In most workplaces, you’ll encounter people talking about building their team and ways to improve teamwork. This is an especially important topic for Human Resources Managers or those in charge of large corporations, as finding the best fit for their team members can lead to improved productivity and reduced turnover. Here are some of the most common Team Building issues that HR Managers and corporations face:
How can you tell if someone will fit in with your company culture or what their strengths and weaknesses are based on an interview alone? Luckily, there are a number of assessments that test just that.
An individual’s behavior in conflict situations—that is, situations in which the concerns of two people appear to be incompatible, is essential to understand for every team member.
The Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) assesses a team members conflict handling mode based on Assertiveness; the extent to which the individual attempts to satisfy his or her own concerns. It also takes into consideration Cooperativeness; the extent to which the individual attempts to satisfy the other person’s concerns. First we need to understand that sometimes, conflict is unavoidable.
It’s impossible to completely avoid conflict, both at work and elsewhere in life. After all, it’s human nature to disagree. Problem solving and planning are just two elements of day-to-day business that actually benefit from conflict, as a diversity of opinion is healthy for organizations of any size. But what happens when conflict becomes volatile?
Conflicts that are left unchecked can reduce a team’s productivity and lead to low morale. This is why the TKI assessment is an industry standard for many HR professionals and corporations. The Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument shows your team what others are doing in similar situations and helps them understand and gauge more about their own behavior in tense conditions. As you’ll next find out, identifying conflict styles is the key to learning how to work well with others.
As we mentioned before, a person’s conflict style is based on two factors: Assertiveness and Cooperativeness. These two dimensions of behavior can then be used to define five styles of dealing with conflict, which is the core of the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI). You can see below how the assessment grades each style:
* This two-dimensional model of conflict-handling behavior is adapted from “Conflict and Conflict Management” by Kenneth Thomas in The Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, edited by Marvin Dunnette (Chicago: Rand McNally, 1976). Another valuable contribution in this field is the work by Robert Blake and Jane Mouton in The Managerial Grid (Houston: Gulf Publishing, 1964, 1994).
To learn more about the 5 conflict styles, check out a sample TKI report
The TKI report delivers to each team member their 5 conflict management styles, and which one is the most prevalent for them. Each style is appropriate at different times and can be effective in different situations, so learning your primary mode is an important step toward minimizing conflict. The assessment will also show how team members can use their less preferred modes to resolve conflict at work, home, or in their social lives.
We know that conflict is a part of daily life, but also that any successful team must have a singular goal. Toxic relationships and resentment can derail any organization’s focus, so we always recommend testing your whole team!
The TKI is a great tool for resolving small, or large-scale conflict, and is designed to get your whole team on the same page. Once your team takes the assessment, you’ll have the tools you need to conduct your own training sessions, retreats, or workshops.
Internal communication is a key component for businesses to function effectively. Team members should feel comfortable speaking to their peers, but also their managers. Keeping an open line of communication can lead to a boost in productivity, so it should be every organizations priority to make sure communication is flowing smoothly. Without testing your team, it is very difficult to predict how their behaviors will mesh with one another. That’s where the FIRO-B, or Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Assessment can help.
Many organizations all over the world have been utilizing the FIRO-B assessment for decades. This test shows team members what their behavior is and how that applies to their relationships, both at work and at home. This is handy information when the goal is to improve communication. With this tool, your team will learn how to maximize the impact of their actions, but also achieve team goals easier. Some companies that have used this test to improve communication in their own organizations include Intuit, and Unilever. See the full list of our past clients here.
One benefit of the FIRO-B is that it measures your interpersonal needs, not just your abilities. They are broken down into three main areas:
Human Resources managers can use this report to explain team roles, responsibilities, and identify leadership styles. Many times we get a "feeling" for how someone likes to communicate. Using this report, we can get a concrete picture of what a person likes and dislikes in interpersonal communications. Take a look at a sample FIRO-B report for a better idea of how this test can benefit you.
How much do you want from others? How much do you give? You can test your team’s interpersonal skills with the FIRO-B online assessment here.
Because no two people are alike, it’s always best to test everyone in the organization. Making sure everyone is on the same page and committed to achieving the same goals should be a priority, and the FIRO-B is the perfect tool. You can check out our corporate test packages for a complete team assessment with multiple tests.
Exceptional leaders bring out the best in their peers and know what it takes to achieve a goal with many people working towards it. While it is true that some people are natural born leaders, others can be coached to become this way. One crucial step along the way is identifying your strengths and weaknesses, but also to see how you measure up against other leaders. The CPI 260 does just that.
The CPI 260 (California Psychological Inventory) is made up of 260 questions that test team members across 18 subject areas. That may seem extensive, because it is. Those results are then compared to more than 5,600 executives and managers that have previously completed the test at the Center for Creative Leadership.
Utilizing empirical evidence from over 50 years of study, the CPI 260 helps team member discover and capitalize on their strengths, while targeting areas for further development. Check out a sample CPI 260 report to discover more about the CPI 260.
Leadership Characteristics are at the heart of the California Psychological Inventory, CPI 260. For each Leadership Characteristic, we compare your results on key measures with those of the comparison group of managers and executives. Based on this comparison, the report analyzes your strengths and developmental needs, and also offers a suggested action step you can take to gather more information or develop a new behavior.
The Leadership Characteristics are organized into the following core performance areas:
Management and Leadership are increasingly complex endeavors that require evolving competencies and behaviors. For the maximum benefit, check out our corporate test packages and discover why leaders from all over the world rely on our assessments.
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