Leadership assessments are transformative tools that provide leaders with clear, actionable insights to enhance their skills, strengthen relationships, and expand their impact. When embraced as a growth tool, feedback becomes more than a reflection—it becomes a strategic guide. Feedback is leadership gold at its best, offering leaders a roadmap to refine their influence and make a lasting difference.
A Growth Perspective on Feedback
After guiding hundreds of leaders through the assessment process, I’ve witnessed the profound impact of leaders viewing feedback as an opportunity for growth. Assessments offer more than just data; they provide a framework for aligning one’s leadership style with organizational goals and personal values. Practical assessments go beyond surface traits, diving into deeper motivations, behaviors, and potential derailers, offering leaders a comprehensive view of their strengths and growth areas.
Types of Assessments: Self and 360-Degree
Self-Assessments
Self-assessments are a great starting point for introspection, allowing leaders to evaluate their own skills, behaviors, and attitudes. Tools like the Hogan and DISC are popular choices, offering leaders insights into how others might perceive them and identifying strengths and development areas. With its unique three-part structure (Hogan Personality Inventory, Hogan Development Survey, and Motives, Values, Preferences Inventory), the Hogan reveals personality traits and potential derailers, helping leaders understand how stress might impact their effectiveness. DiSC, by focusing on four core traits (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness), helps leaders see how their behaviors influence communication and decision-making. For leaders working in diverse, global settings, the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) focuses on cultural awareness and adaptability, helping leaders foster more inclusive and adaptive behaviors.
360-Degree Assessments
While self-assessments rely on a leader’s self-perception, 360-degree assessments offer a more rounded perspective by collecting feedback from peers, direct reports, supervisors, and other stakeholders. This approach highlights a leader’s impact on others, making it easier to identify blind spots and refine interpersonal skills. The Leadership Circle Profile (LCP) is one of the most comprehensive 360 tools available, linking internal beliefs with external leadership performance to reveal growth opportunities. The Korn Ferry Architect 38 also provides a broad view, assessing leadership skills across 38 competencies and aligning behaviors with organizational goals.
The Impact Field Leadership Practice
In addition to these widely used tools, the Impact Field Leadership Practice offers a unique, targeted framework to deepen self-awareness and expand a leader’s influence across four critical leadership practices: Wisdom, Inspiration, Innovation, and Achievement. This model uses six impact fields—Ignore, Block, Build, Maintain, Multiply, and Source—to map out where leaders’ behaviors fall and how they can evolve their practices. Unlike other assessments, this model measures behavior and examines how a leader’s actions influence outcomes across these essential practices. Leaders use this model to see how they affect others and identify targeted strategies to increase their positive impact. This is particularly effective when used alongside traditional self and 360 assessments, offering a well-rounded view supporting introspection and practical application.
Feedback Schmeedback: Embracing the Growth Process
Despite the clear benefits, many leaders hesitate to seek feedback. Some fear criticism, worry it will make them appear less competent, or don’t feel they have the time. Yet, avoiding feedback is a significant missed opportunity. Leaders who don’t embrace feedback risk overlooking their blind spots and miss out on powerful growth opportunities.
Top Assessment Tools I Recommend
- Leadership Circle Profile (LCP): A comprehensive 360-degree tool connecting internal beliefs to external leadership impact. It assesses creative leadership and reactive tendencies, offering deep personal and organizational transformation insights.
- Hogan Assessment: This self-assessment examines personality, potential derailers, and core values, revealing how leaders might act under stress. It identifies areas for growth, making it valuable for personal insight and self-directed development.
- Korn Ferry Architect 38: This 360 tool assesses a leader’s skills across 38 competencies, aligning behaviors with organizational goals for a thorough view of leadership strengths and development needs.
- DiSC Personality Assessment: A straightforward self-assessment focusing on four vital behavioral traits, helping leaders enhance communication and collaboration skills.
- Gallup CliftonStrengths: Highlights a leader’s top talents, encouraging them to leverage their strengths for more effective leadership. It’s positive and action-oriented, making it easy for leaders to apply.
- Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI): This tool provides insights into cultural awareness, helping leaders adapt their approach in diverse environments.
- Impact Field Leadership Practice: This assessment gives leaders a clear view of their influence across essential practices—wisdom, inspiration, innovation, and achievement—by mapping impact within six fields (Ignore, Block, Build, Maintain, Multiply, Source). It offers actionable steps to align behaviors with organizational goals, helping leaders expand their influence effectively.
A Playbook for Acting on Feedback
To maximize the benefits of assessments, leaders need an actionable plan:
- Embrace Feedback: Treat feedback as an opportunity for growth, not a critique. This mindset shift enables leaders to act on insights with confidence and resilience.
- Create a Development Plan: Create a concrete action plan based on assessment feedback. Incorporate experiential learning, mentoring, and targeted coaching to support skill-building.
- Follow Through and Reassess: Leadership development is a journey, not a destination. Regularly reassessing progress ensures growth stays on track and helps leaders refine their impact over time.
Master Wisdom Key
“You cannot improve what you cannot measure.” —John Maxwell
Leadership assessments are transformative tools that empower leaders to sharpen their approach, deeply align with company culture, and amplify their impact. Leaders who boldly explore, measure, and refine their influence become powerful change agents, accelerating meaningful growth for themselves, their teams, and the business.
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