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Using DISC Profiling to Manage Your Manager - Part 4 of 4

The Coaching Academy Blog

Posted: May 2017

A must for Business Coaches to read : Part 4 - Managing the C-Style Manager

When I first read the Forbes article that stated

“People Leave Managers, Not Companies”

It was one of those light-bulb moments for me. It summed up in one line what I had been helping people with in the corporate environment for years.

Lots of individuals leave their job and get exactly the same job with another organization. In so many cases I have found that these people leave, not for more money or promotion but to get away from their boss!

If this is you, what can you do?

Understanding the DISC model of human behaviour is the first step.

By gaining the knowledge of DISC, you can begin to unlock the people puzzle, build better rapport with those you find ‘difficult’ to be with or work with and understand how they are ‘DISC wired’. Armed with this information you can begin to improve your working environment at any time.

Who’s managing whom?

To have a productive, effective, harmonious relationship with your boss it is important to understand that they are not just managing you… YOU are managing them too!

It’s a fact that oftentimes we learn how to or how not to approach a manager by experience. You might get a pat on the back or get your fingers burned but at the end of the interaction, you will have some knowledge of how to or how not to do things in the future.

Fast track

Isn’t it better to have some inside knowledge to ensure the best possible outcome more often?

Identifying a C personality type (Reserved & Task Focused)

A C boss is:

  • Someone who focuses on quality and accuracy
  • A person who wants to manage through rules & regulations
  • Someone who likes to get things right
  • An individual who will want you to validate any claims you make
  • Someone who pays attention to detail
  • A person who likes to have a logical plan
  • Someone who would prefer not to go with gut instinct
  • A person who wants to limit risks
  • An individual who uses proven systems and procedures
  • Someone who is task orientated
  • A critical thinker
  • A person who prefers to have time to reflect and think things through
  • An individual who asks lots of questions
  • Someone who seeks quality answers to questions
  • A private person – trust needs to earned
  • An individual who will judge you on your quality, accuracy and detail

How to manage the C boss? – Here’s how

  • C bosses like e-mails which give them enough information to make an informed decision
  • Include links to more information
  • Ensure your e-mails are grammatically correct
  • Have a logical approach to tasks
  • Minimize risk
  • Ensure you produce work of high quality
  • Deliver on time
  • Have your facts and data to hand or memorized
  • Make sure you can back up any statements you make with evidence
  • Let them have their reflective moments – Silence is ok in a meeting
  • Keep things on a professional and more formal footing to begin with
  • Earn trust before being informal or asking ‘personal’ questions.

For D styles, the C can be frustrating… and vice-versa. D & C are both task orientated but prefer to work at a different pace. The D will prefer to work at breakneck speed whereas the C would prefer to take their time to minimize the chance of making mistakes.

The D needs to supply the C with more detail than they would like themselves and must allow the C time to reflect and think things through. The C style likes to be in receipt of as much information as possible before making a decision and so the D needs to manage their own desire to just ‘go for it’.

For I styles – Remember that the C style is more reserved than you and in all probability, will find your infectious winning personality a bit irritating! I-styles need to ‘dial down’ the outgoing, talkative preference and understand that the C styles will probably prefer you to adopt a more conservative approach. Rules will be important for the C styles whereas you might see them as a ‘suggestion’ - this approach will not end well.
C-styles will want you to be well prepared for meetings so ensure you have all your facts and data to hand. I styles often try to ‘wing it’ which will not work with the Cs.

S styles are more reserved and like to get on with things without interruption, just like the C styles – So there’s a significant similarity right away. S styles like to manage risk carefully and that resonates too. It’s important to meet deadlines, produce accurate, quality work and maintain a quiet, productive, professional relationship.

For other C styles, you will probably like the fact that the C boss is more of a perfectionist who wants accuracy, quality and provides a thorough, systematic, logical way of working. Since you both see attention to detail as important, you will probably get on well. C styles can often compete when it comes to accuracy and may well spend time trying to outdo each other.

One very important tip when dealing with C-style managers:

BE Prepared!

Want to learn more about the power of DISC Profiling?

 Become DISC Certified with Master Trainer Dave Pill - https://www.the-coaching-academy.com/disc/level-1-events/

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