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Assessment Conversation with Dale Carnegie

Last month, I went through an assessment with our friends at Dale Carnegie. The experience was interesting and insightful. I asked the team at Dale Carnegie to share with a bit more information with us about their assessments in the article below. For more information about them, reach out to SHRM STL member Haley Short at [email protected].

 - Andrew Metcalf, SHRM St. Louis President

1. How are clients using these assessments?
   Whether you are an individual or a team from a company, our assessments create a base for who people are and how they show up in their everyday lives. This can allow for people to be more cognizant of how to handle situations with their co-workers or in their personal lives. Most of our clients have either never taken an assessment before or have taken a different questionnaire and are looking for a deeper dive into who they are. This dive allows for deeper growth and understanding of all participants.
     
2. How do these help them and their businesses?
   Behavioral research suggests that the most effective people are those who understand themselves, both their strengths and weaknesses, so they can develop strategies to meet the demands of their environment. By taking our assessments, management can discover who their employees are and how they are motivated in order to work more effectively together.
     
3. When are people taking these?
   Typically, we suggest that participants take the assessment prior to a Dale Carnegie experience so they can transition into the experience knowing who they are and how they want to proceed forward. If you are not going through a development experience, you are more than welcome to take it any time. Understanding your natural styles is always a helpful thing!
     
4. What insights do people get from this?
   By taking an assessment, you will have an in-depth view who you are as an individual. Our questionnaire covers visible behaviors, top strengths, and emotional intelligence. The visible behaviors will allow for participants to recognize how you respond to problems and challenges and learn ways you influence others to your point of view. Top strengths will identify skills that you would like to develop further and determine what strengths are necessary for your role. Finally, your emotional intelligence portion will recognize how the ability to sense, understand and effectively apply emotions affects you and others.
     
5. What's the best process for doing an assessment as an individual or team?
   To receive the most accurate results, we suggest that participants schedule 30-45 minutes of quiet time so that they can truly focus on the assessment. Once an individual or team complete the assessments, we schedule out a debrief where our coach leads them in a conversation about the findings. We facilitate conversations about each section so that each person understands what the report says. The debrief is the most important part of the assessment. It’s what brings it to life!
     
6. How do these fit in to what you do at DC?
   Our vision is to give every individual and every organization “aha! moments” that change their lives. Assessments give people these “aha! moments” and allow them the opportunity to understand who they are as leaders and help them be more effective in every aspect of their personal and professional life.