Selena Andrews

BUS 311-1900

Prof. Buckley

The personality trait that the 16 Personalities assessment test gave me was the Defender personality trait. I was not surprised by this outcome because I have taken numerous personality traits, and I have received this trait more than once. Some of the defender character traits are supportive, reliable, imaginative, and observant, enthusiastic, loyal, and hardworking, which are strengths. The defender’s weakness characteristics are humble, shy, we take things too personally, we repress our feelings, overload ourselves, and reluctant to change. Though most of the traits I agree with, there are others that I thought didn’t describe me at all.

The strengths described in the personality assessment results I thought accurately depicted my character; also, I see how they can be great attributes in the workplace. Most companies would want to hire a potential candidate who is reliable, observant, enthusiastic, and hardworking. The results also stated that though the defender doesn’t seek out management positions, we are essentially great managers. Instead of just giving demands to the employees, the defender prefers to work with the employees side by side. If potential candidates had to take this test and I would look for those with the defender personality. Employees with the defender personality would be a great asset to the team of employees that will already be in place.

Some of the challenges that the defender personality faces are that they take things too personally, which means they may not respond well to constructive criticism. In a work environment, you are susceptible to such criticism. Defenders also tend to overload themselves, which can be a problem in the workplace. If the individual takes on too much work at once because they are afraid to say no or merely please everyone, it may become difficult to complete every task efficiently. Being humble and shy can be a downfall for the defender because, in an effort not to make someone feel less than, the defender may not take credit for specific ideas and tasks, which can cause them to be overlooked and possibly skipped for a promotion.

I think these personality tests are a great way to get a sense of the candidate, but it doesn’t accurately embody the candidate. For instance, a candidate may have a defender personality trait, but that doesn’t mean that the candidate has all the characteristics of this defender. Even with me, most of the defender attributes I agree with, but there were things that I did not agree with, such as reluctant to change, too altruistic, shy, and I also don’t think that I’m patient. So yes, this personality test can give you an idea of someone, but it shouldn’t be the sole bases of whether the person gets the job or not. Lastly, this assessment test, along with the interview, can tell you if the person is a good fit for the position depending on the duties of the job, but it would just be a general idea, not 100% accurate. I also don’t think that this test should erase the interviewing process.