HOT POTATO: Personality Tests

Thu 1 Sep 2022 2:00 pm UK Time

• Most agencies use personality testing to figure out whether someone will be a good fit for their team and culture…
• …but is it wise to be putting people into concrete boxes?
• In this session, we’ll discuss the benefits and limitations of personality tests in a ‘show and tell’ type discussion.

Can personality testing help you create a harmonious team? Or does it open up the risk of discrimination? Let’s discuss. 

Personality tests can be extremely useful in the agency world, especially when it comes to recruitment and developing leadership teams. 

It’s a simple way to determine how a candidate’s personality and way of working will fit with the rest of the team. 

However, it’s not void of challenges. 

There are lots of different models out there, which all use various degrees of psychology to understand the way different people work and interact with others. 

But how accurate are they? And do they work all that well?

In a recent discussion, one agency leader dubbed DISC profiling as “cumbersome” – especially since it only has four categories. It seems a little unrealistic that seven billion people can be split into just four areas.

Other agency leaders, however, have pledged allegiance to personality testing, instead opting for a more detailed approach like Myers-Briggs – but that too has its risks and limitations. 

What about the candidates that fit into two or more categories? Or none at all? 

In this session, we’ll be discussing:

  • What models are out there? What’s the best one?
  • Does personality testing work? And does it even matter?
  • Is the DISC model outdated?
  • Can personality testing lead to discrimination? Should you be putting people ‘in a box’?
  • Does it accomodate for people’s personalities changing over time?

We’ll be taking a ‘show and tell’ approach to this discussion, so come along to share your thoughts and see how others in your shoes are handling this.