Custom Assessments for
Leadership Selection & Development
Behaviors that contribute to leadership success
Behaviors that cause leadership failure
Offensive but sub-pathological behaviors that undermine team performance
Understanding and managing emotions
We work with you to identify which of the below competencies, derailment risk factors, dark triad traits, and emotional intelligence scales are worth measuring in your specific context. We can even adopt your company's existing competency model for a perfect alignment with your existing competency framework. Focusing on only what's relevant to you makes your assessment:
For each characteristic included in your assessment (competency, derailment risk factor, etc.), we help you identify the aspects relevant to your context. We then focus each scale's item content and definition to align with your priorities.
Best fit - Tailoring how every characteristic is defined & measured means that all parts of your assessment will be the best possible fit for your needs, outperforming any generic counterparts available elsewhere.
Once you have enough data, your own leaders serve as the comparison sample for scoring respondents. This ensures the most accurate results.
Historically, custom assessments have been prohibitively expensive. Not any more. We exist to make high-quality custom assessments available at or below the cost of comparable off-the-shelf ones.
You can include a lie detector.
Unlikely virtues. When a person tries to distort their answers to make themselves look good, they will claim virtues that are only true of a small percentage of people. Examples include “I never feel sad,” or “I never lie.” Ironically, a person claiming to never lie is probably lying about it! A person is flagged for claiming too many unlikely virtues.
Definition: Competencies are leader behaviors that positively contribute to superior performance.
Our model: Our model is founded on Tett, Guterman, Bleier, & Murphy's (2000) taxonomy. To ensure comprehensiveness, we then added content to cover all competencies available from all widely-used leadership competency models.
Your custom assessment: Your assessment can be based either on either:
| Leadership Dimension | Competency Name | Reversed Name |
|---|---|---|
| Communication | Listening | Inattentiveness |
| Communication | Oral communication | Improvable oral communication |
| Communication | Public presentation | Improvable public presentation |
| Communication | Written communication | Improvable written communication |
| Courage | Action orientation | Discussion orientation |
| Courage | Bravery/Risk taking | Caution |
| Courage | Career ambition | Career disinterest |
| Courage | Conflict resolution | Avoids intervening |
| Courage | Confronting direct reports | Avoids confronting direct reports |
| Dependability | Ethical leadership | Unethical leadership |
| Dependability | Organization | Messiness |
| Dependability | Persistence | Quitting |
| Dependability | Professionalism | Lack of professionalism |
| Dependability | Punctuality | Lateness |
| Dependability | Rule-following | Rule-breaking |
| Dependability | Taking responsibility | Evading responsibility |
| Dependability | Time management | Time mismanagement |
| Dependability | Trustworthy | Indiscreet |
| Dependability | Value alignment | Value misalignment |
| Developing Self and Others | Developmental feedback | Difficulty giving developmental feedback |
| Developing Self and Others | Developmental goal setting | Difficulty setting goals for others |
| Developing Self and Others | Job enrichment | Job stagnation |
| Developing Self and Others | Performance assessment | Difficulty assessing performance |
| Developing Self and Others | Self-awareness | Self-unaware |
| Developing Self and Others | Self-development | Uninterested in self-development |
| Emotional Control | Even-Tempered/Patient | Quick-Tempered |
| Emotional Control | Haste avoidance | Hastiness |
| Emotional Control | Resilience | Fragility |
| Emotional Control | Stress tolerance | Vulnerability to stress |
| Occupational Acumen and Concerns | Financial concern | Inattention to finances |
| Occupational Acumen and Concerns | Industry awareness | Industry unfamiliarity |
