When looking for someone to solve a workload or skills gap, the first thing that I look at is whether it’s a short-term need or for a longer-term position.
In either case, I’ve found that attitude, values, and cultural fit, beat 'skills' hands down! This does imply planning ahead and multi-skilling a team in order to build flexibility and potential into an organisation as well as creating a workplace that people are keen to be part of.
An Individual Should Not Only Fit The Role - But Also The Organisation's Culture.
"Attitude, values, and cultural fit beat 'skills' hands down!"
This includes aligning with the organisation's values, mission, and work environment. Cultural fit can have a significant impact on an employee's job satisfaction and performance.
If looking at a shorter-term skills gap I strongly recommend you look first at who in your organisation could potentially fill the role, and learn new skills while doing so. This supports both the organisation’s skills development and resiliency and sends a strong message of commitment to developing existing employees. People talk with their friends about how loyal their employer is to them and whether they can access opportunities to learn and grow so apart from anything else it’s good practice to think in this way.
Once when working with a client to help them backfill a key finance role involving pricing and sensitive company data, we reviewed who in the broader team could be supported to take on the role and backfilling this person’s (less sensitive) role instead. This approach reduced risk for the company both in terms of confidentiality as well as their key person dependency in a critical area. The individual picked to stand in for this key role was delighted to be given the chance to expand their skills and experience. Win-win!
Assuming you are looking for a longer-term solution to filling a role there are several other factors to be considered.
Skills and Experience
In most situations, one of the most important considerations is whether an individual has the necessary skills and experience to perform the role effectively. This includes both hard skills, such as technical knowledge and abilities, and soft skills, such as communication and problem-solving abilities.
There can be exceptions where it is difficult to find the right set of skills either within or external to the organisation, for example, to sell or support a newly developed product or system. In these situations, the key is to look at what types of skills or experiences would indicate a person’s aptitude for the role, including looking for a successful track record of taking on challenges, or a strong love of learning and adaptation.
Motivation and commitment
Personality Traits
Team dynamics
Potential for growth
Diversity and inclusion
It is also highly advisable to take into account whether an individual’s compensation expectations are in line with yours as well as reviewing their experience and performance in previous roles, for roles external to the organisation this can be confirmed by conducting references and background checks.
Experience of working with a person, interviews and reference checking are all helpful in selecting the right person for a role. Other tools include personality and behavioural tools. While it’s important to recognise that none of these tools is a complete answer, they can be very helpful in informing your decision.
Fitting People Into Roles With DISC
In previous articles, I’ve looked at the 4 DISC profiles of Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness. While people are multifaceted and can adapt to various roles beyond their primary DISC type it can be helpful to consider what roles would each of the 4 profiles are often best suited to. As I’ve done previously, I’ll use examples from my past experiences to bring to life the concepts involved.
The organisation I was working for was facing an opportunity to double in size if it could win a major piece of business. A new CEO, Travis, was brought in to drive the significant shift in focus and energy that was going to be required for success.
Like those with a high Dominance (D) profile, Travis was direct, results-oriented, strong-willed and strong-minded.
He had a track record of thriving in roles where he was in charge and could make decisions. Like most ‘Ds’ he was well-suited to a leadership role. (D’s can also excel in competitive roles such as sales or law.)
It would be fair to say that Travis did not demonstrate a high level of patience and had to work hard to demonstrate diplomacy.
D’s typically do find these particular behaviours challenging and don’t tend to work well in support roles, performing administrative tasks, or being in roles where they can't exercise their leadership skills, such as junior-level positions or where they need to follow strict procedures and guidelines.
Travis in this instance was the right person for the job, steering the organisation to a stunning success. Once achieved though he moved on after a relatively short period of time, to take on another major challenge. He had achieved what he had set out to achieve and both he and the organisation had benefited.
In a completely different situation, I was managing a finance and administration team. One of the group, Tina, was a live wire, outgoing, always ready to have a chat, enthusiastic and optimistic.
A clear Influencer (I) profile, she enjoyed collaborating with others and could be very persuasive.
