SUITABILITY - THE FIRST STEP TO CAREER SUCCESS AND PEOPLE ENGAGEMENT 

Given that every person in a workplace faces a common set of internal and external circumstances, the degree to which one achieves aspirations in a chosen career depends on his or her 'on the job performance', largely driven by two variables - Eligibility & Suitability

'Eligibility' is a measure of qualifications, experience, competence. By and large today's recruitment processes get the 'eligibility' variable in the workplace performance equation right.

Workplace Performance = Eligibility (Skills, Experience, Qualifications) X Suitability (Behavioral tendencies, Temperament, Aptitude) X K (Common environmental factors such as Economy)

Yet, many new internal or external recruits feel challenged at work, because they somehow can't 'fit' into their job role or team. They are just not 'suitable' because

  • The role demands them to 'behave' in ways they least prefer
  • The behaviors of others stress them out, or vice versa... in time, they feel so out of place.

Seasoned People Professionals know, the first step to Employee Engagement is to get suitable people on the job. Dr. Meredith Belbin made it possible to measure and predict 'suitability', in his work of a lifetime... The BELBIN Team Role Methodology.


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HOW DO YOU MEASURE SUITABILITY?

As a Recruiter, Hiring Manager, or a Business Leader, how do you measure 'suitability'? 

Suitability is about behavioral tendencies, temperament, aptitude. Is this person going to be a square peg in a round hole? Is this placement going to bring in some fresh air, or create rough weather... to the new hire, and to the Team?

Most Organizations seeking to measure 'suitability' take to personality assessments, and a few may follow this up with interviews in order to see the assessment in context. Some rely just on multiple 'personal interviews' and 'assessment centers' with or without any assessments. Some listen to references.

Personality or Psychometric Assessments by their very nature seek to uncover traits. Traits are characteristics of one's personality.. are seen as a given, as unchangeable. Traits are seen as drivers of behaviors.

Personal Interviews do help in a reprospective understanding of how one has responded to past situations and challenges. So, do references.

Such methods help bring a flavour of objectivity to the selection process. They do not measure or help predict behavior, and therefore 'suitability' in a prospective sense. Further, since traits are unchangeable, such assessments serve more as a 'selection' criteria than as lenses that reveal and support 'development' opportunities.

Few Organisations and Recruiters pay attention to 'behaviors' necassary to succeed in the job. When they do, they use techniques like BEI - 'behavioral event interviews' - to gather evidence from past experiences. But, again, very very few, Job Descriptions even mention what behaviors are necessary to succeed on the job! 

Do you assess 'suitability'? If yes, how?

How does BELBIN stand out for assessing suitability?

BELBIN is devoid of psychometric properties.  Measures and predicts behavior aka 'suitability' in the workplace, both in the context of

  • The job, and
  • The people along with whom it has to be done.

Here is how BELBIN helps match people to jobs and jobs to people. It's affable language and framework help articulate:

  • The behavioral preferences or Team Roles necessary for succeeding in a certain job as articulated through a BELBIN Job Report
  • The Team Role preferences of the candidate through the BELBIN Individual Report

The BELBIN Job Report and the BELBIN Individual Report are then matched to generate a BELBIN Job Comparison Report, which predicts the likely performance scenario when the individual is selected to the job in consideration.

Once the BELBIN Individual Report has been generated for two or more individuals, it is possible to generate

BELBIN Reports help predict the climate or chemistry that's likely to emerge as people come together at work. Since this is done before these working relationships are formalised, BELBIN makes it possible to engineer working relationships between people in ways that maximise team performance.

Taken together, BELBIN's ability to measure 'suitability' of people to their jobs, and to their teams, makes BELBIN the gold standard in leveraging behavioral contributions at work. After all, getting suitable people on the job, is the first imperative to building People Engagement. 

How does BELBIN help get the best out of each in a job?

Practitioners of BELBIN appreciate the wisdom in hiring for 'suitability', and then developing, supporting or training to bridge gaps if any in 'eligibility'. In doing so, both the individual and the job role stand to achieve their potential.

Rightfully so, because:

  • Knowledge or qualifications can be acquired. Skills can be cultivated. Experience can be gained. In short, 'eligibility' can be developed.
  • 'Suitability' on the other hand is not as easy to develop. For, behavioral preferences can only be flexed or adapted on a need basis, for short periods. However, for individuals to flex, adapt or bring forward their least preferred behaviors over prolonged periods can be stressful and counterproductive.

What's more, a BELBIN world is free from unpleasant surprises in behavior, as

  • People know the softer behavioral demands of the new job they are walking into and can prepare to adapt, for succeeding in the new role
  • Both the newcomer to a team and its team members know each other's behavioral preferences well in advance, and both sides have an opportunity to flex and interrelate appropriately, in the interest of accomplishing the purpose for which they are coming together.

Do you want your people to know if they are getting the best out of their jobs and vice versa?

This could be of even more interest to you as a Recruiter, Hiring Manager or Business Leader.

When matched well, jobs add value to people, and people add value to jobs. Isn't that the first thing to do in building People Engagement? BELBIN can show you how. Have you tried the BELBIN Job Comparison Report for yourself and your people?

Come, let's use BELBIN Reports to build employee engagement, to help people make the most of their career and aspirations!

Let's transform performance of people and teams . Let's make BELBIN happen!

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