| Occupational Acumen and Concerns | Organizational awareness | Organizational unfamiliarity |
| Occupational Acumen and Concerns | Quality concern | Inattention to quality |
| Occupational Acumen and Concerns | Quantity concern | Inattention to quantity |
| Occupational Acumen and Concerns | Safety concern | Inattention to safety |
| Occupational Acumen and Concerns | Technical proficiency | Technical shortcoming |
| Openness | Adaptability/Flexibility | Rigidity |
| Openness | Broad perspective | Narrow perspective |
| Openness | Cultural appreciation | Cultural bias |
| Openness | Dealing with paradox | Difficulty with paradox |
| Openness | Innovation | Practicality |
| Openness | Leading diversity | Mishandling diversity |
| Openness | Leading innovation | Leading for stability |
| Openness | Quick learning | Slow learning |
| Openness | Seeking input | Dismissiveness |
| Openness | Tolerance for ambiguity | Need for certainty |
| Person Orientation | Appraisal of group emotions | Misses group emotions |
| Person Orientation | Appraisal of others' emotions | Misses others' emotions |
| Person Orientation | Assertiveness | Followership |
| Person Orientation | Benevolence | Lacks benevolence |
| Person Orientation | Comfort around higher management | Ackwardness around higher management |
| Person Orientation | Cooperation | Uncompromising |
| Person Orientation | Customer focus | Customer neglect |
| Person Orientation | Humor | Seriousness |
| Person Orientation | Networking | Professional reclusivity |
| Person Orientation | Personal disclosure | Personal guardedness |
| Person Orientation | Politeness/Tact | Bluntness |
| Person Orientation | Political astuteness | Political missteps |
| Person Orientation | Relations with supervisors | Separation from supervisors |
| Person Orientation | Self-monitoring | Obliviousness |
| Person Orientation | Team player | Maverick |
| Person Orientation | Warmth | Aloofness |
| Task Orientation | Decisiveness | Indecision |
| Task Orientation | Initiative | Complacence |
| Task Orientation | Task focus | Distractibility |
| Task Orientation | Urgency | Responding slowly |
| Traditional Functions | Achievement/Effort | Indolence |
| Traditional Functions | Clarity of directions | Ambiguity of directions |
| Traditional Functions | Coordinating others | Difficulty coordinating others |
| Traditional Functions | Creating vision and purpose | Lack of vision or purpose |
| Traditional Functions | Delegation | Micro-management |
| Traditional Functions | Informing | Witholding information |
| Traditional Functions | Leading through systems | Lack of systems |
| Traditional Functions | Monitoring and measuring | Lack of monitoring or measuring |
| Traditional Functions | Motivating by persuasion | Difficulty motivating by persuasion |
| Traditional Functions | Motivating through praise | Lack of praise |
| Traditional Functions | Negotiating | Difficulty negotiating |
| Traditional Functions | Participative leadership | Non-participative leadership |
| Traditional Functions | Prioritization | Difficulty prioritizing |
| Traditional Functions | Problem awareness | Problem blindness |
| Traditional Functions | Problem solving | Difficulty solving problems |
| Traditional Functions | Short-term planning | Difficulty making short-term plans |
| Traditional Functions | Standardization | Lack of standardization |
| Traditional Functions | Strategic planning | Difficulty planning strategically |
| Traditional Functions | Talent acquisition | Difficulty aquiring talent |
| Traditional Functions | Talent recognition | Overlooking talent |
| Traditional Functions | Team building | Difficulty building teams |
| Traditional Functions | Team goal setting | Difficulty setting team goals |
| Traditional Functions | Transactional leadership | Lack of rewards and punishments |
| Traditional Functions | Wisdom | Folly |
Definition: Derailment risk factors are behaviors that can interfere with a leader's performance regardless of their competencies. For example, even a competent leader can fail if they burn out. For a full picture of leader performance, it helps to consider derailment risk factors in addition to competencies.
