“I am convinced that nothing we do is more important than hiring and developing people. At the end of the day you bet on people, not strategies.â€
–Larry Bossidy, former Chairman and CEO, Honeywell
Organizational effectiveness at AEA 267 demands that we have the resources (Capacity) to deliver our corework. That Capacity centers on the knowledge, skill and time of all people in our agency. Hiring, supporting, coaching and development are major emphasis for seeing that our Capacity is good and always getting better. After several years of study, the Agency selected PI Worldwide and it’s Predictive Index (PI) tool/survey processes as the vehicle to assist all of us with improving organizational effectiveness.
Predictive Index measures behavioral tendencies, providing quick, accurate, objective, reliable, specific and valid information. It’s a tool/survey used by organizations around the world for over fifty years. Currently, five other AEA’s in the State of Iowa are utilizing PI. PI is a thinking tool. It’s a survey, not a test. There are no right or wrong responses.
As we move forward with agency-wide implementation of PI, it will impact our Culture (how things work in AEA 267) in a very positive manner. This System (PI) will assist all of us with more effective communications, building stronger team interaction and more effective relationships.
Let’s take a quick look at how PI is already impacting our Culture. First, some input from Justin Stockdale, Special Education Principal at Bremwood and second, input from Karen Aldrich, Sector 6 Special Education Coordinator.
The PI helped reassure and further identify where my own behavioral talents and tendencies lie. The PI helps to improve relationships! I understand others better. Through the conversations I’ve had I feel a personal connection with every team member on staff. The PI helped me recognize others’ talents and how those talents can be used in moving our organization forward “Give others what they need.†That’s the PI way. The saying “Do unto others as you’d have done unto you†is out! I have found others don’t want what I need. The conversations I’ve been able to have with team members regarding their PI results have been incredible. I simply better understand where others are coming from and can now adjust my behavior to better accommodate every person on our team.
I have been using PI’s since this summer. This tool has helped me a great deal. First, it has helped me develop a deeper understanding of myself and why I act and react the way I do in the workplace. This insight has helped me be more effective with the people I interact with on a regular basis. Secondly, my relationship with staff members is enhanced when I analyze their PI and share mine with them. Because there is no good or bad, or right or wrong with the PI data, it is non-threatening. We are able to use the information to help us work as effectively as possible. I really like the PI – it’s great!
Staff needs to know that the PI is a personality test. It has been mainly used in business (sales) and predicts whether or not your personality is right for your job. It is a tool for management to use to better manage employees. Please Google and read up on this. It has not been scientifically tested by anyone other than the company who sells it. There are other personality tests that I would guess have been validated and whose main purpose is self knowledge and self awareness.The PI concerns me in many ways. It is a “top down” approach. There are many ways to improve organizational effectiveness. As a educational nonprofit organization, I am concerned about the expense of purchasing, training, and implementing this tool.
I went to the PI WEB site and requested the research that provides reliability and validity information for this instrument (a month ago) and have not heard back. I am wondering why, given that all our professional development must have a strong research base, our agency would choose to use an assessment tool that lacks research validation. The WEB site provides many “testamonials” but no real evidence. There are other tools for organizational development and change that are much more “staff inclusive” in the approach.
As I have learned about and then learned to use the PI Index in the past few months, I have found it to be very helpful in my work with other administrators and staff. Others that are beginning to use this knowledge also report the value they perceive it provides them. While no process or instrument is perfect, I continue to believe the PI Index will help in our continuous growth at AEA 267.
Dean Meier