1. business and industrial

“The Job Hunt as a Corporate Merger, Part II:
How to Hit the Ground Running Without Breaking a Leg -- On Your Way to the
Finish Line!”
ACC Career Development Committee Meeting
Friday, June 22, 2007
Presented By:
Julie Q. Brush, Co-Founder
Jon Escher, Co-Founder
I.
I’ve got the job. What should I be thinking about before my first day?
a. Refine knowledge about the company
i. 20 Questions – why is this important? (SEE TWENTY
QUESTIONS HANDOUT)
1. During interview you’ve learned (or should have learned)
about the company. However, it’s important to continue to
learn more information as you head in to your new position
and interact with your internal clients.
2. It’s also important to keep current of recent events
(mergers, acquisitions, executive changes) that may affect
the company, your role, or the people with whom you
interact. TIPS:
1. Read the corporate communications distributed to
employees
2. Stay current on business publications and on line
alerts noting executive changes and M&A activity
3. Stay connected with colleagues – as information
can be easily communicated from colleague to
colleague
b. What does my boss expect of me?
i. Identify other people in the company who can help you understand
what your bosses expectations are
ii. Take inventory of what you’ve gleaned about your boss’s
expectations from the interview process.
iii. If things are unclear, have a brief meeting with your boss to
establish expectations.
c. What do I expect from my direct reports?
203 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 150, Redwood Shores, California 94065 • 650-325-7578 • 650-331-3196 (fax)
www.solutuslegal.com
i. Important as a manager to communicate to your direct reports what
you expect from them
d. What do my internal clients expect of me?
i. Gather information from them about what they are expecting from
their lawyer. Don’t make assumptions
ii. Go on a “Listening Tour” (SEE LISTENING TOUR
HANDOUT)
1. Schedule time with key executives. These key execs could
vary from company to company and may include nonexecutive with whom you and/or your team work closely
with (ie sales managers, controllers etc.). Get a sense of
their style and how they like to work (are they
micromanagers who want to know what’s going on at all
times? Do they want answers by the end of the day? Do
they like status updates? Do they mind if you delegate
projects to other members of your team? Do they just want
you to find out how to get something done or do they want
to be presented with a list of options?)
2. If you can’t formally schedule time, they bring up the
subject (when appropriate) when you are interacting with
them on a particular matter. Try and make sure that you
have this conversation within the first few months of your
tenure with the company.
e. If this is a replacement position, what was done right, what done wrong by
my predecessor?
i. If replacement, important to determine how the person was
perceived and what sort of perception hurdles you may encounter
because of their prior experiences or what kind of expectations
your predecessor set.
f. Think about how your experience can add immediate value to what the
company needs
i. Information gleaned from interview process
ii. Canvassing close executives
203 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 150, Redwood Shores, California 94065 • 650-325-7578 • 650-331-3196 (fax)
www.solutuslegal.com
“The Job Hunt as a Corporate Merger, Part II:
How to Hit the Ground Running Without Breaking a Leg -- On Your Way to the
Finish Line!”
ACC Career Development Committee Meeting
Friday, June 22, 2007
Presented By:
Julie Q. Brush, Co-Founder
Jon Escher, Co-Founder
Articles Special
Twenty Questions
Why do so many legal careers seem to stall out while others break on through to fame
and fortune? Competency, mentoring, personality, and luck (of course) all play a part.
Still, there are too many good and personable lawyers whose careers never take off. More
often than not, a lack of good business judgment is to blame.
The conventional wisdom has always held that good business judgment is one of those
human qualities, like leadership, that is subjective in nature, ineffable, a product of
natural endowment and depth of experience. You either have it, or you don’t. Not true.
Good business judgment can be acquired (even quite early in a career), but it does require
a modest re-direction of the analytical skills you have developed as a lawyer.
Business Literacy
General Counsels have it. Law firm rainmakers have it. And clients increasingly demand
it of even their more junior lawyers. At its most general, good business judgment requires
the lawyer to understand the business context within which legal advice is delivered.
