http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/1385fe50-ac1e-11dd-aa46-000077b07658.html?nclick_check=1
When I read this article in the Financial Times, I found it interesting that Gensler, the international architecture and interior design firm, has identified 4 work modes that more or less correlate with the 4 basic personality types. Hmmm. I like it - that is, I like the concept, not necessarily the way Edelman PR has implemented it in their London offices. I'm not much into "lights decorated with small paper drawings of Japanese erotica." That goes more to values than personality, I guess.
If education were this flexible in its approach would we see a 20% boost in learning?! In most of education, business and in life things end up being about understanding yourself, understanding others and then adapting to communicate in the way the other person (or organization) can best understand. This doesn't mean you shouldn't want to have a consistent brand. It just means you need to tailor how you communicate your brand's one thing to your different audience segments. From the personality side, one of my favorite books in this area is The Platinum Rule by Tony Alessandra. He says that it's not the Golden Rule that says, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" that builds productive relationships but the Platinum Rule that states, "Do unto others as they would have done unto them." Another book from more of the brand side of the equation is The Experience Economy by Joseph Pine and James Gilmore who look at the 4 realms of Experience. Adapting-to-connect works in relationships and in the type of environment you provide in the workplace as well.
What should change at your office?
--Charles