Although I recruited her for a role involving systems and procedural responsibilities, my goal was for the team to be better connected with other areas of the organisation. I checked that she was competent in delegating which would allow most of the analysis work to be handled by her team.
A seasoned networker Tina liked nothing better than speaking with and presenting to groups and wasn’t at all keen on solitary work. To fit her skills with the role I worked with Tina to ensure she successfully delegated detailed analysis and compliance-related activities, while supporting her to perform easily the parts of the job that came more naturally.
She, like other high ‘I’s’, would typically be most successful in roles that involve interacting with people, such as sales, marketing, PR, customer service, or recruitment and not in roles that require focus on details and little social interaction,
Another member of my team at that time was Tony who was a real team player, very good at making others feel at ease.
He like other Steadiness (S) profile individuals was patient, humble, and tactful. A consistent, predictable environment and working in a team brought out the best in him.
‘S’ profile individuals like Tony are most likely to excel in roles that require patience and reliability, such as administrative roles, customer service, or roles in healthcare and education. Tony worked very well within and across the teams we dealt with regularly, building great relationships by taking time to understand what others needed to be successful.
Unlike Tina, Tony did not enjoy anything that required a quick decision, being in a high-risk situation, or having to deal with constant change.
Our ‘S’ team members are not those who thrive in high-stress environments like sales targets, entrepreneurship, or any role requiring them to frequently step out of their comfort zone.
Experience in leading finance-related functions has meant I’ve had to recruit for many roles requiring individuals who are analytical, careful, and meticulous.
These are characteristic behaviours of the Conscientiousness (C) profile.
Stacey was one such individual, she valued being appreciated for her objective thinking and loved precision and accuracy.
Her accounting role suited her well, with similar profiles also excelling in roles such as data analysis, accounting, engineering, or other technical roles.
There was one time, though, where I misjudged the level of quick decision-making, and lack of structure inherent in one of my finance roles which involved pricing.
Before the days of understanding DISC profiles, I hired Harry, who in retrospect I recognised as having a C profile, and it turned out to be a poor move.
He struggled in the highly dynamic environment, with the job more akin to a sales role. Fortunately, I was able to identify a position better suited to his strengths elsewhere in the organisation and used my improved understanding to recruit a person more suited to ambiguity and on-the-spot thinking.
It was one of those lessons that led to my interest in better understanding behavioural styles and how to pick the right people for given roles.
Do keep in mind that individuals are not limited to their DISC profiles.
In summary, there are several aspects to be considered when contemplating which person will be the best fit for a particular role. While there is often a high level of unknown in these situations, your ability to make a sound decision can be assisted by using a tool such as DISC. Identifying a person’s behavioural preferences and their likely fit to a set of responsibilities and activities can be invaluable and avoid expensive and time-consuming mistakes.
Matching An Individuals DISC Profile To Their Profession
While every situation has its unique factors the following are some general recommendations based on matching a person’s strengths associated with their dominant DISC profile to suitable roles.
D-Types: Assign them to leadership roles, positions that require assertiveness, and tasks that involve making tough decisions.
I-Types: Place them in roles that require networking, sales, and team collaboration, such as customer service or marketing.
S-Types: Assign them to positions that require patience, stability, and attention to detail, such as administrative or support roles.
C-Types: Place them in analytical roles that require precision, problem-solving, and attention to quality, such as accounting or research.
Do keep in mind that individuals are not limited to their DISC profiles.
People can develop skills and adapt to different roles over time. As some of my examples illustrate, you can sometimes adjust how a role is delivered. Many times, an individual when provided with opportunities for growth, training, and development will expand their capabilities and diversify their skill sets.
By encouraging communication and collaboration you will help people understand each other's strengths, preferences, and communication styles which will enhance teamwork.
Importantly you will get the most out of your diverse team through fostering an environment where different behavioural styles are valued and respected.
Virginia Walker is Australia’s Leading Leadership and Change Consultant 💡 | Speaker | Mentor | Author | Offering Practical Advice Based on 30yrs Senior Leadership Experience.
If you are interested in finding out more about observational leadership and different communication styles, please email her at virginia@thriveonpurpose.com.au
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