Most simply, the Birkman Method® is an in-depth personality assessment. It is not, however, simply a personality assessment. The Birkman Method provides a series of related report sets that facilitate team building, executive coaching, leadership development, career counseling and interpersonal conflict resolution -- it is a powerful tool to gain critical answers to how we lead, learn, think, decide and relate to others.
The Birkman® creates a four-dimensional portrait of individuals and team members within organizations by outlining their interests and goals, operating styles, motivational needs and behavior under stress, all of which are factors that impact individual, team and organization-wide productivity.
Essential background elements of the Birkman Method® are:
- The Birkman Method® is a comprehensive system for assessing individual, team, and organizational effectiveness.
- The Birkman Method® is not a test. There are no right or wrong answers and the results are positively portrayed.
- The Birkman Method® is a motivational assessment tool—not a psychological or clinical evaluation. As a result, unlike many other assessment instruments it is compliant with all ADA, EEOC and other similar federal laws.
- It is used and tested globally - and is available in 15 languages.
- The Birkman® is non-judgmental. The questionnaire is phrased in such a way as to be non-threatening and non-judgmental.
What the Birkman® measures:
People have a unique perspective that becomes a filter for their perception. The Birkman® defines what that perceptual filter is which then allows a person to gain a more accurate understanding of how their viewpoint correlates with those of their coworkers and teammates. This leads to a validation and acceptance of differences rather than personal judgments.
Through this instrument we measure five dimensions of an individual--Interests, Usual Behavior/Style, Needs, Stress Behavior and Organizational Focus.
- Interests look at what a person likes to do but does not evaluate their competency.
- Usual behavior, or style describes the observable behavior that an individual exhibits most of the time. These can be considered strengths.
- Needs look at the underlying motivational factors that, when met, allow people to operate out of their strengths. It is the environment in which this person is most likely to thrive.
- Stress behavior, or "Less than productive behavior", is defined as the reaction to a unique need not being met (not usually a good thing.)
- Organizational Focus - the perspective in which an individual views problems and solutions relating to organizational goals.
A critical component of the above is that The Birkman® evaluates each of the dimensions individually-- there is not always a correlation between the way a person behaves and the way they prefer to be treated by other people. This is one of the ways The Birkman® stands apart from other tests and provides great insight into our behavior.
Armed with this in-depth knowledge, a person can adapt, learn and grow into the person and leader they need to be to compete in today's world.
To learn more about The Birkman® Method, visit their website at www.birkman.com .w layer