DiSC Assessment: What Kind of Leader Are You?

What is a DiSC Assessment?

A DiSC assessment is a behavioral assessment that businesses and other organizations sometimes use to determine employees’ and managers’ leadership strengths and weaknesses. It aims to provide more self-awareness and insight, potentially improving operations and teamwork.

Psychologist William Moulton Marston first outlined the DiSC behavior model in his 1928 book, Emotions of Normal People.

Marston’s theory was that the behavioral expression of emotions could be categorized into four types: Dominance, Inducement, Submission and Compliance. These emotional expression types were based on someone’s self-perception in relation to their environment.

Marston believed that understanding your primary behavioral trait would help you understand and manage your experiences, and foster healthy business relationships.

In the decades that followed, others developed several assessments using Marston’s theories, eventually leading to the modern DiSC assessment. Today’s emotional styles have changed a bit from the original incarnation: DiSC now stands for Dominance, Influence, Steadiness and Conscientiousness.

How a DiSC assessment works

In a DiSC assessment, individuals answer a series of questions. Based on their answers, they are assigned a main personality type (D, i, S or C) and secondary personality characteristics. A DiSC assessment also measures the values you prioritize.

The results explain the percentage of each style you are and what that means for how you handle challenges, interact with others, approach life and how others perceive you.

Today, DiSC assessments are most frequently used in business and government organizations to help teams work more effectively together. Typically, a human resources personnel will ask a new hire to take an online DiSC assessment. Respondents rate a series of behavior-related statements – such as “Getting results is one of my top priorities” or “I like to be involved in group projects” – based on how strongly they agree or disagree with each statement. The system will compile the respondent’s answers into a report.

While there are free assessments available online, the type of DiSC assessment companies usually conduct is more extensive. In addition to basic information, the assessment report can include these details:

• It provides your employees’ scores in each dimension, revealing work- and nonwork-related personality strengths and weaknesses.
• It suggests personalized tactics and strategies for increased effectiveness with colleagues that have varying results.
• It summarizes your employees’ prime values to your organization.
• It pinpoints opposite DiSC types and how best to approach them.

The report is typically shared with the employee, managers to whom they directly report and possibly others who work closely with the individual.

Why a DiSC assessment works

Like other personality or behavior-assessment tools, DiSC works by helping your staff become more self-aware. Increased self-awareness will help you recognize your colleagues’ strengths in order to harness them and their shortcomings for a basis in which to improve.

When everyone has taken the same assessment, you have a common framework to view each employee, which will guide decision-making. For example, when forming a team that needs to work closely with each other, you may want to balance personalities rather than have an overabundance of one type. Understanding other people’s styles and values helps foster effective employee communication, resolve conflict and delegate assignments appropriately.

Assessment tools like DiSC can also help predict whether any given group is more likely to succeed or fail based on the personality traits of the people it’s composed of. Personality traits, values and “soft skills” are oftentimes better indicators of how well a group will function together than are their “hard skills” like technical expertise. For example, team members who display emotional intelligence and open-mindedness tend to use conflict as an opportunity to drive better results, whereas disagreement can strain a more close-minded team.

Assessment tools like DiSC can also help predict whether any given group is more likely to succeed or fail based on the personality traits of the people it’s composed of. Personality traits, values and “soft skills” are oftentimes better indicators of how well a group will function together than are their “hard skills” like technical expertise. For example, team members who display emotional intelligence and open-mindedness tend to use conflict as an opportunity to drive better results, whereas disagreement can strain a more close-minded team.These tools can also identify team members’ values based on how they’re expressed through everyday behavior. In turn, managers can then match team members together based on their shared values – a key indicator of a group’s potential for creativity and innovation. Group members who share values are also more likely to agree about the best course of action to take.

These tools can also identify team members’ values based on how they’re expressed through everyday behavior. In turn, managers can then match team members together based on their shared values – a key indicator of a group’s potential for creativity and innovation. Group members who share values are also more likely to agree about the best course of action to take.

Finding your DiSC style

Which DiSC style are you most closely aligned with? Discprofile.com offers an outline and overview of each.

Dominance

A person with a Dominance (D) style wants to shape their environment by overcoming opposition to accomplish results. They value confidence and focus on the bottom line. (Learn more about the Dominance style.)

• Traits: This employee is generally blunt, direct, forceful, strong-willed, driven, fast-paced and self-confident.
• Behaviors: They see the big picture, accept challenges and get straight to the point.
• Styles: They are commanding, resolute and pioneering.
• Improvement: They need to work on their patience, sensitivity, ability to look at details and ability to allow for deliberation.

