Team Packet 120512

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© 2012 Krieger Solutions, LLC www.kriegersolutions.com 518-895-2939

Different Styles / Different Communication Focus /Different Approach to Work

You’ve gotten your four scores…. What do they mean?

There are four basic communication styles:

T = Tells–someone who is very direct and brief in their communication

E = Engages–someone who likes to talk with people and persuade them

A = Analyzes–someone who is very detailed and factual in their conversation

M = Mediates–someone who likes to talk with people and get to know them as individuals

The letter which you scored the highest is your primary style at your current job. You wereaskedto answer the questions in relation to your current job, so that’s what the score reflects. You may use other styles at home, with friends, or in different work environments.

Few people get a 48 and 3 zeros. Most of us are a blend of styles, but most have one or twoprimary styles. If you had a tie for the highest score, or your two high scores were very closetogether, then you are comfortable in both styles and tend to move between them depending onthe situation.

There is not a good or bad style. Each style has strengths and weaknesses. Likewise, there is nota good or bad score.

A score that is even for all 4 styles means you are more flexible in your use of these styles, butyou don’t have a strength in any particular style. A high score in one or two styles means you have strengths in that area, but you also have weaknesses in one or more of the other styles.

So while there’s no particular score to strive for, it is important to understand your individualscore and what that tells you about how you interact with others. Understanding these styles canhelp you work more effectively with people who have styles that are different from yours.

The four styles together spell TEAM. The best work team is one where all four styles arerepresented and where everyone respects and values the differences among the styles.

The styles influence how we approach our work and our co-workers. Differences in these stylescan provide a healthy range of opinions, and can also be the basis of conflict and irritation withco-workers.

Understanding Different Work and Communication Styles–T.E.A.M.

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Having an understanding of these styles has helped me reframe the way I look at interactions Ihave with people at work. Once I understood my primary style I began to see why some peoplewere easy to work with (people with my primary style) and others were more “difficult”. These others simply approach work and work interactions from a very different foundation.

Where an“A”wants to dive into the details and start tearing things apart, the“E”wants to getthe big picture clarified, the“T”just wants to get the task done, and the“M”wants to build aconsensus. Any one of these approaches might be just fine for the person with that style, but it isuncomfortable and unhelpful for people with other styles.

These communication and work styles are based on two factors:

whether you are more focused on people or on tasks, and

whether you work and talk quickly or slowly.

(See the charts on the following pages for more information about each style).

Compare your score from the self-assessment tool to the information on the next two pages. Seehow well your high score(s) line up with how you see yourself. If it’s a good fit,then thinkabout the people you work with who might be highest in the other styles. Consider how you canadapt your style to better connect with these people.

Ifyou don’t think your score is a good fit, read through the materials again. Our experiencewith thousands of people who’ve taken this assessment is that whenthe results didn’t initially seem to fit, upon reflection, nearly everyone agreed that the assessment results proved to be moreaccurate than their initial assumptions about themselves.

If after further reflection your results still don’t seem like a fit, consider that these scoresrepresent your style at work, not necessarily your core personality. You may be one style athome and a different style at work. Our styles are adaptations of our personality. We can adaptto fit the demands of a job (e.g. jobs that require more detail will result in a higher “A” score), and we can adapt to better fit in with the culture in the workplace (e.g. a work site where peopletell jokes during the day and socialize together will result in a higher “E” score.


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DIFFERENT STYLES / DIFFERENT FOCUS

TASK ORIENTED

Tells T

Slogan: Get things done

Wants: Results / Autonomy

Likes: Short, quick, directconversations

Dislikes: Indecision, Worknot getting done

Challenges: Accuracy,Listening

Analyzes A

Slogan: Get things right

Wants: Accuracy / Details

Likes: Answers; Time forquestions/discussions

Dislikes: Poor quality /Rushed decisions

Challenges: Working quickly,Connecting with people

Engages E

Slogan: Do it differently

Wants: Meaning / Creativity

Likes: Opportunity to talk; topersuade; to change

Dislikes: Routine, rigidity,Isolation

Challenges: Listening,especially for details / facts

Mediates M

Slogan: Do it together

Wants: Teamwork / Harmony

Likes: Being friendly, Takinga personal interest incoworkers

Dislikes: Conflict / Rapidchange

Challenges: Confrontation,Giving critical feedback

PEOPLE ORIENTED

Read the descriptions on the next page. See if most of the bullets under your highest score are agood match for you. You don’t need to agree with every bullet, just with most of them.Theseare general descriptors of people with that style. If they generally describe your actions andfeelings at work, then the score is a good match.

SLOWER

PACED

FASTER

PACED


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How well do you match?

