• You are currently viewing our forum as a guest, which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community, you will have access to additional post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), view blogs, respond to polls, upload content, and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free, so please join our community today! Just click here to register. You should turn your Ad Blocker off for this site or certain features may not work properly. If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us by clicking here.

Is MBTI Used Or Prevalent At Your Place Of Work?

Does your employer use MBTI?


  • Total voters
    24

highlander

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Dec 23, 2009
Messages
26,562
MBTI Type
INTJ
Enneagram
6w5
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
MBTI seems to have had a continual growth in popularity over the years. The point of this poll is to gather information on whether or not employers care about MBTI.

In addition, feel free to provide any commentary you'd like on why companies are using it to support a more productive work environment.
 

BlueScreen

Fail 2.0
Joined
Nov 8, 2008
Messages
2,668
MBTI Type
YMCA
Not at all. In some ways it would be useful if they were aware of it, because there are some conflicts which are obviously misunderstandings between types. They sacked our INTP guru because they didn't get him. On the other hand I've noticed that people working outside their normal areas give very non-standard answers to things. In science this is a strength, or at least in my view.
 

wolfy

awsm
Joined
Jun 30, 2008
Messages
12,251
I've never worked with anyone that uses MBTI. I never even mention it to anyone.
 

compulsiverambler

New member
Joined
Sep 15, 2009
Messages
446
Enneagram
5w6
Instinctual Variant
sp/so
No, and I don't know anyone else who's heard of it. I gather it's more popular in the US than the UK. I work in a call centre, and I don't know whether they'd have hired me based on my MBTI type, as INFPs are hardly the stereotypical salesperson. I'm lucky that I actually believe in the service we offer people though, otherwise I'd still sound guilty and unconfident over the telephone, and people don't trust you if you sound like that.
 

tcda

psicobolche
Joined
Nov 17, 2009
Messages
1,292
MBTI Type
intp
Enneagram
5
No, I've never met anyone at work or outside of work who knew about MBTI before I told them, to my knoweldge (except for someone off a forum once).
 

SilkRoad

Lay the coin on my tongue
Joined
May 26, 2009
Messages
3,932
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
6w5
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
MBTI first came to my attention when I moved to London (I'm Canadian and had also previously lived in Ireland) and was working for an airline (an office job). I was in Customer Relations (yup...people call up and yell at you and you have to be polite and helpful!!)

I had an awesome manager (Jamaican)...perhaps the best I've ever had. She was caring and took a personal interest in people but also knew when to take a hard line. One day she asked our little department to all take the MBTI test in a quiet moment. It was the online one on Humanmetrics, I think. She was definitely interested in psychology and interpersonal relationships.

She said if it was ok with us she'd like to keep a copy of our type description on file. I hadn't been that interested in personality tests previously but I remember being astonished at how like me the description sounded, and how it even explained a number of things I'd never really understood about myself. It was only a few years later that I independently started looking more into MBTI, reading up on all the other types, etc.

I haven't had it come up in any other workplace, but I did first learn about MBTI through work.
 

sleepy

Member
Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
536
No. There is nothing like this in the whole country. IQ tests are only used for what they are designed for, to help those at the bottom etc. In school there is only special classes for those with learning disabilities. Miss use of these systems is a big no, and I support that. You got the school system and experience, that's more then enough imo. They do ask question on interviews, so some of these layman personality theories can come in handy to find out what they look for. But I'd be turned off if I sensed that they screened after a system like this, mainly because I dont think it is good enough in it's present form. And it's a form of discrimination that is better avoided in something that affect others lives.
 

Totenkindly

@.~*virinaĉo*~.@
Joined
Apr 19, 2007
Messages
50,187
MBTI Type
BELF
Enneagram
594
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
I've only met a few people in church settings who have heard of it, no one professionally.

Pretty much my private reading and here online are the only places where I deal with MBTI.

My FIL actually was tested at his workplace a number of years ago (he was an engineer)... but I don't think they used it for anything except to smooth out workplace communications.
 

