Searching for causes to plan for all factors.
Leaders, and colleagues, need to position people on work project teams effectively and efficiently to ensure work gets done and people stay engaged. A lot of leaders spend too much time trying to guess where to put people because they don't have a point of reference.
What follows is a "scouting report" for those with Analytical® talents, as identified via the CliftonStrengths assessment.
If you are a leader or a colleague of someone with Analytical talents, consider how you can best position them in the context of your team and your projects. You can also use this as a discussion piece to find out how they see and use their Analytical talents.
Each person with Analytical talents operates differently. Make sure you're not missing out on their unique contribution.
Scouting Report
Position: Hold the Line / Defense
This theme is key in helping your team "making plans on practical data."
Contribution
Ways in which this team member can make a direct and immediate impact. Use these insights to consider where you place them on the team or in an organization.
Calm, cool, and collected. Put these individuals in roles and on projects where they can bring reason and process to decisions. They will help their team & organization avoid, downplay, or expose emotionally-driven thinking & decision making.
Pattern recognizer. Their natural propensity for data also often ties in with their natural ability to recognize patterns. The patterns they will pick up will vary, but can range from how the team reached good & bad decisions, to knowing how your competition is likely to react to your new business initiatives. Give them as much data as possible; even about initiatives that happened in the past, or initiatives they aren't directly responsible for. Like a soccer "sweeper", put them in a position where they can be aware of the "whole field." In doing so, they will see where the openings are far faster than most.
Keep (to) the essentials. These teammates can be great when sorting through a list of "dream projects." Their ability to dispassionately question the validity of ideas, projects, or business initiatives can save their teams or organizations time, money and energy. Position these talented individuals so they can help you identify a high probability course of action.
Tendencies
Ways in which people with this theme might "overplay" their talents.
Overthinker. As much as these individuals love data, sometimes they can get stuck gathering data instead of moving forward with it. Help them identify exactly how much data is necessary, and on what timeline a decision needs to be made. Just like a soccer player should hold on to the ball too long, lest it be taken; these individuals need to be aware of how long they can hold onto or delay a project before they cause problems.
Dream killer. As noted above, these individuals can help you help keep your feet in reality. However, when it's time to dream big or explore the "moonshot" idea, help these individuals moderate their risk-adverse tendencies. Just as a soccer fullback will sometimes send a "long ball" forward because an opportunity presents itself, these talented individuals may need help keeping their eyes, hearts, and options...open.
Talent Combos / Position Modification
Both of these combinations are likely to morph your "defensive-minded" teammate into a powerhouse "attacker."
Achiever: This talent combo can contribute in two distinct ways; both forward-moving.
"Defensive Midfielder" - While those with Analytical talents often play a defensive role, the addition of Achiever talents can help them take data and turn it into action; just as a defensive midfielder is one of the first to take the ball and turn it upfield.
"Thoughtful Attacker" - Applied toward the end of a project, those with this talent combo can methodically breakdown and weave through the last remaining obstacles to ensure the team's achieves its goal. Think Mason Greenwood (statistically the most clinical forward in the Premier League for 2019/2020 season; 10 goals off of only 39 shots) rather than the imagination or pizzazz of a Ronaldinho goal.
Learner: "Game Student" - similar to the "thoughtful attacker" an individual with this talent combo will be a true "student of the game" when it comes to your work initiatives. They will analyze the most relevant "game tape" to figure out how your team fared in previous decisions and projects in order to know what to do for current projects. Changing from futbol to football; think about the methodical approach of how Tom Brady studies how to breakdown defenses to score touchdowns.
Game Film
Check out these videos from Gallup to learn more
Photo by Ruthson Zimmerman on Unsplash.