TELLS / DIRECTS

concise and direct in language business-like in communication

doesn’t hesitate to speak his/her mind may seem “bossy” to others

work and task oriented (vs. social) quick to make decisions

action-oriented problem solver independent / autonomous

hates to waste time (be off task) easily bored, needs challenges

ENGAGES / INFLUENCES

optimistic—sees lots of possibilities,looks for opportunities

wants to be committed to what they dofor work—needs meaning

enthusiastic and friendly thinks intuitively (not step by step)

very verbal—talks in paragraphs cracks jokes easily - an entertainer

likes to participate in groups can be inspirational/motivational

creative, thinks “outside the box”

ANALYZES / DETAILED

systematic, thorough very careful and cautious

concerned with accuracy and details needs time to think things through

asks lots of questions looks at things critically

task oriented does not mind working alone

sometimes not comfortable with other’s open expression of emotion

doesn’t socialize much

MEDIATES / EMPATHIZES

nice, considerate, quiet likes working with others

accommodating—willing to help home life is very important to them

listens well to others’ troubles not very assertive about own needs

decorate office like home away fromhome (pictures, special items, etc.)

likes routine and predictability–does itwell -- cranks out the work


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OK, now that you’ve found your strongest style, what do you do with this information?

The following table shows the communication preferences of each of the styles. Find yourhighest style(s) first and again, see if that fits how you like to converse with people at work.Then look at the other styles and see how their preferences can directly conflict with yours.

COMMUNICATION PREFERENCES

TASK ORIENTED

PEOPLE ORIENTED

TELLS / DIRECTS

quick, direct communication lots of autonomy skip the friendly pleasantries task focused / to the point

ANALYZES / DETAILED

clear and detailed/defined task focused, orderly/organized skip the friendly pleasantries opportunity to ask questions

and explore fully; to reflect

ENGAGES / INFLUENCES

to connect with people to work in groups, be involved freedom to express all their

thoughts opportunities to persuade/influence keep the conversation moving

MEDIATES / EMPATHIZES

honesty/sincerity to be accepted and appreciated time to talk with others, not be pushed around harmonious conversations

FASTER

PACED

SLOWER

PACED


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The biggest lesson this TEAM tool provides is understanding the differences in the way peopleapproach work tasks and communication. Not everyone likes to work and communicate the wayyou do!

Here’s a quick example: my colleague, who is a high A style asked me to review a memo she wrote. I scanned it and gave it back to her and said “looks good”. She got angry and gave itback to me and said, “you read it carefully and edit it to tighten it up!” The memo was fine, but there were a few minor edits that did tighten it up. As a high A, she was looking for extremeaccuracy and quality and wanted a careful review from an outside reviewer.

I got home that evening and my wife handed me a poem she had been working on.Remembering the incident at work, I took out my pen and went through and edited itthoroughly….My wife is an M and she became angry. She was sharing something personal andwanted me to connect with the poem on that level.

So the key to this model is trying to get a sense of other people’s styles and adapting your approach to better connect with them. This requires editing the Golden Rule slightly so it reads:“Do unto others as they want to be done unto.” (Treat people the way they want to be treated -known as the Platinum Rule.)

Now back to you–many of us think that most people approach the world through a similar mindframe as we do. We view difficult people as people who have it in for us and want to make ourlife difficult.

One key lesson of this model is that some difficult people are just approaching the situationdifferently than you and don’t mean to be difficult. In fact they may find you to be a difficultperson as well. As in the above story–I was a difficult person in both situations, even thoughmy intent was positive. I was just trying to do what I thought the writer might want.

We need to begin to separate intentions from actions. The actions are indeed difficult, but theintention may be benign. (That’s not to say that all difficult people have good intentions… there are some out there who do want to give you a hard time!)

For you to better understand your style, it might be helpful to think about your work andcommunication preferences and compare them the preferences of people with other styles. Doyou see some clues about how differences in style can lead to difficulty in communicating andworking together?

What you see as a strength and a preference, others maysee as a weakness or barrier… and vice versa. Be especially careful about the styles in which you scored lowest. You are most likely tohave challenges communicating and working with people who score high in these styles.


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We hope you’ve found this to be helpful.

By becoming more skilled with the styles you will be able to: better understand what motivates and frustrates people with different styles, build stronger connections and work more effectively with them, and prevent or more effectively resolve conflicts.

If you’d like to learn more about these styles,here are some possible next steps:

Check out our website: www.kriegersolutions.com for more information about the kinds oftraining programs we offer. The TEAM tool is used in many of the programs.

Email me at [email protected] if you’d like to talk with me about: individual leadership coaching to help you integrate this model into your work having me conduct a program at your organization announcements about workshops we deliver in your area that addresses this

We are writing a book that will provide a lot more information about the TEAM styles and howyou can adapt your style to be more effective in interacting with others. Our goal is to have itpublished in 2013. To be notified about it, email us at: [email protected].

I’d be very interested in your reaction to the on-line self-assessment tool and the TEAM model.Please email me your thoughts: [email protected]

Thanks.

Alan Krieger

Alan Krieger is President of Krieger Solutions, LLC. Krieger Solutions is a training andconsulting firm that specializes in building stronger organizations by helping people worktogether more effectively. We provide training in leadership, management, communicationsskills, team work and time management. We also provide individual coaching for leaders. AlanKrieger developed the TEAM tool and it is used in many of Krieger Solutions’ training programsand with our individual leadership coaching. For more information, see our web site:www.KriegerSolutions.com

Feel free to share this article with colleagues, friends and family. If you share the article, pleasebe sure to include the footer with the copyright notice. If you would like to reprint it in apublication, please contact us for permission–we give it pretty freely.

Team Packet 120512

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