Conscientiousness Personality In The Workplace And On The Team

Many value the conscientiousness personality in the workplace. Plenty of research shows it a high predictor of on the job success. Does that mean though one wants a team filled with only this personality? Why or why not?

The conscientiousness personality in the workplace has tremendous value; however, the value to a team varies greatly with the team’s purpose.

Conscientiousness Personality In The Workplace

The conscientiousness personality in the workplace is about doing things right. “Right” can be many things though. Knowing what it means to this personality is key.

It can be something internal such as morals, principles and habits. Perhaps it’s processes, procedures and practices picked up through experience. They form the skills and ways that one thinks is the right way.

“Right” can be external too. In this case, they’re a firm’s policies, processes, procedures and practices. They’re rules, guides and directives. This includes goals, objectives and plans. Right can even be the norms, customs and precedents that form a firm’s culture.

The conscientiousness personality uses these to tell her what’s right. When one pushes this personality to extreme, he becomes perfection.

Conscientiousness Personality On The Team

In the right context, any personality shows her weak side. This holds true for conscientiousness. That means the team’s purpose drives its value. For example, the main reason this personality is so valued at work is that much work is process driven. It varies little. The work has clear steps and standards.

The counterweight to conscientiousness is adaptableness. Some refer to it as spontaneity. Juggling tasks in a context of fast changing priorities does not bring out the best in this personality. It brings out frustration.

This personality is tough on ideas. She thinks a lot of about them. She processes them. This yields safe ideas. They don’t shake things up. Just as processed foods lack the best nutrients, processed ideas lack their best aspects.

In The Workplace And On The Team

Other personality traits impact how the conscientiousness personality in the workplace shows himself. Some adapt well. Some ideate well. What this posts outlines above are guides. They aren’t rules. When it comes to people and their personalities, applying guides as rules is harmful to the firm, the team and the person.