolved. Explain the overall objective of the position along with drilling down to more specific listings of task and responsibilities.
Core values
Along with being able to tell the story of your company, core values can’t be overlooked. Core values are the guiding principles that will dictate behavior and can help people make the right decisions. They help shape your team and get everyone working toward the same goal. Know what you stand for. Know what your company believes. Here is an example of core values from Whole Foods.
We satisfy, delight, and nourish our customers.
We support team member excellence and happiness.
In fourteen simple but chosen words, you already know a lot about Whole Foods. And any one they hire, already knows a lot about what is expected. So take time to think about what your business stands for and write down the core values of your company. Here is a great article by Caroline Forsey of Hubspot’s Marketing Blog that lists 18 core values and examples of companies that incorporate them.
Interviews
Interviews are valuable in assessing the person represented on paper and experiencing their personality live. Put more time into preparing for the interview than the interview itself. Avoid starting with “tell me about yourself” which will tell you nothing. Ask yourself, what do I need and want to know? What do I want the applicant to know? Ask a question, listen clearly then ask a follow-up question. The follow-up question allows you to probe a little deeper and it is where you will begin to truly see the individual. For some helpful tips to get you started on organizing for interviews, click here.
Personality Test
While jobs do require a level of skill or knowledge, skills alone don’t make for great employees. You may hire the perfect person with excellent skills but find out a month later that their abrasive personality is affecting the morale of other employees. This is why knowing and even testing for personality type is becoming more important.
There is not one right personality; it really depends on the job, matching personality to a set of responsibilities. Generally a manager may think it’s OK to hire an introvert as the company accountant. However, if the job also requires working with department heads and communicating forecasts etc., then the position needs someone who is a willing to engage on a one-to-one level. Knowing employees plays a crucial role in motivating employees to deliver their level best.
Two weeks ago, at the Business Boutique Conference I got to hear Ian Morgan Cron speak about personality types and the enneagram. The nine-pointed enneagram is a tool for personal and collective understanding. Each point represents a distinct personality type reflecting how we as an individual may think, feel, act and behave. It helps us understand ourselves and how we relate to others.
The value in understanding more deeply each enneagram personality is understanding how the individual works with other enneagram types, what motivates them, what drives them crazy and what their fears and concerns may be. For example, a #1 on the enneagram is the reformer/perfectionist; you can probably already write a description in your head of this type of personality. A #2 is a helper/giver and that on the surface is also easy to understand. These two have a lot in common, they both strive for good and what is best but the perfectionist will do it by placing their beliefs on others versus a giver will solve the problem from the others perspective.
There is a lot to know about personalities in the workplace so these resources are a only few suggestions to help get you started.
16 Personalities is a free and fun way to begin exploring personalities. (For parents, it’s also a great thing to do with young adult children. My son Jake and I sat on the porch during a summer rain and we both did 16 Personalities. We had aha moments and laughed at many things, making it a favorite summer memory.)
In your business, have each team member do it alone and bring one or two takeaways to share with fellow staff e.g. what would be a good thing for us to know about your personality style?
This article from Career Addict lists other personality tests and the focus and benefit of each.
Talent and Strength Assessment
Talents are what we are naturally good at. With the investment of time and the development of our talents, they then become our strengths. Employees experience job satisfaction when they use their strengths and thus are more engage and happy on the job. Another benefit, less fatigue and more energy.
You probably have a good idea of your strengths. To confirm what you know, ask five to ten close friends or coworkers. They will likely affirm what you know but may also point out something new. For yourself or employees, you can also use on line strength assessments such as Clifton Strength Finders. The assessment shows the unique combination of 34 themes that is the unique you. Themes include descriptors such as analytical, developer, arranger, maximizer and learner.
Conclusion
These are good places to get started building a team who will understand each other and work to each other’s strengths and personalities. If you are growing your team and need more guidance from a professional in the field, have a conversation with Abby Lechner of Human Capital Associates. She’s worked with many Erie businesses of all sizes advising on HR needs such as policy and procedures, employee engagement, organizational design and more.
Making sense of it all
At some point during the growth of your business, you will need to hire your first employee. Here are a list of things to consider as you hire and build your team.
Job Description - Yes, it’s still important to have written job descriptions. However, it doesn’t have to be just a list of responsibilities. Try framing the job in a story.
Core values - Core values are the guiding principles that will dictate behavior and can help people make the right decisions. They help shape your team and get everyone working toward the same goal.
Interviews - Interviews are valuable in assessing the person represented on paper and experiencing their personality live. Put more time into preparing for the interview than the interview itself.
Personality Test - While jobs do require a level of skill or knowledge, skills alone don’t make for great employees. Knowing employees plays a crucial role in motivating employees to deliver their level best. See Personality section above for helpful links.
Talent and Strength Assessment - The talents are what we are naturally good at. With the investment of time and the development of our talents, they then become our strengths. When we work in our strengths we have increased job satisfaction and are more engaged and happy on the job. Click on the link in the corresponding section above to take a strength assessment.
I’m all about guiding and supporting small business owners. For more helpful articles on managing and growing your small business, visit my website. Or feel free to contact me with your specific questions.