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What If Employees Came With An Operating Manual?

Updated: Nov 15, 2022

Have you ever hired someone only to find out that you just didn’t seem to be on the same wavelength? You described what you wanted done in a manner that seemed crystal clear to you, only to receive a different result? Would it help if new employees came with an ‘operating manual’ that told you how to interact with each specific person? Believe it or not, that is possible.


After working in the recruiting industry for 25 years, I’ve seen my fair share of personality tests. Some were for pre-employment selection, and some were for helping the existing team operate better. In general, I was never a big proponent of the pre-employment selection tests, but that can be a topic for a later blog. I did find great value in the assessments focused on creating better communication within an organization. In particular, I found the DISC assessment to be the most useful.


While there are many, many, many assessments available, the DISC assessment has the benefits of having decades of research and practical use behind it, in addition to being very simple to use. The individual takes an assessment that usually runs 20 minutes or so online, and from that data the testing system is able to classify certain aspects of their personality and natural communication style. From there, the resulting report gives insights on how to best communicate with the person, and how they perceive others’ communication styles around them. A ‘communications operating manual’ so-to-speak!


No test is perfect, but the DISC assessment truly can help you gain insight into how to best communicate with your team members, and also how they will perceive your communication. Although many may feel like it’s the receiver’s responsibility to understand a message, I’ve come to believe through experience that it’s the responsibility of the person speaking to communicate in such a way that the information is best understood by the recipient. You can only do this by understanding the recipient’s natural communication style.


If you are looking for a way to have a deeper understanding of both your new hires and your existing team, and you want to improve the chances for overall success, consider using DISC or a similar tool to gain additional insight into how to communicate. You will be amazed at the value you receive out of just a little additional insight into your team.


As always, I wish you the best in your business.


Mark Goldman

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