There are always all sorts of personalities working in an organisation. Thank goodness for diversity. But some of those personalities are more disruptive than others. In previous posts we’ve discussed several. For example, team members that thrive on drama, those that complain incessantly, those with a negative point of view, those that like to be right. They do drain their colleagues and impact the performance of others. Today, we focus on staff that we might call Ego Almighty for the sake of this post. Do you have any working in your organisation?
Ego Almighty Characteristics
These people tend to focus on self-justification, defensiveness, blaming, and excuses for certain actions or inaction. They tend not to embrace change very easily. But they do work well and click with people who are like-minded. They are make decisions to gain favour and personal reward.
You Might Recognise These Traits: These team members appear egotistical and overly self-confident. They have a very high opinion of their own views and decisions. They may not show a lot of initiative or desire for self-improvement. They are not progressive or creative in their thinking. Much of their language is about themselves.
The Impact on Others: These staff are difficult to convince, and can be rebellious towards change and new initiatives. They are not open to considering the opinions of others. In fact, they may insist on their own course of action and are likely to openly criticise the ideas of others. They find it difficult to involve others in plans and decisions. They may be passive aggressive. It takes a lot of energy from direct supervisors as they strive to get alignment and build engagement.
How to Manage Strong Egos
It helps to give them specific performance criteria. Coaching discussions are a great way to help them identify personal values and direction, and to acknowledge gaps between the company’s direction and their own interest. A good coach can turn around disruptive behaviour. However, if the impact of the behaviour continues to adversely disrupt others, employers often consider managing the person out of the organisation.
Develop or Let Go?
You may have invested a significant amount of time, energy and training dollars into this person, without success. But what if they have a technical skill that is valuable to the organisation and you are reluctant to let them go? If you are keen to keep them, use a work fit personality assessment such as those provided by Harrison Assessments. These tools are precise with an accuracy that generally astounds people. The Harrison Profiles help employees to develop self-awareness, especially of the impact of their style on others. They offer guidance for managers on getting the best out of an employee. It provides focused insights for you and your staff member, and includes a development guide that will work towards taming the strong characteristics and helping the person to learn to balance the company’s interests with their own. Develop People with Harrison Assessments.
To find out more about using Harrison Assessments to find the right people for your business contact us here.
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