What we do, not who we are

 

Psychometric tests measure personality (who we are); Belbin measures behaviour (what we do). Observer Assessments are integral to the Belbin process, because they can provide behavioural evidence to corroborate – or contrast with – the individual’s Self-Perception.

 

Without the addition of Observers, the Belbin profile may not truly reflect the individual’s behaviour in relation to other people – it may be distorted by mood, limited self-awareness, aspirations or even a desire to influence the results. Whilst the individual may agree wholeheartedly with the self-reported outcome, this may not help to develop his or her performance in relation to other people.

Observer Assessments provide greater accuracy and validity – a behavioural “reality check”. They offer a real learning opportunity, can help to identify discrepancies or conflicts and can provide a useful discussion starter for personal development.

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Who is an ideal Observer?

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Someone you work with on a regular basis – NOT a family member or a friend. Someone who will be honest with their feedback – i.e. someone who will feed back the positives and negatives (we all have them!). You need to have worked with someone for at least 3 months. After all, it takes a while to find the real you!

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As we don’t want the output, the Belbin Reports, to show bias, we ask that people get feedback from a minimum of 4 Observers. An ideal number is 6.

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What is involved?

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Once an individual has completed the Self-Perception Inventory (SPI), a Belbin Report is generated. They then nominate up to 6 Observers and send them an email. This email contains a link to the Observer Assessment (OA) which is a list of words which link to each of the Team Roles. As each Belbin Team Role has strengths and corresponding weaknesses, the list is split in to two sections - List A and List B.

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The Observers tick the words that they feel apply. They should be able to tick words from both List A and List B.

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Once all the Observers have completed their OA, a new Belbin Report can be generated. This one is more in-depth as it takes all of the Observer responses into account.

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How much do the Observer Assessments cost?

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Nothing. They are included within the price of the Belbin Individual Report.  

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Why do Observers matter?

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Because they add so much value to the report. Belbin isn't really Belbin without them.