And, what is context other than the basic facts that define the client’s enterprise?
Comprehension of these facts will go a long way towards making a lawyer business
literate. Here is a list of questions that every lawyer should be able to answer concerning
their client’s business (this list has a modest corporate practice bias, but is generally
applicable to litigation practices as well):
1. What are the company’s annual revenues?
2. What are the company’s profits (losses)?
203 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 150, Redwood Shores, California 94065 • 650-325-7578 • 650-331-3196 (fax)
www.solutuslegal.com
3. What are the company’s (if publicly traded) earnings per share?
4. What are the company’s gross margins?
5. If publicly traded, how many shares are outstanding?
6. Who are the company’s biggest shareholders?
7. How much, if any, debt is outstanding? Is it convertible? When is it due?
8. How much of the company’s sales are domestic? How much international?
9. What kind of customers does the company sell to?
10. Who are the company’s biggest customers?
11. Are the company’s sales subject to seasonal cycles?
12. How does the company sell its products (direct sales? distribution channels?)
13. Are the company’s non-exempt employees unionized?
14. How long are the company’s product life cycles?
15. Who are the company’s most significant competitors?
16. Does the company rely on technological advantages or price competitiveness (or
both) to lure customers?
17. What are the company’s most significant expense items (raw materials? labor?
research and development?)
18. How much do the company’s products cost?
19. How big is the company’s patent portfolio and what, in general terms, is its
composition?
20. How many employees does the company have?
Notice what is not on this list. Establishing business literacy does not involve mastering
the glossary of management-speak. It isn’t about throwing around terms like “enterprise
resource planning,” “talent multipliers,” “demand-side innovation,” or “performance
anatomy.” For a lawyer, it is simply about mastering the basic facts that drive the
business. While most of these questions may seem pretty basic, we can assure you, that
after more than twenty years of interviewing and screening candidates, we have found
that a shockingly large percentage of perfectly capable lawyers can not answer a majority
of these questions. Typically, especially for more junior lawyers, mastering these facts is
not part of any given assignment; and, hence, rarely is it part of a young lawyer’s
training. As a result, many young lawyers never take the time, or demonstrate an
inclination, to do a little digging and try to understand their clients’ businesses. But, as a
legal career evolves, the development of business literacy becomes a crucial component
of success. Clients will expect that the legal advice they receive reflect a comprehension
of the business context within which they themselves operate. Fortunately, no special
qualifications are required to achieve this business literacy. You don’t need an MBA and
you don’t need to be an accountant. You just need to take some time and direct your
lawyerly curiosity towards the business.
203 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 150, Redwood Shores, California 94065 • 650-325-7578 • 650-331-3196 (fax)
www.solutuslegal.com
In an ideal world, lawyers would have access to “Client Summaries” that answer the
above questions and provide the basic business data so that every lawyer on every deal or
case would have a basic understanding of the client’s business. A few law firms generate
these documents internally, but the vast majority does not, leaving it up to individual
lawyers to answer these questions. It is important to take the time to do it.
203 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 150, Redwood Shores, California 94065 • 650-325-7578 • 650-331-3196 (fax)
www.solutuslegal.com
“The Job Hunt as a Corporate Merger, Part II:
How to Hit the Ground Running Without Breaking a Leg -- On Your Way to the Finish
Line!”
ACC Career Development Committee Meeting
Friday, June 22, 2007
Presented By:
Julie Q. Brush, Co-Founder
Jon Escher, Co-Founder
The Listening Tour
One important issue to contemplate when you begin your new job is “What do my internal
clients expect of me?” An effective way of gathering this information and understanding
expectations is to engage in a Listening Tour.
How to Start:
If possible, schedule time with key executives with whom you and/or your team work closely.
This could include executives at a variety of levels: CEO, CFO, VP of Sales, Controller, Sales
Managers, Sales Reps, Corporate Communications VP and/or Manager, Outside Counsel
Ask for 15minutes – ½ hour of their time or invite the executives to lunch, coffee or a beer after
work. If you can’t formally schedule time, then bring up the subject (when appropriate) when
you are interacting with them on a particular matter. Try and make sure that you have this
conversation within the first few months of your tenure with the company. It’s best to gather this
information up front before you run in to a problem later down the road.
