Developed by Ru Robert Hogan and his team in the 1980s, the Hogan Assessment is a personality assessment tool that’s used to measure an individual's personality traits and predict their behaviour in work-related settings. This assessment test has since become widely used in the industrial and organisational psychology field.

It consists of three main components:

1. Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI): Measures an individual's normal or typical personality traits. It assesses characteristics such as ambition, sociability, emotional stability, and conscientiousness.
2. Hogan Development Survey (HDS): Evaluates an individual's potential derailment or problematic behaviours that may emerge under stress or pressure. It identifies traits such as arrogance, impulsivity, and perfectionism that may hinder an individual's performance or relationships in the workplace.
3. Motives, Values, Preferences Inventory (MVPI): Measures an individual's values, goals, and interests, assessing what motivates and drives a person, as well as their preferences for certain work environments and tasks.

Typically used for selection and development purposes in organisations, the Hogan Assessment helps employers make informed decisions when it comes to hiring, promotions, and team composition that provides insights into an individual's strengths, weaknesses, and potential areas of concern. 

It’s also commonly used for leadership development, career counselling, and coaching as it helps individuals understand their own personality traits and how they may impact their performance and relationships at work.

The Hogan Assessment in Action - How Did We Use This?

We recently conducted a poll across our LinkedIn and Instagram platforms to gather insights on Averians’ perceptions of the Hogan Assessment. On LinkedIn, the responses varied - 36% recognised its value in uncovering insights, 20% wished it had more context, 4% dismissed it as a gimmick, and 40% expressed that they weren't very sure about its purpose. Meanwhile, Instagram responses presented a slightly different perspective - 44% acknowledged its insight-generating potential, 38% found it intriguing yet lacking context, 6% labelled it as overrated, and 12% were still unfamiliar with it altogether.

Seeing how a significant percentage of individuals lacked awareness of the assessment, we figured that our annual Leadership Conference, that was held earlier this year, was an ideal event to address this and educate about its application.

During the conference, participants actively engaged in the Hogan Assessment, taking part in a series of personalised questionnaires and tasks. These exercises were designed to highlight the personality traits and behaviours of each individual, furnishing them with relevant and useful insights to be added into their professional profiles.

The assessment was carried out according to these steps.

1. Pre-assessment: Participants were provided with instructions and information about the assessment process so that they’ll understand each required course of action.

1. Assessment Completion: The responses provided by the participants in the assessment measured various aspects of personality, values, and motivations.

2. Scoring and Analysis: Once the assessment was completed, responses were scored and analysed. The results provided insights into each participant’s strengths, weaknesses, and potential areas for development.

3. Feedback Session: Our trained Hogan assessor, Bernie Yong, who is also our Lead Talent Management and Learning Development, provided feedback on each participant’s assessment results. This feedback included a discussion of the participants’ personality profile, how it relates to their work performance, and other potential strategies for improvement.

4. Development Planning: Based on the assessment results and feedback, each participant devised a development plan with specific goals, actions, and resources to help further enhance their performance and effectiveness.

The results provided valuable information about the personality traits of each member in the leadership team, such as level of extraversion, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and openness to experience. They were also given insights into their values and motivations, such the desire for achievement, recognition, or affiliation.

Exploring Its Impact - What Did We Use it For?

Here's how we harnessed the power of the Hogan Assessment through the results gained during the activity:

1. Performance Enhancement: With the insights gained from the Hogan Assessment, we got to focus on specific areas that required improvement. By crafting targeted action plans, we addressed our weaknesses and leveraged strengths to elevate our performance within our current roles.
2. Leadership Cultivation: The Hogan Assessment also serves as a compass, helping us identify our leadership strengths and areas warranting development. With this clarity, we’ll be able to focus on enhancing leadership competencies and refine our working styles to emerge as more impactful leaders.
3. Improving Teamwork: Understanding diverse personalities within a team is key to improving teamwork. Through the Hogan Assessment, we gained insights into each other’s unique traits, fostering better communication, collaboration, and synergy. By embracing these differences and leveraging individual strengths, we can work efficiently towards shared goals.

Conclusion

The Hogan Assessment has proven to be a valuable tool in our journey towards professional development and organisational growth. The feedback collected from our LinkedIn and Instagram polls highlighted varying perceptions of its effectiveness, prompting us to set an experiment in motion in order to enhance awareness. 

By incorporating the assessment into our annual Leadership Conference, we provided team members with the opportunity to gain insights into their personality traits and behaviours, allowing them to have a deeper understanding of themselves and fellow team mates. Moving forward, we’re committed to leveraging these insights to create a more collaborative, productive, and impactful work environment. The assessment not only played a role in personal development and career planning, but also team and character building.