Our model: Our model is based on a content analysis of all published measures of derailment risk factors.
| Derailment Risk Factor | Definition |
|---|---|
| Abusive | Humiliating colleagues through criticism, yelling, or blaming. |
| Aloof | Withdrawing rather than connecting with people on a personal level. |
| Arrogant | Having an exaggerated sense of self-importance and favoring one's own ideas over others. |
| Authoritarian | Expecting control and obedience to the point of discouraging input and suggestions from others. |
| Burn-Out | Overworking to the point of feeling worn out, risking long-term exhaustion due to work/life imbalance. |
| Competence problems | Lacking one or more key pieces of knowledge or skill necessary to perform the job effectively. |
| Eccentric | High level of drama and unconventionality, to the point of testing limits and seeking attention. |
| Inflexibility | Difficulty adapting to a change, such as new people, processes, or technology. |
| Lack of Benevolence | Lacks concern for the needs and interests of colleagues. |
| Lack of Follow-Through | Losing interest in projects before they are completed, over-promising and under-delivering. |
| Lack of Initiative | Maintaining the status quo instead of seeking out opportunities to learn and grow. |
| Lack of Prioritizing | Getting sidetracked by unimportant details istead of focusing on the tasks requiring urgent attention. |
| Lack of Self-Awareness | Lacks a realistic view of strengths and weaknesses, struggling to adjust behavior due to avoiding or ignoring feedback. |
| Micromanaging | Continually monitors and controls details that needs to be delegated instead of empowering teammates to do their jobs. |
| Negative focus | Sees the worst in people and situations, fearing failure more than desiring success. |
| Overdependence on a Single Advocate | Reliant on a single mentor or coworker to the point of being unable to perform effectively without that person. |
| Political Missteps | Makes avoidable political errors such as talking ill of others, sharing confidential information, or speaking out of turn. |
| Problems with Team Building | Struggles to clarify team roles, establish team goals, foster realtionships, or resolve team conflics. |
| Unethical | Breaks ethical principles such as by telling a lie, reneging on a promise, or treating people unfairly. |
| Uninvolved | Unavailable or inattentive when needed to provide direction or feedback. |
| Volatile | Alternates between friendly and aggressive behavior, praising people one moment only to criticize them the next. |
Definition: The Dark Triad is a popular model of offensive but sub-pathological personality dimensions. They are considered "dark" because they reflect malevolent qualities that interfere with effective team performance.
Our model: Our model is based on a content analysis of all published measures of dark triad dimensions.
| Dark Triad Dimension | Characteristic Name | Reversed Name |
|---|---|---|
| Machiavellianism | Suspicion | Trust |
| Machiavellianism | Assertiveness | Followership |
| Machiavellianism | Opportunism | Integrity |
| Machiavellianism | Ingratiation | Sincerity |
| Machiavellianism | Manipulation | Straightforwardness |
| Narcissism | Attention seeking | Modesty |
| Narcissism | Grandiosity/Overconfident beliefs | Reasonable self-perception |
| Narcissism | Entitlement | Unentitled |
| Narcissism | Indifference to approval | Need for approval |
| Psychopathy | Sadism | Benignity |
| Psychopathy | Callousness | Empathy |
| Psychopathy | Vengefulness | Forgiveness |
| Psychopathy | Impulsivity/Disinhibition | Deliberation |
| Psychopathy | Irresponsibility | Dependability |
| Psychopathy | Aggressive | Non-aggressive |
| Psychopathy | Thrill seeking | Thrill avoidant |
| Psychopathy | Rule-breaking | Rule-following |
Definition: Emotional Intelligence reflects a person's ability to understand and manage emotions, both in themselves and others.
Our model: Our model is based on Salovey and Mayer's (1990) pioneering work, with extensions to reflect additional components discovered in the subsequent decades.
| Characteristic Name | Reversed Name |
|---|---|
| Appraisal of others' emotions | Misses others' emotions |
| Appraisal of own emotions | Misses own emotions |
| Appraisal of group emotions | Misses group emotions |
| Regulation of others' emotions | Difficulty influencing others' emotions |
| Regulation of own emotions | Difficulty controlling own emotions |
| Emotion-based decision-making | Reason-only decision making |
| Nonverbal expression of emotion | Inscrutability |
| Use of emotion | Nonuse of emotion |
| Verbal expression of emotion | Secretive about emotions |