Eric B

ⒺⓉⒷ
Joined
Mar 29, 2008
Messages
3,621
MBTI Type
INTP
Enneagram
548
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
My department does not use it, and nobody talks about it, or has probably even heard of it (very STJ environment; not into this abstract stuff), but the office departments in the organization do use it. One friend of ours worked in the department handling the new Long Island Railroad connection into Grand Central Terminal, and they tested her (ENFJ, from what she remembers). Since BallantineChen works in another office, I'm wondering if they had him take it too. He might have mentioned it, but I forgot.
 

IZthe411

Carerra Lu
Joined
Jul 19, 2009
Messages
2,585
MBTI Type
INTJ
My organization uses it; the more professional departments and all managers take the test. They use it to figure out what type of person you are and how you relate to others in a professional setting.

My former job offered the class to us as a softskills class. You take it once you begin to manage others.

In my group I'm seen as the one who really pays attention to it.

My group consists of 3 ISTJs, 2 ESTJs, 1 ISFJ, 1 ISTP, 1 ENTP, 1 ENFJ and 1 ENFP.

Unfortunately, the head guy's a textbook ISTJ wierdo. I can deal with him because I understand but his ways can be irritating. Under him is another ISTJ, the ISTP and an ESTJ. So as you can see, our team isn't very balanced.

We are an internal audit shop, so I can understand all the STx going around.
 

highlander

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Dec 23, 2009
Messages
26,562
MBTI Type
INTJ
Enneagram
6w5
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
Six years ago, one of my peers suggested doing a team building session where everyone took the assessment and then stood up and talked about their type and their results. HR also did a presentation as part of this. It was fun to play dumb on the topic and I must say, I was riveted to what everyone was saying about their results.

Not sure if this is bad or not, but I didn't want to share what I know because of the perceptions it might leave people with.
 

evilrobot

New member
Joined
Nov 9, 2009
Messages
182
MBTI Type
nite
Enneagram
5w4
I’ve never known an employer to give a fig about the mbti or any other typology. Some popular career books seem to give the impression that interviewers would actually like to hear about your personality type, but that’s never been my experience.
 

IZthe411

Carerra Lu
Joined
Jul 19, 2009
Messages
2,585
MBTI Type
INTJ
I’ve never known an employer to give a fig about the mbti or any other typology. Some popular career books seem to give the impression that interviewers would actually like to hear about your personality type, but that’s never been my experience.


I'd think an experienced hiring manager is probably able to discern aspects about your personality based on your responses to your questions. It would be discriminating to outright ask 'what's your type?', don't you think?
 

ceecee

Coolatta® Enjoyer
Joined
Apr 22, 2008
Messages
15,908
MBTI Type
INTJ
Enneagram
8w9
My former job offered the class to us as a softskills class. You take it once you begin to manage others.

This is the only time I've ever encountered it professionally as well.

Six years ago, one of my peers suggested doing a team building session where everyone took the assessment and then stood up and talked about their type and their results. HR also did a presentation as part of this. It was fun to play dumb on the topic and I must say, I was riveted to what everyone was saying about their results.

Not sure if this is bad or not, but I didn't want to share what I know because of the perceptions it might leave people with.


Oh I would so be playing dumb as well. How fascinating to see a group discovering this.

The only time I even hear about it is from people in psychology professions or people majoring in it. Again, I like to play dumb about it or say that I've heard of it but don't really know what it is. I've never told anyone outside of immediate family my type either.
 

IZthe411

Carerra Lu
Joined
Jul 19, 2009
Messages
2,585
MBTI Type
INTJ
This is the only time I've ever encountered it professionally as well.




Oh I would so be playing dumb as well. How fascinating to see a group discovering this.

The only time I even hear about it is from people in psychology professions or people majoring in it. Again, I like to play dumb about it or say that I've heard of it but don't really know what it is. I've never told anyone outside of immediate family my type either.

I've played dumb too.....but eventually I'll do or say something to show that I know too much about it. :doh:

I have a social worker friend, and I could tell that he was the intuitive (INFJ) type...he was surprised that I knew what it was. In his words, 'laymen' don't usually know about it. :coffee:
 
Top