January 18, 2012 | Read Time: 2 minutes
To help employees better understand how their colleagues think and make decisions, the Saint Louis Zoo uses a program that distills academic research on personality types into four easy-to-remember colors: blue, gold, green, and orange.
“When you understand the personalities, you have more of an understanding of why and how people make decisions,” says Wyndel E. Hill, a vice president at the zoo. “Even if it’s in opposition to what you would do, you’re more comfortable because you recognize the situation and you recognize the personality type.”
Understanding Motivation
The program helps make disagreements less about a conflict between individuals and more a clash between the work styles that grow out of different personality types, says Mr. Hill. For example, he says, a “gold” cares very deeply about following the rules and is likely to be upset by a decision that appears to break or even skirt organization rules.
“So before you break a rule, have a conversation with the gold to say, ‘You know what, this is probably not the best way to do this, but I think we should do it in this case because … ‘” says Mr. Hill. “Now the gold understands why you’re breaking the rule, and they also understand that you know you’re breaking the rule.”
He says that when the zoo puts together cross-departmental task forces, it makes sure that all four personality types are represented.
‘Too Orange’
The zoo has been using the program for eight years, and the colors have become part of everyday conversation, says Mr. Hill, who is an “orange,” a personality type that is action-oriented and likes to take charge. It’s not uncommon for colleagues to tell him they’ve already figured out he’s an orange.
“That’s good, because they’re not concentrating on me being difficult or pushy, they’re focusing on the personality,” says Mr. Hill. “And you know what that causes me to do: immediately recognize that I’m being too orange, so I can ease up. I can be more flexible.”
Learn more about how the Saint Louis Zoo is fostering communication among its employees.
