In the world of leadership, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Each person's unique personality traits and preferences play a significant role in shaping their behavior, communication style, and decision-making process.

To help our employees delve deeper into their inner selves and uncover their unique combination of personality preferences, Dompé has been using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) assessment sessions in our company. The MBTI is a self-reflective questionnaire that reveals various psychological preferences in individuals' perception of the world and approach to decision-making. Over the years, the MBTI has gained traction in the field of leadership as well, especially relational leadership.

As part of our Leadership Development program, we organized a series of facilitated sessions for our people managers focused on MBTI and Relational Leadership. More than 50 members of our people managers from cross-functional teams in Europe were engaged in different exercises to gain a deeper understanding of how personality traits influence their leadership style and how they can adapt it to unlock the full potential of their teams. All the sessions were guided by a facilitator who was skilled in guiding participants through self-discovery.

With a clear vision in mind, the facilitator provided our people managers with valuable insights and wisdom, inviting them to reflect on the multifaceted challenges they encounter as leaders. One thought-provoking exercise involved the exploration of each participant's childhood hero. Each person described their chosen hero, whether it was a fictional character, historical figure, or someone close to their hearts. In delving into the qualities and virtues that made these heroes remarkable, the participants discovered profound connections to their own values and beliefs and understood how the values represented in their chosen heroes shaped their leadership styles.

In a practical turn, role playing was employed to involve the teams in an engaging scenario ranging from mediating conflicts to negotiating with others from different perspectives. The participants were encouraged to step into the shoes of other people, learning to view situations from multiple angles and understanding the nuances of each person's motivations and concerns. The role plays became a laboratory for experimenting with different approaches to negotiation skills, giving participants the opportunity to refine their communication skills as well.

Throughout the workshop, it became evident that effective people leadership goes beyond individual brilliance. It thrives in an environment where people are able to understand and appreciate their own personality preferences, as well as those of others. By understanding how their personality traits influence their behavior, leaders can become more self-aware and effective in their interactions with others.

The sessions were a valuable learning experience for all participants, and they left with a deeper understanding of how their personality traits influence their leadership style. They also gained valuable insights into how they can adapt their leadership style to unlock the full potential of their teams.