Everyone has their own unique personality which drives the way they think, act and react. This can often create situations where statements and actions are misperceived by others, resulting in tension, hurt feelings, poor communication, or unmet expectations. Similarly, a failure to understand the ways in which others think and act can increase conflict, particularly in high-pressure work environments.
By understanding the personality styles of your coworkers, you can more effectively sidestep these issues. This will also allow you to foster a more positive and productive work environment. The DiSC Personality Profile can be a powerful tool to unlock a deeper understanding of the ways your coworkers think, act and work. You can leverage this information to improve employee interactions and help individuals with very different personalities get on the same page.
What Is the DiSC Personality Profile?
DiSC Personality Profiles
The DiSC assessment measures the different dimensions of your personality to better understand your behaviors in specific situations. The DiSC acronym refers to the four aspects of personality targeted by the profile:
Dominant (D) – These individuals are outgoing and task-oriented. Their focus is on accomplishing tasks as quickly as possible. People who have a high “D” score “make it happen” and respond best to a results-oriented approach.
Inspiring (i) – These individuals are outgoing and people-oriented. They are very social and value personal interactions. Their focus is often on the impression that others have of them. People with a high “i” score respond best to recognition and admiration.
Supportive (S) – These individuals are reserved and people-oriented. They seek out opportunities to support others and value working as a team. People with a high “S” score respond best to sincere appreciation and a friendly approach.
Cautious (C) – These individuals are reserved and task-oriented. They value quality information and consistency. Their focus is on being accurate and correct. People with a high “C” score respond best to a relationship built on integrity and trust.
When using the DiSC personality profile with your employees, it’s important to keep the following points in mind:
Each of these personality types exist on a continuum – No one is strictly a D, I, S or C. We all exhibit some traits of each style. However, most individuals have a personality that leans toward one or two of these styles.
There are no preferred styles – There is no judgement placed on which style a particular employee leans toward. This assessment is simply a tool to better understand how someone thinks and works.
Positive language is used at all times – When highlighting a person’s strengths and potential blind spots, positive language is always used to frame the discussion. We never discuss specific styles as a “weakness.”
These behavioral patterns are fluid – As you gain a greater understanding of which styles represent strengths and blind spots for you, you can learn to adapt and incorporate some aspects of areas which may currently be a blind spot into your working style.
Use DiSC Profiles to Improve Your Work Culture
Once you have identified the personality style for everyone on your team, you can use these profiles to create a more positive work culture that will:
Improve teamwork
Raise self-awareness
Facilitate more productive conflict resolution
Allow you to manage your team more effectively
Improve training methods
DiSC Profiles Help You Understand the Communication Style of Your Coworkers
In many ways, our communication style is guided by our strengths on the DiSC personality profile. For example, an individual with a high “D” score will generally use a communication method that is concise, direct and results oriented. On the other hand, a person with a high “i” score will generally use a more long-winded communication style that includes small talk and anecdotes.
These two communication styles are quite different, and it can potentially lead to frustration when a high “D” employee is interacting with a high “i” employee. However, this frustration can be eliminated if each of these individuals has a better understanding of these inherent differences in their coworker’s communication style. Instead of feeling frustration, they may be able to empathize with their coworker more easily. This will ultimately break down communication barriers.
DiSC Profiles Can Help You Tailor Your Communication with Others
Once you have a greater understanding of how your coworkers communicate, you can tailor your emails, conversations and other interactions in a way that more closely aligns with the way they respond. By “meeting others halfway,” you can make communication more productive.
For example, the high “D” employee might be able to include an anecdote in their communication with a high “i” employee to illustrate their point in a way that will be more easily understood. Similarly, the high “i” individual can keep these anecdotes to a minimum and use more results-oriented language with a high “D” coworker to ensure their message is received properly.
DiSC Profiles Can Help Improve the Productivity and Efficiency of Your Team
Communication barriers often lead to misunderstandings and personality clashes that can be detrimental to your team. Instead of building consensus and moving your projects forward, you may find that your team is spending a significant amount of time resolving conflict.
Over time, these frequent conflicts can become a distraction and negatively impact team morale. Ultimately, this will make it more challenging to achieve your goals. In extreme situations, it can even lead to high employee turnover.
Using DiSC profiles makes it easier for your employees to understand each other. This knowledge can be used to reduce conflicts. If you understand why your coworker thinks and acts in a certain way, you are less likely to react negatively during interactions, and you’ll have more tools that will help you engage in productive discussions. This will make your team much more efficient and productive.
PassioHR Can Help
Your company culture is a powerful tool that drives your level of success. Leveraging the benefits of the DiSC personality profile is one tactic that can help improve your company culture. That being said, there are many other strategies you can use to improve employee communication, foster high morale, create a team-oriented environment, and maximize productivity. At PassioHR, we offer a wide range of employee engagement services to help you develop and maintain a strong culture at your company.
We’re the only PEO company in the Denver area that offers an exclusive Elevated Engagement Plus™ program geared towards developing a comprehensive and holistic solution to your employee engagement needs. This approach involves:
Determining your specific organizational goals
Understanding your unique challenges and workforce dynamic
Identifying the precise needs of your employees
Focusing on the value your employees bring to your organization
Creating a customized plan to meet your needs that encompasses benefits, communication, risk management, planning and results tracking
Being there for you and your employees every step of the way
Our team will work closely with you to implement your customized program, and we will pay close attention to your needs as your company grows and evolves over time. This will allow us to adapt your program to continually help you move forward and thrive.
Roger Hays currently serves as President and CEO of PassioHR, Inc., based in Englewood Colorado. PassioHR was founded in 2021 by Roger after having spent over twenty years working in various positions in the Professional Employer Organization (PEO) market.
His areas of expertise are Human Resources management; Benefits Administration; Government Affairs; and Business Management.
Mr. Hays currently serves as the Chair the Leadership Council for NAPEO in Colorado and serves on their PAC committee, Federal Government Affairs and State Government Affairs Committees as well. In addition to NAPEO Roger is a past Leadership Council Chairman for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) in Colorado and serves on their PAC committee as well (NFIB is the voice of small business, advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals). He is a past Board President for the Colorado Civil Justice League (Colorado Civil Justice League is the only organization in Colorado focused exclusively on limiting unreasonable lawsuits and preserving common sense in the courtroom). Roger has been appointed by the Governor of Colorado, three times, to serve as a Board member on the Colorado Uninsured Employers Board. (The CUE board was established by the CO legislature to provide financial assistance to individuals injured while working for employers who did not carry workers’ compensation insurance in violation of Colorado Statute.)
Roger spends many hours each Legislative session working with state Legislators in Colorado on behalf of the PEO industry as well as small business in general testifying in front of committees or just interacting with individual legislators on issues important to those groups. He also works with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, serving on a number of taskforces to help guide the department in dealing with Unemployment and Labor issues.
Mr. Hays Graduated from North Dakota State University with a BS Degree in Political Science and is an avid Bison supporter.
Once you have a greater understanding of how your coworkers communicate, you can tailor your emails, conversations and other interactions in a way that more closely aligns with the way they respond. By “meeting others halfway,” you can make communication more productive.