What Information Is Important to Gather
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Get a sense of their style and how they like to work.
What are the most important things to them when working with other company team
members?
Do they like status updates?
Do they operate with a sense of urgency and expect you to do the same?
Do they like to communicate by email or telephone?
Do they mind if you delegate projects to other members of your team?
Do they delegate their projects?
203 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 150, Redwood Shores, California 94065 • 650-325-7578 • 650-331-3196 (fax)
www.solutuslegal.com
•
•
Do they just want you to find out how to get something done or do they want to be
presented with a list of options?
If you’ve replaced an attorney formerly in your position:
o Determine how the person was perceived
o What sort of perception hurdles you may encounter because of their prior
experiences
o What kind of expectations your predecessor set (or didn’t set)
o What did the person do well?
o What did the person do poorly?
203 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 150, Redwood Shores, California 94065 • 650-325-7578 • 650-331-3196 (fax)
www.solutuslegal.com
Fuller Coaching
How to Build a Personal Brand for Success
ACCA Career Development Committee Meeting June 22, 2007 "The Job Hunt as a Corporate Merger, Part II: How to Hit the Ground Running Without Breaking a Leg ­­ On Your Way to the Finish Line!" Personal Branding ­ Why? 1) Why Care about your Personal Brand
a. You have a brand now, even if you’re not aware.
b. People see and hear through a screen of brand expectation.
c. Current and future decisions and trust are based on that expectation.
d. Setting expectations is often the biggest part of success.
60 Second Starter System Plan! 2) Overview - Steps to Build your Personal Brand:
a. What is your personal brand or ‘reputation’? Get clear on where you are now –
unique value, skills, strengths/weaknesses? What are you proudest of?
b. Why did they hire you? Do you always deliver on that brand expectation?
c. In what groups are you known for that, and how might that differ across groups?
d. If you don’t know where to start, consider the 360 brand self assessment
interview attachment.
e. Does this personal brand fit with what you want to be known for in the future?
Define your brand for future career track and brand you want to have.
f. If you don’t have a career plan, consider the career flow scenario planning
process attached.
g. If you are starting a new job or are looking to improve in your current role,
consider the ‘new start’ mindset.
h. Define your ‘gap’ in political savvy, communication styles, expertise or skills.
Prioritize steps to closing gap. If you don’t know if you’re politically savvy,
consider the political astuteness assessment attached.
i. Aggressively and appropriately allocate the time to build relationships and
alliances. Calendar it: 1-3 conversations or lunches a week.
j. Learn and practice communication styles translation combined with crucial
conversations skills. Utilize #3 below if you don’t already have a model.
k. Practice broadening range of negotiation styles. Consider the negotiation chart
attached if you don’t have a model.
l. Plan appropriate visibility initiatives based on Results & Trust Building.
m. Organize continual feedback and observation. Once a week, scan for the 2-3
lessons and observations you have on your brand and consider changes.
NOTES:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
©Fuller Coaching 2007
735 Southview Way
Woodside, CA 94062
650-366-2800
[email protected]
www.fullercoaching.com
Fuller Coaching
How to Build a Personal Brand for Success
Personal Branding Pays Off – for You & Your Company 3) Planned Communication Style: (your brand will be largely influenced by your
communication, listening and negotiation styles.)
a. Assess Gap: For a fast start in understanding and being understood, do an
assessment of communication styles for your key stakeholders. Do an analysis of
communication, decision and listening styles for your key contacts and observe
and continue to refine your understanding of their style.
i. If you don’t already have a model, use the simple quadrant model
(Driver, Analytical, Amiable, Expressive) and the book People Styles at
Work by Robert and Dorothy Bolton.
b. Understand: Develop an understanding of how YOU should translate to those
key contacts, both in steady state and stress situations. Understand both how to
talk and listen with their styles.
c. Prepare: Ensure you plan the time to prepare and use this understanding as part
of your communication strategy and plan
d. Practice / Feedback: Utilize this understanding in negotiations with key contacts
and maintain an understanding of lessons learned and ‘re-translate’ as
appropriate.
