Leveraging Everything DiSC as a Culture Catalyst

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Keep the learning alive after an Everything DiSC^® session

Everything DiSC^® is such a helpful tool to bring your organization together around a common language of understanding themselves and others. It also provides great tips on how to work more effectively together. So, whether you’ve rolled DiSC^® out to your organization, are in process of rolling it out, or want to roll it out, how can you keep your people engaged with DiSC^® a week, month, or even years after the initial training takes place?

Before the session…

The most important part of implementing culture change with DiSC^® is clearly identifying what the goals are. It requires answering ‘Why are we doing this?’ and ‘What do we expect to come from this?’ before doing anything else.

Once you’ve identified the answers to those questions, you need to communicate them to participants! Providing context shows the bigger picture, whether you want to provide development opportunities, improve communication around the office, or adapt to shifting workplace demographics.

During the session…

For our workshops with FlashPoint clients, we tailor the session to the client’s goals and purposes. Keeping group dynamics in mind while designing the session also helps!

For example, one of our clients wanted to use the DiSC^® workshop as an opportunity for people to engage and talk with others. The goal was variety, so we kept the participants switching groups for activities. They worked with colleagues at their table, from a different department, of the same style, of different styles, in pairs, in trios, in large groups, you name it! This structure kept everyone interacting and encouraged cross-functional and cross-organizational communication and relationships.

For the workshop itself, the most important part is making sure you create a safe space focused on learning, not labeling. We consistently remind participants of the principles of DiSC^® throughout the workshop: all styles are equal, there is no ‘good’ style or ‘bad’ style, and the more knowledge we have about ourselves and others, the less excuses we can make when working together.

For our FlashPoint sessions, we also typically include an action plan to help participants think about how they’ll use this knowledge long-term and continue to apply it.

After the initial in-person session…

Lead by example and find ways to include DiSC^® in things your organization already has in place, like staff or team meetings. A few ideas are:

• Communicate how you’ve adapted your DiSC^® style to work better with others at an all-staff meeting
• Assign or ask others to share how they are using DiSC^® in ongoing staff meetings
• Hold team-specific workshops to remind each team:
  • What DiSC^® is
  • How to use DiSC^® to communicate more effectively with each team member
  • What each member needs from other team members in order to be more successful
• Encourage team members to do a debrief with individuals on their team to share what they learned in the session
• Along with posting their DiSC^® style at their desk, encourage your employees to post tips for working more effectively with them
• When new employees come into the organization, have them complete a DiSC^® assessment

The more you can help your employees keep DiSC^® top of mind, the greater organizational impact you will have! DiSC^® will allow your employees to approach every interaction with an understanding surrounding the other person – getting at both the heart and head, making interactions more useful and effective long-term.

Check out this blog of ways to encourage individuals to continue leveraging DiSC^® day-to-day.