Implementing a systematic approach for the selection and development of executives and understanding how to create the conditions for their development into effective leaders is essential for success across organizations.
At bCoached we strongly believe in the adoption of psychometric assessments to measure the personality not only of those executives operating within the organization, but also of those that you may be selecting. We make extensive use of the Hogan Leadership Forecast Series and consult you on the selection and development of those executives whose scores demonstrate both strong leadership skills and a high fit with the culture of the organization and.
A widely accepted explanation of what personality refers to is “the long-standing traits and patterns that drive individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways. Our personalities are thought to be long term, stable, and not easily changed”. When this is the understanding of what personality is, it would be common sense to take personality into account when we hire and develop leaders within organizations. As a matter of fact, personality is as important as job competence in predicting and measuring job performance.
The good news is that job competence and personality can both be tested. However, the one that is always thoroughly examined by organizations is the first at the expense of the latter, which is often restricted to desirable qualities listed on a job offer and assessed during job interviews or reviewed during annual 360 evaluations without specific scientific criteria or instruments.
As we all agree that we wouldn’t hire a civil engineer for a cardiologist position within a hospital, would we recruit a Finance Director with the behavioral tendency to become moody and excitable within an Auditing Firm?
Let’s examine how the Hogan Assessment Systems acknowledge and measure normal personality within the business community and what are the advantages they bring to leadership and orverall organizational performance.
According to Drs. Joyce and Robert Hogan personality has two dimensions: personality from the inside and personality from the outside.
Personality from the inside is the way we describe ourselves to the external world; basically this is the person we think we are and is what Dr. Hogan defines as ”Identity”. Precisely, ‘Identity” is the story we tell others about ourselves and is based on our self-representation. It is important to note that when we speak about our identity, the personality traits we attach to ourselves are often overestimated and based on personal hopes, dreams and ambitions. Here are some examples of how we may tell the story about ourselves: “I am a multitasker”; I can definitely show empathy”. “I am well organized”. “I have a good sense of humor”.
Personality from the outside is the way others describe us; basically this is the person external observers think we are and is what Dr. Hogan calls “Reputation”. Precisely, “Reputation” is the story several other people, not just one person, tell about us. When we refer to reputation, our personality traits are evaluated by several external people after they have observed our behavior when interacting with others numerous times, not just once. Here are some examples of how they may tell the story about us: “She’s a people person”. “He’s an empath”. “She’s the expert when it comes to time management”. “He’s a Yes Man”.
What the Hogan Assessment Systems measure is Reputation. As quoted by Robert Hogan “ Freud would say the you that you think you are is hardly worth knowing, because you made it all up”. It is your own perception of the person you think you are, without having asked several others what person they think you are instead.
In an interview a candidate may re-iterate to be highly ambitious but if you were to ask several of his former colleagues they may tell how little interested the candidate normally is in competing with peers. As a matter of fact, there may be discrepancies between the way we describe ourselves and the way others describe us.
According to Dr. Robert Hogan, knowing personality, alias reputation, is an important element for both the individual and the organization alike. On one side, it allows the individual to become aware of how his or her behavior is perceived by the observers, so that he or she can make strategic decisions on which behavioral adjustments to introduce in order to enhance the quality of his or her interactions. What the Hogan Assessment Systems help highlight, are those aspects of our interpersonal behavior which need improvement and that we often are not conscious of. For this reason, they provide highly efficient and reliable ways to highlight these issues, so leaders can learn to manage them.
On the other side, they help organizations in their talent selections process, so that they can predict what kind of employee they will be employing during a recruitment process as well as to support their current leaders and high potentials with a developmental plan for strategic self-awareness.
As a leadership development consultant, there are three assessments I highly recommend using for leadership development and talent management.
HPI – Hogan Personality Inventory. This test measures “the bright side of personality”, which comprises the aspects of our personality that others see in us when we are at your best. It is also referred to as our ‘day-to-day personality’ or ‘productive behavior’. These are behavioral tendencies that can be seen in a person every day and that tell us how we react under pressure, relate to and collaborate with others, approach our work and solve problems.
Essentially, the HPI measures normal personality and interpersonal characteristics that are essential for career success and progression. It does reveals important aspects of an individual interactional style that the individual himself may not be aware of and that can cause personal or occupational challenges. This gives an objective and comprehensive portrait of an individual strengths and weaknesses. It is important to note that the Interpretation of HPI results is job specific. Scale scores that are more successful or effective in one job may be detrimental in another job.
HDS – Hogan Development Survey. This test measures “the dark side of personality”, which comprises the personality traits that others see in us during time of increased stressed or when we have a bad day. Precisely, these are behavioral tendencies that are only seen in situations when a person is not managing his or her public image, the so called reputation, such as high stress, change and transformation, multitasking, task saturation or accomplishment. It basically defined as “the dark side of personality” or our “counterproductive behavior”. Our dark side of personality is characterized by interpersonal behaviors that are strengths but, when overused, can cause problems at work or in life. Strengths that are overused are referred to as “derailers” and are real personality risk factors that can hinder and, at their worst, destroy careers. Two examples of overused strengths are self-confidence that turns into arrogance and influence that turns into manipulation.
MVPI – Motives, Values, Proposition Inventory. This test measures the inside side of personality, which comprises an individual profound values, motives and interests which drive career choices and eventually bring job satisfaction. They are at the core of what we believe in and determine our choices before, during and after our working life spam.
The MVPI test is extremely useful to determine the culture fit between an individual and the organization. The MVPI assessment can definitely help a hiring manager establish the compatibility between a candidate and the organizational culture as well as a manager motivate his or her team members according to each individuals’ MVPI results.
At bCoached we highly recommend using the HPI, HDS and MVPI for talent selection and leadership development. We strongly believe that finding the strengths, limiting the risks of personality derailment and discovering the values of your most precious employees is a must for improving organizational performance.
Whether you are a leader or work in talent management, reach out to us for an initial conversation on how we can support you in using the Hogan Assessment System. Or you can contact me directly: silvia@s701698491.onlinehome.us