Influence

Someone with a leading Influence (i) style aims to shape their environment by persuading others. This person values openness, friendship and building relationships. (Learn more about the Influence style.)

• Traits: A person with an i style tends to be enthusiastic, optimistic, convincing, warm and trusting.
• Behaviors: They like to collaborate; they dislike being ignored, and fear disapproval or the loss of influence.
• Styles: Their leadership styles are energizing, pioneering and affirming.
• Improvement: They need to work on following through, speaking directly and candidly, and researching all the facts.

Steadiness

A person with a Steadiness (S) style wants to work with others within existing circumstances to carry out tasks. They value cooperation, sincerity and dependability. (Learn more about the Steadiness style.)

• Traits: A person with an S style is usually calm, patient, deliberate, consistent and accommodating.
• Behaviors: They provide supportive actions; they don’t like to be rushed and tend to avoid change.
• Styles: Their leadership styles are inclusive, humble and affirming.
• Improvement: They need to work on adapting to change, multitasking and confronting others.

Conscientiousness

Employees with a Conscientiousness (C) style mostly want to work conscientiously within existing circumstances to ensure both quality and accuracy. This person values expertise, competency and objective reasoning. (Learn more about the Conscientiousness style.)

• Traits: Employees with a C style are generally independent, analytical, careful, cautious, systematic, diplomatic and tactful.
• Behaviors: They maintain stability, desire details, challenge assumptions, and fear criticism and being wrong.
• Styles: Their leadership styles are deliberate, humble and resolute.
• Improvement: They need to work on delegating, compromising and making quick decisions.

A basic, free version of the DiSC assessment is available at DiSC Personality Testing when you sign up for an account. Alternatively, you can purchase the full suite of DiSC products, including the assessment, analysis tools and certifications at Discprofile.com.

Benefits of providing a DiSC assessment to your employees

Conducting DiSC assessments offers many benefits to your individual employees and the company. When you more fully understand your team’s communication preferences and how they translate into workplace behaviors, the result is a more cohesive work environment for everyone. These are some of the most impactful benefits:

Increased self-awareness 

By understanding your strengths and weaknesses, you can make positive changes in dealing with conflict, stress and tasks. This self-awareness can help both your business and personal relationships. It can also help identify where your skills can have the most impact, and where there’s room for improvement.

Enhanced teamwork 

Self-knowledge can help workplace collaboration as teams communicate more effectively and reduce conflict. Additionally, test results assist managers in allocating tasks for maximum success. 

For example, if a team has a strong D, that person might do well directing the team’s overall activities, while they could tap a strong i to make the presentation. A DiSC assessment should not, however, be used to pigeonhole employees; everyone has a blend of personality characteristics.

Strengthened sales and customer service skills 

Once an employee takes the DiSC assessment and becomes familiar with all the personality types, it’s easier to spot these traits in customers. The employee can make more sales by tailoring their presentations to appeal to various personalities. Understanding clients’ characteristics can also improve customer service.

More effective management

Knowing how employees see and interact with the world is invaluable for managers. This knowledge helps them motivate staff, assign tasks, create teams and communicate department needs. If there’s workplace conflict, knowing the DiSC profiles involved can help managers diffuse tensions and create better working relationships.

Enhanced empathy

When a person understands where someone else is coming from, it’s easier to be nonjudgmental. No one personality trait is better than any other; all have a place and purpose in the organization. Today’s workplaces are incredibly diverse, so it’s important to have tools to help you work with people from a wide variety of perspectives and backgrounds.

Better employee engagement

When employees are given tasks that tap into their natural behavioral strengths, they experience more agency and feel more valued. This is a powerful motivator for good employee experience and engagement, resulting in boosted productivity, higher morale and reduced employee turnover. According to a Gallup study, 41% of employees who left their jobs cited issues related to poor employee engagement and company culture.

Unlock hidden potential with a DiSC assessment

A DiSC assessment is a relatively simple way to discover potential paths for growth, both within yourself as a manager and within your team members. It’s not simply a way of understanding strengths and weaknesses. Rather, it can help you identify underlying communication preferences that allow you to match individual workers with the projects and groups in which they are most likely to thrive. In turn, it can help uncover potential for leadership, collaboration and innovation you might not have otherwise known about.

A DiSC assessment can benefit an organization as a whole by working with individual team members and setting them up for success. As a leader, it can be a key tool in your toolbelt to ensure you are supporting your team members in their own professional development. And when everyone can thrive in their individual roles, your team will work together more cohesively and drive better results for your organization.

Erin Donaghue and Jennifer Dublino contributed to the writing and research in this article.