Project Description

The Myers Briggs Type Indicator is a fantastic tool to help clients better appreciate the people they work with as well their own strengths and preferences. One specific example was when Ken worked with a small team in rural Western Australia. The office had a small number of operational staff, with a mix of professional and administrative roles. There had been niggling issues within the office, with some mild conflict arising on occasions. In order to better understand each other, a short half day team building session was conducted. Ken highlighted Leconi’s 5 Dysfunctions of a Team (see below), where trust is the bedrock of all cohesive relationships, be them personal or professional. The MBTI is a great enabler of trust, where people can declare their preferences, legitimising their way of being.

In this specific example, it turned out that the front office staff, those who engaged with customers, both over the phone and in person were extraverts, whilst the back office staff were all introverts. So it was no surprise once this was identified that there had been some communication problems between these two operational areas. All staff members were somewhat relieved that this insight helped them understand each other better and allowed for more respectful engagement and interaction into the future.