In the Office: Personality Profiles

For years, business owners have questioned the value of conducting personality profiles. But an ever-growing number of employers, battered and bruised from the labor wars of the 1990s, have learned to appreciate the usefulness of a good personality profile.

In the past, most employer concerns were based on fears related to privacy (years ago it was not in vogue to reveal one’s "true self"), trust (some people feared that the results would be used against them), the apparent value of experience (past work experience was once the "sacred cow" of hiring – now employers realize the importance of hiring for attitude and training for skill), and legal liabilities (many of the early personality profiles asked personal and non-job-related questions).

Because of the continued need to build consensus, develop strong leaders and hire people that fit a company’s culture, employer attitudes toward personality profiles have changed. Many have found out what we already know – that a good personality profile helps reduce the costs and liabilities associated with placing a "square peg in a round hole."

The theory behind personality profiles is that people perform their best when they are in a position that allows them to draw on their natural strengths. When people are in a position that causes them to act unnaturally, it creates stress and lowers productivity. Profiles identify a person’s natural tendencies, which helps determine what roles suit them best. An effective profile can save years of learning how to understand someone.

Of course, personality profiles are only one piece of the hiring puzzle. There are many traits that a personality profile cannot measure, such as experience, maturity, judgment, cultural tendencies, intellect and a sense of humor, among others. And although two people can score similarly on a personality profile, they are still distinct and different individuals. A good personality profile will not provide a complete picture of an individual, but it will define a "template" personality from which traits emanate.

Personality profiles should never be used as the sole determining factor in an employment decision (hire, promotion, demotion, etc.). They should be combined with other valuable hiring tools, including an in-depth and job-specific interview, a comprehensive and legally compliant application form, background checks (criminal, credit or motor vehicle, as needed), reference checks, job-related pre-employment testing tools, a drug screen and others. Results from all of these should be evaluated carefully and considered as a whole.

A good personality profile should measure "template" personality traits – it should not attempt to define attitudes or feelings. Also, I have found that a good profile that measures an individual’s "rock bottom" personality is useful for any position. In other words, it is not always necessary to use position-specific profiles. A person’s personality traits remain the same regardless of his or her position.

Personality profiles should be practical to administer, legally compliant, cost effective, easy to understand and job-related. Here are some important tips:

• Ensure that the criteria you use to select who takes the profile are non-discriminatory. Personality profiles or employment tests that weed out people based on age, sex, religion, disability or other protected categories are illegal.

• Complete the profile yourself before administering it to employees or candidates. This way, you will have a greater understanding of how it is interpreted.

• Provide people with a copy of the profile results (or the appropriate portion of results). People who take time to share personal information deserve to walk away with the results. Likewise, prior to hire, you may want to share a copy of your own results with a candidate whom you will supervise. After all, if you are interested in building relationships and enhancing communication, wouldn’t it help if your employees understood you and your style better?

The right personality profile can provide invaluable insight into the person you are about to trust with your business, image, equipment and customers. As a pre-hire tool, personality profiles are one piece of the hiring puzzle that you shouldn’t hire without.

Jean L. Seawright is president of Seawright & Associates in Winter Park, Fla. She can be contacted at 407/645-2433 or jpileggi@seawright.com.