Are you having trouble getting your team to work together as effectively as you know they could? Are you confused about where and why the disconnect is occurring? HBDI is here to help!
HBDI or the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument is effectively a personality test. But don’t let the name intimidate you! It is super easy to take!
Companies, corporations, and schools alike have been taking personality tests to better collaborate for decades.
You may be familiar with some of these popular tests:
- Myers-Briggs
- Disk
- Enneagram
- High5
- Strengths Finder
- PI Test
- MACH-IV
This is only a small list of the ones you and your team can take, there are plenty to choose from. But instead of giving you a jumble of:
- Letters
- Numbers
- Or animals
HBDI has simplified it, they simply give you a color.
What is HBDI?
The Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument was created by William “Ned” Herrmann. The test is based on Herrmann’s “whole-brain model theory”.
Most people know that the brain is separated into hemispheres, right and left, and most people primarily think with either their right or left brain. Either you are more artsy or analytical. Herrmann purposed that it could break down even further.
In his Whole Brain ModelTM, he separated those two hemispheres again, now creating an upper and lower quadrant, with each section a quarter of the brain. He assigned each quadrant a color and attributes.
The brain is a very complex organ, and HBDI is attempting to simplify the rationale behind our thinking. They take a look at the way people think and process information, what framework they operate from, and break it down into easy-to-understand bits of information.
Everybody thinks a little bit differently, and part of parts of the brain is dominant over others. HBDI easily illustrates what your cognitive preferences are.
The whole brain model code
After you take their comprehensive test, they are going to break you down into these four quadrants. With each quadrant broken down into a preference code and profile score. These tell you how much you rely on each quadrant.
Your preference code is given a number between 1 and 3 and your profile score is given a number between 1 and 140. I like to think of it as your reference code is the shorthand of your profile score. That way, when you’re discussing your results with someone else on your team, you are able to quickly understand which quadrants they are ruled by.
The example I am using to illustrate how HBDI works is my score. So, as you can see, I am dominant in Quadrants B, C, and D. But I am primarily dominant in Quadrants C and D. And I rarely use the analytical style of thinking of Quadrant A.
But this isn’t all HBDI does!
Profile findings
HBDI has sections to further explore your profile numbers and characteristics.
It starts with a most/least preferred section.
This shows in greater detail which ways I prefer to think, and which ways I don’t. When I click on Quadrant C, it expands to tell me how I can leverage that quadrant. And when I click on Quadrant A, it expands to show me how I can “stretch” that quadrant-or, how I can grow those skills and ways of thinking.
The next section is your Under Pressure score.
Your Under Pressure score is a little bit different from your regular Profile Score. This shows how you tend to think when you are under pressure or are stressed out. As you can see, I don’t change much in certain areas-like Quadrant A, but in the other three, I change quite a bit.
So, when I am stressed, I think primarily with Quadrant C, followed by Quadrant B. That means that I tend to deal with my feelings first, and then in order to work through something I like a detailed plan.
Your Under Pressure score will let your coworkers know how you operate when you are stressed, and you will know how they’re thinking when they’re stressed. That way you know where they’re coming from and can find ways to work together easier.
Additional insights
Another way HBDI sums up your cognitive preferences is with Modes. Modes are the hemispheres of the brain. Do you think more with your right or left brain? More with the upper or lower?
Personally, I think more with my right mode and lower mode. The right mode dictates that I tend to think with a mindset that is more:
- Intuitive
- Expressive
- Idealistic
While the lower mode means I also use instinctive and visceral thinking.
The next section is the clusters. Clusters are lists of traits that each quadrant has and highlight which of the traits you embody. Everyone has traits from each quadrant, and clusters show you what they are.
Here are my C quadrant traits:
As you can see, there are a lot of traits I embody, but not all of them.
And with Quadrant A, even though I don’t identify with it much, I do still have some of the traits.
Self-Identification
When taking the test, there is a section where you identify yourself based on a list of descriptors they provide. These are then categorized and found in the dashboard section.
These show how you view:
- Yourself
- You at work
- Your energy level throughout the day
- Whether you are an introvert, ambivert, or extrovert
Specific quadrants tend to answer those questions the same. For example, night owls tend to have stronger C and D quadrants. And surprise, surprise, I am a night owl.
I personally find these sections a little less insightful than the profile scores, but it’s still fun to look at!
Sharing your results
If your team is taking the HBDI assessment, you want to be able to share your results with each other. You can do so in a couple of ways. You can:
- Simply tell the others what your results are
- Download the summary pdf to share
- Enable the permissions within the platform to share with other users
Other information
HBDI provides some other information for you if you are still on the fence about whether or not to introduce this to your team. HBDI wants you to be able to “diagnose the cognitive diversity gaps” in your organization and “build ‘diverse by design’ teams”.
They believe that “cognitive diversity is a strategic advantage”.
To prove their point, here are some results from their clients:
- 66% increase in productivity, attribution to management
- $100M saved per year with innovative efficiencies
- 61% more successful mergers and acquisitions
- 2.3x more engaged employees with increased role tenure
But who are their clients?
They have conducted case studies at:
- Dupont
- Microsoft
- Westpac
- Cirque De Soleil
- IHG
- IBM
- Perffeti van Melle
- Ultimate Software
- CookieTime
- And more!
The HBDI assessment is a great way to help your team work together harmoniously. Backed by their 40+ years, they want you to use your diversity to your advantage. Take the assessment today!
Additional articles you might be interested in:
- How To Collaborate Like A Leader
- 5 Great Tools For Your Team Collaboration In The Office
- How To Collaborate Effectively With Other Influencers On YouTube
- How To Pitch A Collaboration With Brands
- 3 Tools To Help You Organize Your Work-Life
- How To Organize Your Time As An Entrepreneur
- 7 Productivity And Organizational Skills For Entrepreneurs
- 6 Best Apps For Easy Organization and Task Management
Grace Lopykinski is a blogging intern at LadyBossBlogger. She has graduated from the University of Tennessee with a BS in Business Administration and a minor in English.
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