4) Appropriate Visibility and Self Promotion:
a. Create a communications plan for you and your team, your projects.
b. Understand the culture of self promotion and model appropriate level of
communication, up and down the organization. If you don’t have a good model of
self promotion, consider the book Brag, the Art of Tooting Your Own Horn without
Blowing It, by Peggy Klaus.
c. Position appropriate contributions related to impact on the business, bottom line.
d. Understand political lines, and ensure you link your value to each stakeholder’s
metrics of interest, objectively and subjectively.
5) Personal Branding Requires you to be Working on the Right Goals
a. Ensure you know the critical metrics of success for your role and they are current
with changes in the organization: what will be measured and how it is assessed.
b. Know how your metrics link to your manager and upline executive key goals and
interest areas. Don’t forget relationships in your drive to results - goal is TRUST.
c. Develop your network, and ensure your results are worthy of interest at your
manager’s manager or board level.
d. Plan your activities related to that in a rigorous project plan:
i.
Next 90 day, fast start success plan of action
ii.
Next 6 months – 2 years if defined – plan of action
iii.
Overlap/Confusion of your goals, your manager’s and any of your peers.
e. Monitor and ensure the right time management and priority tradeoffs to achieve
your critical few.
f. Set expectations or reset expectations continually. Ensure that as things change
you’ve updated your key contacts. Success is setting expectations correctly.
g. Future Think: Be clear about what scenarios look like for your next 2-3 jobs and
what results and network will help you be the outstanding candidate.
©Fuller Coaching 2007
735 Southview Way
Woodside, CA 94062
650-366-2800
[email protected]
www.fullercoaching.com
Fuller Coaching
How to Build a Personal Brand for Success
ATTACHMENTS: Personal Branding Self Assessment Interview Guidelines 1. What do you think your personal brand (reputation) is? Write one paragraph or 10 key
words that you think others would say. What makes YOU DIFFERENT?
2. Decide what area of your business effectiveness you'd like to evaluate and where you
would like visibility, from key stakeholders or people who would have a view of your
effectiveness in that area. Consider this market research on your Personal Brand.
3. Develop a structured set of questions based on your goals, e.g., what am I known for;
what is unique to me vs. others in the department or industry; what are my strengths and
development areas or weaknesses; what unique value do I add to the company /
department.
4.
Decide who to interview, when, and what might be the best setting for honest feedback.
5. Decide if you or your executive coach should do the interviewing.
6. Phone interviews can be effective, but where you can, do interviews in person so you can
see the body language as well as hear the response.
7. Set up the conversation as collaboration, with your role to LISTEN. For example, level
set the conversations as direct and honest, e.g., “I would like to understand honestly what
people think of me and my value to the (project/company). My request is that you be
direct, not just 'nice'. Don’t worry about hurting my feelings; this honest feedback will be
an incredibly valuable contribution to my executive development plan. I hope to
prioritize where I spend my effort for my ongoing development.”
8. If you don’t understand, question ONLY for understanding, not to explain. Explanations
can have the impact of making the other person wrong and perhaps shutting down, rather
than opening the door for more honesty. If you need phrases to understand, use words
like, - “could you give me an example so I can understand that more clearly?” or “When I
did that, what was the impact or how did it affect the team?”
9. Keep notes on what people say, but listen during the discussion, with eye contact. This is
often difficult information to hear, so make sure you repeat it, if you need to verify what
you’ve heard. Write down the key phrases.
10. Sample Personal Brand Feedback: ..is a ‘Just Get it Done (Nike)’ kind of person; ..is a
‘Do the Right Thing’ kind of person; . averts problems before they become crises;
..follows the letter of the law, but not in touch with the practical business issues;..never
see them, must be good (or bad?), actually don’t know; ..trust them with tough very
senior level customer deal making; .. thinks like a business executive, is the smartest
legal mind in the room, and has customer service in his/her soul.
