The relevance of the Team Management Index® for recruitment and teams in an R&D environment

"The need for better practices in recruitment and team formation is evident in both the private and public sector, as both sectors become more competitive. To maximise employee productivity, the selection of individuals for specific job types and the placement of them with other employees, demands careful consideration. This paper examines the use of a behaviour based personality test, the Team Management Index (TMI) which identifies preferred work styles in individuals. The Index was applied to three generic positions in a public research and development organisation. They were Research Scientist, Extension Officer and Technician/ Experimentalist. Preferred workstyles of the most outstanding operatives in each of these three job types showed that a clear model exists for Technician/Experimentalist which might be used in recruitment. No single clear model was found to exist for Research Scientists or Extension Officers. An analysis of psychological subscales showed that Scientists were more often introverted rather than extroverted and analytical rather than belief orientated Technicans were more often introverted than extroverted, practical rather than creative, analytical rather than belief orientated and structured rather than flexible in their approach to work. Extension Officers showed no significant preferences on the psychological sub scales. The less complex a jobs requirements the more effective the TMI appears to be for recruitment. If used correctly the TMI can be a useful tool for team building."--p. 100.