Welcome to Your Personal PBA Experience!


Test Your Leading and Influencing Skills

These sample questions come from one of several tools that we use in our assessment and development programs. The focus of this particular tool is on development. Each of the questions represent different types of actions you must take in your career and/or job, and relates to the business situation you might use. Read the question and indicate how frequently you perform each activity using the scale provided; e.g., "I rarely perform this activity;" to, "I almost always do this..." To receive results, you must respond to every question. Your feedback results will be more accurate and helpful if you are as truthful as possible. Use the examples provided to help rate yourself. If you rate yourself at or beyond the midpoint, "about 50%", on any question, you should be able to describe and document an example of how and when you performed the activity. We at AIMM Consulting hope you enjoy your personal moment of reflection and hope you learn something from the experience.

Maximum score of 70: (14 questions) x (5 points per question)

1. I engage others in productive and mutually beneficial performance discussions,
recognizing individual achievements.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - Your current staff members tell you that you are positive and
constructive and that you encourage them to take risks and to get results. You provide
them with timely and meaningful rewards for taking sound risks and for a job well done.
Rarely - You hesitate to ask your staff for feedback regarding how well you motivate them.
You don't remember the last time you acknowledged or rewarded an employee publicly
for doing a good job.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

2. I consciously lead or influence others by my actions, reactions, and accomplishments.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You frequently ask others for feedback on your performance and leadership
accomplishments. They describe you as trustworthy, consistent, fair, and competent and they
document specific examples for you. Your words and deeds are the same.
Rarely - You often find yourself acting alone during important transitions or changes. Your staff
doesn't willingly share important information with you. In fact, you rarely ask for or get
meaningful performance feedback from them.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

3. I demonstrate my values by supporting others' statements or actions.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You publicly support your team members' actions and reward them
accordingly (e.g., post personal recognition and rewards in the work area, acknowledge good
performance in department/board meetings).
Rarely - You don't often discuss performance issues with your staff and don't often thank
your staff publicly for their support and contribution to your success.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

4. I encourage others to act appropriately - dependently, independently, or
interdependently - and provide them with the necessary support and resources.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - Your staff members work confidently on project assignments, asking for
appropriate help. They don't ask you for basic resources midway through projects or
after you have assigned them responsibility for delivering results.
Rarely - Your staff members often are confused about whether they should act alone,
independent of you, or involve you in decisions, dependent on you.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

5. I influence subordinates, peers, or superiors to think, act, or accomplish
goals depending upon the situation.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You have a wide sphere of influence within your organization involving
different employment levels (e.g., executives, supervisors) and departments (e.g., Finance, Sales).
You can document several recent examples of your influence on others (e.g., projects you championed,
employees you recommended for promotion).
Rarely - You are most comfortable and successful discussing work issues with employees from one
functional area (e.g., Marketing only) or employment level (e.g., coworkers only, subordinates only).
You have difficulty thinking of any projects begun or completed successfully due to your efforts.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

6. I explore with others different ways to accomplish goals.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You spend significant amounts of time coaching others on new tasks and
responsibilities and helping them understand performance parameters, standards, and expectations.
You get the desired results from your people.
Rarely - You prefer to give your staff new assignments and leave it up to them to determine how to
do the work. You are often surprised when people do the unexpected or don't deliver the desired results.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

7. I discuss with others my expectations for success.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You and your staff members talk openly about personal and team performance
expectations for success. You include performance expectation discussions in your department
meeting agendas.
Rarely - Your staff does not understand your expectations for success. You find that you have
different standards than your staff or coworkers. Your staff members often act surprised when you
give them poor performance feedback.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

8. I actively seek and consider others' viewpoints about the information
I and others have received and shared.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You make decisions using your staff members' contributions. You frequently
ask them for their ideas and opinions on important issues (e.g., financial, capital expense,
resource allocation). You tell them if and how their contributions were utilized.
Rarely - You are most comfortable making decisions on your own or with contributions from
only one or two favored staff members. You have difficulty documenting an example of an
important decision you made that included input from a staff member.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

9. I ensure individual accountability and the implementation of group
recommendations by involving others in the design of monitoring procedures.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You develop time lines and milestones with others during pre-project
planning activities. Your staff keeps you aware of project status and results.
Rarely - You often have to seek out project leaders to get updates. You have no systems
(e.g., paper, electronic, human) to track work progress.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

10. I create a clear vision and set strategic goals with my team before
deciding how to proceed.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - Your current staff members can easily recite three to five goals,
values, or competencies that you represent. They talk about the team's mission and know
how it relates to the organization mission.
Rarely - Your current staff members' performance often appears to be in opposition
to the team's or organization's mission or your personal vision. Your staff has difficulty
reciting one or two of your performance goals as outlined in your annual objectives.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

11. I monitor progress and performance by checking interim progress
toward each goal and evaluating adjustments needed to remain focused.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You provide others with timely and accurate project status reports. You
make decisions with confidence to anticipate resource needs or adjust project schedules.
Rarely - You find yourself constantly putting out fires and solving problems. You can provide
updates on only one or two project goals.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

12. I provide others with regular, specific, and constructive performance
assessments and feedback.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You create and seek opportunities to observe and evaluate your staff.
You take time each day to give some performance feedback to an employee or coworker.
Rarely - You prefer to do most of the work yourself rather than take the time to explain
performance expectations and parameters to employees. You only talk with employees about
their performance at the annual review.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

13. I take an active role in promoting organizational change - personally designing,
developing, implementing, or facilitating new systems, processes, or policies.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You often volunteer to lead new projects or to facilitate strategic planning
sessions. You can think of several successful examples of this activity in the past year. You and
your team are known for innovation and new ways of working.
Rarely - You get involved in change activities when you are asked to do so. You and your team
seek to maintain or master current programs and systems. People don't associate your name with
a major new program, policy, or process.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

14. I seek out opportunities for change - looking for new and more effective ways
of working, managing, and leading.

Performance examples:
Almost Always - You introduce and advocate more effective programs and methods for your team
and organization. You have regular brainstorming sessions with your team to explore ideas.
Rarely - You prefer the status quo and believe in the philosophy, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".
You work with existing programs or processes as long as they do an adequate job and you are
comfortable with them.

Rarely Not Often About 50% Very Often Almost Always

 

By clicking the SUBMIT button you will receive feedback on your Leading and Influencing skills listed below. These are all CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS and are recognized as important for success in today's challenging and re-engineered work environment. You can use the feedback and related points for your own development planning or for development discussions with your team.

  • Creating Vision
  • Delegating & Empowering
  • Motivating & Respecting Others
  • Coaching, Developing, & Guiding
  • Setting Performance Expectations
  • Controlling & Monitoring Performance
  • Conveying Credibility
  • Leading Organizational Change


Copyright ©2001 AIMM Consulting All rights reserved.

Disclaimer: The questions above represent a sample of a Leadership and Management skills test written and administered by AIMM Consulting for personal and organization development purposes. AIMM Consulting expressly disclaims the making of, and the test taker acknowledges that he or she has not received any warranty or guaranty, express or implied, as to the projected or potential employment benefits, hiring, promotion, certification, or otherwise as a result of completing this sample Leadership Test.