©Fuller Coaching 2007
735 Southview Way
Woodside, CA 94062
650-366-2800
[email protected]
www.fullercoaching.com
Fuller Coaching
How to Build a Personal Brand for Success
Political Astuteness Assessment ‰
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‰
‰
‰
‰
‰
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Do you notice relationships that affect decisions?
Do you listen for the subtle signs of trusted alliances?
What % of your stakeholders have told you they trust you? Trust all of your counsel?
Do you easily understand others with different styles?
Do you have a comfortable balance of business & personal conversations?
How does your executive presence fit the next role?
Would you hire you based on your current results?
Do you understand key metrics of success for CEO?
Do you deliver both subjective and objective measures of success?
Do people listen to you and act on recommendations?
Does the corporate culture fit you?
Give yourself 3 examples of delivering bad news skillfully.
Give yourself 3 examples of delicate alliance building.
Is there any history that might be holding you back?
How likely are you to be promoted to your dream job?
Communication Translation STEP 4. Profile Key Stakeholders
Define Visibility Communication Plans
A
D
R
E
x
Senior Executive
x
LARRY
LAURA
x
CHARU
x
JACKIE (DR)
x
CHRIS (DR)
x
JACK (DR)
x
JACK (DR)
JACK (DR)
x
x
©Fuller Coaching 2007
[email protected]
©Fuller Coaching 2007
735 Southview Way
Woodside, CA 94062
650-366-2800
[email protected]
www.fullercoaching.com
Fuller Coaching
How to Build a Personal Brand for Success
Negotiation Flowchart Wikipedia: Brands, "branding" and brand equity have become increasingly important components of
culture and the economy, now being described as "cultural accessories and personal philosophies". A brand
image may be developed by attributing a "personality" to or associating an "image" with a product or
service, whereby the personality or image is "branded" into the consciousness of consumers. A brand is
therefore one of the most valuable elements in an advertising theme. The art of creating and maintaining a
brand is called brand management.
Personal branding is the process whereby people and their careers are marketed as brands. It has been
noted that while previous self-help management techniques were about self-improvement, the personal
branding concept suggests instead that success comes from self-packaging The term is thought to have
been first used and discussed in an 1997 article by Tom Peters. It is common to divide branding into
tangible and intangible. Tangible branding involves associating an individual's name with some specific
advantage that they are presumed to offer, while intangible branding involves creating a more general
positive feeling about them. Tom Peters. "The brand Called You", Fast Company, Mansueto Ventures
LLC., August 1997, pp. 83.
©Fuller Coaching 2007
735 Southview Way
Woodside, CA 94062
650-366-2800
[email protected]
www.fullercoaching.com
Francine Toder, Ph.D.
Silicon Valley Executive Coaching
www.executive-coach.com
667 Lytton Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94301
650-325-4588
[email protected]
ACC San Francisco Bay Area Chapter, Career Development Meeting, June 22, 2007
“The Job Hunt as a Corporate Merger, Part II: How to Hit the Ground Running
Without Breaking a Leg – On Your Way to the Finish Line!”
Personal competency - or how to assess and develop emotional intelligence:
You already have the legal credentials and the skills. You have the job but more is required to survive
and thrive. What else do you need to do in order to deal with all kinds of personalities, circumstances
and conflicts? The answer lies in three areas:
•
•
Know yourself (self awareness):
1.
