Some experts in Human Resources (HR) are certified professional behavior analysts, which allows them to assess the behavioral style of employees and potential hires. The Davidson’s Group Mark Moser is a certified behavioral analyst.
Mark was playing golf and was paired with a father and son he didn’t know. After a few holes, he asked the son if he was an engineer or accountant. The player smiled and confirmed he was a mechanical engineer. Mark suspected that his behavioral style (or personality style) was consistent with someone you would expect to be successful in engineering or accounting.
Personality tests have been around for decades. Most people have taken at least one test in their life. To improve hiring effectiveness, many organizations incorporate one of the myriad types of personality profiles. This post will discuss the widely-used DISC profile.
In 1928, psychologist William Moulton Marston introduced the DISC Personality Model in his book Emotions of Normal People. The first DISC assessment was created in 1940 by Walter Clarke, which was based on Marston’s work. John Geier popularized the test during the 1970s. Organization use this assessment to improve communication, coaching and overall performance by identifying different work styles.
We observe contrasting behavioral styles all the time. Some people are naturally outgoing, while others are more reserved. Some people are more detail-oriented; some are more achievement-oriented. Some are sensitive, and others are more focused on getting the work done. Employees perform well when their natural behavior style aligns with their role.
The problem I had prior to using DISC was that I judged candidates on the combination of their technical skills and their interviewing skills. But I eventually figured out that we could train technical skills and that interviewing skills weren’t that relevant to nor predictive of performance in most jobs. I began to focus on finding people who were trainable, had a demonstrated work ethic, and had a DISC profile that was compatible with the natural demands of the job. That proved to be the combination that lead me to start hiring winners.
Contact the Davidson Group if your good hire percentage is lower than expected and you are not utilizing the DISC in your selection process. Mark would be delighted to show you how easy it is to benchmark a role in your company, so that you can improve your good hire rate and organizational efficiency.
