How One VAA Turned a Debrief into Storytelling

Talent Insights Comparison Report Prompted Dynamic Debrief

One of the most rewarding parts of our job is hearing how our Value Added Associates, with our tools, found a new way to land a new client or strengthen a client relationship.

Our latest new product unveil, the Talent Insights Comparison Report, has produced so many success stories that we can’t wait to share.

This week, we interviewed Marilyn Kobb of The Kobb Team about how she reconfigured her team debrief process with a storytelling approach – an idea that was sparked from The Talent Insights Comparison Report.

When did you start using the Talent Insights Comparison Report?

I came back from conference wanting to use it right away because I had an upcoming meeting with a Chairman and a CEO. They had both taken a TriMetrix DNA assessment, and I felt the meeting was the perfect opportunity to be able to compare them to one another to see how they relate. They loved the Comparison Report!

I also practiced using the Talent Insights Comparison Report by running my assessment alongside my co-facilitator. We talked through our different communication styles and compared graphs in prep for using this with clients.

How have you used the new report in your debriefs?

After discovering how easy it was to generate a Talent Insights Comparison Report after someone has taken an assessment, I decided to use it in my next leadership team meeting with a client.

We had about 50 members of the extended leadership team attending our second meeting. Feedback from my first meeting with this group told me they loved the information presented in the TriMetrix DNA assessments they all completed, but didn’t know how to apply it to their work when I wasn’t in the room to guide them.

That’s when it hit me – the Talent Insights Comparison Report would be a nice complement to help them learn how to apply what they’ve learned. I decided to take a storytelling approach in my second leadership meeting.

Using the comparison report, I picked two different individuals in the room who, realistically, could have reason to work together on a project.

I asked the group to keep their behavioral styles and driving forces in mind…and then presented, in story form, a fictitious scenario for the Comparison Report projected on the screen: what challenges would these two individuals face if they collaborated on a project?

Immediately the group could see how their different graphs and communication styles could present roadblocks -- and then brainstormed how they could still communicate to get the job done. The energy in the room was light and fun, as everyone was amused by the comparison of such different individuals.

We looked at and discussed two more Comparison Reports of other pairs of individuals, and team members could immediately see how to apply what they had learned about the process and report data.

The exercise using the Talent Insights Comparison Report was so powerful that everyone in the room agreed that, moving forward, it was imperative that they compare assessments with one another before starting on new projects.

Together, they established a place on the company’s intranet where assessment results will be stored for easy access and reference.

By presenting it in a story format, the team could easily relate to the information and understand how it will help them relate to one another.

Their takeaway was this: they could see if they compared their two reports, they could begin to shape their communication and understand how to adapt to one another to improve their collaboration going forward.

What are your thoughts overall on the Talent Insights Comparison Report?

I am a huge fan of the process of comparison and the Talent Insights Comparison Report nails it. It’s well organized, and hits on the key points perfectly.

When you see all of the graphs and comparisons side by side, it’s a dramatic representation that I find extremely useful during debriefs.