Lead with your strengths - what are they? Learn about your own personality
style. Learn from:
a. self assessment - what I know about myself
b. others’ feedback - performance evaluations, colleague, client inputs
c. formal assessment – personality tests and 360° instruments
2. Manage your shortcomings – these may actually be your strengths greatly magnified
(too much of a good thing isn’t so good) or underdeveloped personal traits. Learn
what they are: a,b,c, above
Know others (interpersonal skills):
1. Learn something about their personality style and engage their strengths (S), not
their weaknesses (W). For example:
a. narcissistic type – S is their grand vision; W is their inability to see
others’ points of view
b. depressive type - S is their ability to see the downside; W is their
doom/gloom outlook, difficulty seeing the upside or world of
possibilities
c. histrionic type – S is their passion; W is their over-the-top emotion
d. obsessive-compulsive type – S is their organization and orderliness; W is
their micro-managing or perfectionistic style
e. passive/dependent type – S is their accommodating style; W is their
difficulty leading, being pro-active, or direct
2. Listen
9 Practice active and strategic listening while limiting speaking
à Focus on the other person, not on you or your response
à Listen for the speaker’s thoughts, ideas and feelings. These
convey useful information, e.g. hope, fear, urgency, etc.
3. Observe
9 Be curious. Watch non-verbal behavior. Notice your own receptivity,
impatience and/or discomfort; notice this in others
4. Influence
9 Be sensitive to others’ thoughts, behaviors and feelings
9 Understand and use body language
9 Modulate your voice
9 Display your passion
9 Note cultural differences: surface any questions; adapt your behavior as
necessary
2
•
Know the organization:
1. Department and organizational culture (the corporate “personality”)
2. Politics
3. Negotiating style and conflict management
a. Conflict can be a healthy and often necessary communication
process. Identify what you contribute to the conflict;
b. When avoided, conflict grows larger;
c. Choose your conflicts. Some are not worth the time, effort, and
consequences. Know which is which;
d. Develop ground rules for proceeding;
e. First seek to understand the other person’s view point. Then explain yours.
Sum up what you hear until the other person feels and/or thinks you
understand;
f. Active listening will diffuse almost any conflict;
g. Be inquisitive (suspend your own agenda for the moment);
h. Focus on the mutually important factors;
i. Depersonalize the conflict. The other party may not be deliberately trying to
thwart you;
j. Avoid blaming, accusing, and making pejorative and inflammatory
comments, which can escalate the disagreement;
k. Make and support conciliatory gestures;
l. Mutual respect is the key to a productive negotiation;
m. The only conflict response you can control is your own.
The following scenarios and key points illustrate some common situations. Keep in mind that in the real
world, the personalities and dynamics of people and organizations vary so there are
innumerable permutations of the scenarios.
Scenario 1: I’m not being included in meetings with either clients or other company executives. They
expect me to do things to carry out their decisions but I have to guess because I’m not
present. I don’t always guess right and I feel that I’m being prevented from doing better by
being left out. Do they even trust me?
•
•
•
•
•
Why are you being excluded? Do you know if it is because of you?
Are you uncomfortable about discussing it with them? Why?
Could there be organizational dynamics you’re not in touch with?
They may have good reasons and have simply neglected to tell you. Seek to understand their
perspective then give your opinion. Explore alternate ways to get necessary
information.
Confront the trust issue directly.
Scenario 2: I’m having a problem with a business client. He told me the key terms of a transaction but
when he saw my first draft he said it was all wrong. It always takes too many back and forth
drafts and too much time before he is satisfied. Even though I confirm the terms before
starting the draft, he just says I that I don’t get it. What can I do?
•
•
•
Clearly there is a conflict and the first step is to figure out what and why.
Does he dislike your work, you as a person, everybody, the legal department?
Is there a way you can better deal with his style? What is his style? What does satisfy him?
3
•
•
What is he not saying that affects the document? What are you not hearing that could help?
Try audio-taping one of your interactions and listen to what you are both saying
and how it is said. Are you listening, open, curious or waiting for an opening to
speak?
Who can you trust to talk with to get another perspective?
Scenario 3: I screwed up with my boss and am afraid I will never recover. To save time, I started with a
form I kept from my last job and didn’t realize a recent change in the law obviated the entire
arrangement. My boss found out when the customer angrily called to chew her out. I should
have done some research but I was in a hurry. Help.
•
•
•
Facts: It’s hard for me to admit mistakes, especially big ones like this. My boss thinks I dug
the hole and should crawl my way out alone.
