Training Industry Magazine - Summer 2024 - 21

During
career
planning
exercises,
employees reference their results to
develop personal goals.
We've designed over a dozen automated
touchpoints in our asynchronous
culture. This enables employees to
grow together without a human coach
being present. We have evidence of the
impact: According to our most recent
engagement survey, employees who
report using the personality assessment
are 7-10 percentage points more engaged
at the company.
ASSESSMENTS AS A TOOL,
NOT AN END
Our goal is to design a more effective
workplace, not to disseminate irrelevant
information or reinforce bias.
This is why we avoid using personality
assessments prescriptively. They never
influence hiring, promotions or transfer
decisions. Because the assessment is only
a tool, we encourage employees to share
statements they agree with - and why
- plus any they'd like to replace. We end
every activity by discussing the question,
" How will this conversation influence how
you work together? " This drives action.
These approaches
yield higher
engagement with the assessment and
create more meaningful conversations
in our group coaching sessions. When
employees own their development
tools, they use them with more
fidelity and earnestness.
Another employee shared a testimonial
after their Workstyles Session: " This
session provided an insightful analysis
of my results where I could better
comprehend how my innate self shows
up at work (and in life). I walked away with
an enhanced understanding of things
that I am intrinsically motivated by, which
is powerful information to consider when
building my schedule/workflow. I also
have insight now into how to identify some
risk factors for overwhelm and burnout. "
HOW TO GET STARTED
Your organization can use a personality
assessment to drive engagement and
meaningful relationships. Start with a few
small steps:
Danielle Meinert loves to help people grow
and learn. She's supported learning and
development at companies like Zapier,
Dropbox and Guild. Email Danielle.
TRAINING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE - SUMMER 2024 I WWW.TRAININGINDUSTRY.COM/MAGAZINE
Use assessments as a tool: The goal
isn't for your employees to understand
how your assessment works or to
read all results without taking action.
The goal is to use it as a tool for
development and connection. Instead
of explaining all the tool's terminology
and theory, help your employees
understand the core philosophy.
Then design interactive trust-building
activities
that help you meet your
organization's goals, like driving higher
engagement and retention.
Expand access across teams: who can
take the assessment today? Consider
expanding to as many employees as
you can. This supports an equitable,
organization-wide l&d strategy
that respects each teammate's
abilities and needs.
Asynchronous tools. Once you've
offered live coaching to your
employees about their results, assess
when they're in a state of flux. When
a senior leader leaves, for example,
teams are looking for stability. A
personality
tool
helps employees
connect and reflect during these
moments of change
Using personality assessments across
three companies has led me to
understand that:
Personality assessments aren't " set
it and forget it. " Results are easily
misinterpreted unless you support a
thoughtful, curious and open culture.
Any personality assessment requires
intentionality to enable productive
work relationships.
These tools can positively transform
any working environment whether in
person, remote or hybrid.
You can drive a productive, trustworthy
culture at your organization using a
personality tool to promote reflection
and action. How will you drive
engagement in your organization?
6 STEPS TO DESIGN
A PRODUCTIVE AND
TRUSTWORTHY
USER EXPERIENCE
When reviewing these example
steps to implement a personality
assessment, consider how you'd
adjust for your organization's
culture.
1. SURVEY:
the
assessment
Automatically
during
new
assign
hire
onboarding. To encourage honesty
and a feeling of safety, include
a statement about how results
are used.
2. RESULTS: Automatically and privately
share results with each employee.
Include a reminder about how
results are used and what action to
take next.
3. WORKSTYLES INTRO SESSION: After
an employee takes the assessment,
automatically invite them to the next
Workstyles Intro Session for new
hires. A trained facilitator should guide
the group through nonjudgmental
reflection activities. End the session
by helping participants take action on
their results.
4. GROUP COACHING: Offer virtual
workstyles sessions for duos (like a
manager and their direct report) and
for teams. Participants should have
the ability to sign up at any time and
receive reminders to participate
during periods of change or stress.
5. EVERYDAY WORK: Embed
selfserve
resources to help teammates
build their relationships during group
and 1:1 meetings. For new teams and
within weekly meeting agendas,
automatically post appropriate
icebreaker questions that are based
on your personality tool.
6. EVALUATE WHAT'S WORKING: You
know your organization's culture best.
Adapt based on employee feedback
and needs.
21
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Training Industry Magazine - Summer 2024

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