Fears: I don’t want people to think I’m lazy or don’t care. What if I get fired? Consider how
you deal with fears.
What to do? Have meeting with boss to further clarify dilemma. Acknowledge the mistake
non-defensively and fix it. Communicate with the customer owning your mistake
and listen to his or her comments non-defensively. Manage your fears with positive
self-talk.
Scenario 4: I’m new, so I want to impress my boss and do a great job with my first few negotiations,
however I don’t want to over-lawyer/over-negotiate and turn off the sales clients. I don’t
know how much is enough. How do I communicate that I would like to be mentored without
appearing to be wimpy or dumb?
•
•
•
•
In law school I felt so smart and capable but now I feel almost stupid.
Why the self-doubt? Is there something in your past?
What blocks a conversation about getting mentored?
Meet with clients. Listen and observe to get a feel for their personality style. Try out ideas,
get feedback, recalibrate.
Scenario 5: What do I do if I have more experience and am more familiar with a particular area of the
law than my boss (and I think that my boss is insecure about it and feels threatened)? My
boss doesn’t know how much expertise I brought with me from my prior company and he is
very sensitive about always being right. I don’t want to be a know-it-all but neither do I want
to make him feel like a know-nothing or be a threat to him.
•
•
•
•
How do you know about your boss’s sensitivity to being less knowledgeable; based on what
data?
Know yourself: Do I act like a know-it-all? Have you heard this before?
Part of your job is to help your boss look good and vice versa. Have such a conversation
about your wish to have both happen. Discuss mutual areas of high expertise. Lead
with your strengths.
If you really perceive yourself as a threat, can you be sensitive and make your comments,
statements in a collegial way; offering information tentatively or theoretically, e.g.,
what if . . . ?
4
Resources
Personal competency assessments may be available through your HR department, an executive coach or a
licensed psychologist. Below is a list of some inventories that fit in the workplace:
Myer Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI): This copyrighted, commercially available personality assessment
tool has been taken by more than two million people. It assesses psychological type based on 16
combinations to help individuals determine their preferred styles for engaging their own strengths and for
communication with others. There are no right or wrong answers. All answers chosen on the MBTI are
equally desirable. The following website: http://www.personalitypathways.com/type_inventory.html has
information about the MBTI and offers a quick, free assessment based on principles similar to the MBTI.
DiSC: This test classifies four aspects of personality by determining a person's preferences in word
associations. It’s focus is on communication and relationships. It has been taken by more than 30 million
people. It has wide spread organizational use. It is published by Inscape Publishing,
http://www.inspiringsolutions.com/disc.html. Learn more from their website or local
distributor/consultant Jill McGillen, at www.nextturnconsulting.com. DiSC helps people explore
behavior across four primary dimensions:
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Dominance - relating to control, power and assertiveness
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Influence - relating to social situations and communication
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Steadiness - relating to patience, persistence, and thoughtfulness
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Conscientiousness - relating to structure and organization
The Enneagram: This inventory provides a framework for understanding yourself, your associates and
colleagues, and the "personality" of your team or organization as a whole. The nine types are valueneutral, i.e., no type is inherently better or worse than any other type. Each type has strengths and
weaknesses, dimensions useful to an organization and qualities that impede harmony, communication,
and growth. Learn more at: http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/.
The 16 PF: Available only from a licensed psychologist or coach certified by 16PF’s publisher, IPAT,
this personality instrument predicts a wide range of life behaviors. I find it very useful in the workplace.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16_Personality_Factors for more info about the 16 personality factors.
Like the instruments mentioned above, this test is value-neutral, i.e., there are no good or bad personality
styles. It is not pathology based.
360° Assessments: As the name implies, these focus on performance and behaviors from the perspective
of boss, colleagues, clients and direct reports. This kind of data collection yields a panorama of
perceptions not just self-perception, providing a more complete picture.
A Favorite Book: Working with Emotional Intelligence ( 1998) by Daniel Goleman
(Psychologist and former science writer for the New York Times). See review on my website:
www.executive-coach.com.