A DISC test can significantly impact the productivity of one or many people in both personal and work environments. However, it's predominantly used in work environments to help companies in various areas, with one of the most significant being hiring new employees.

What Is a DISC Test?

The test targets the most helpful and effective traits in work environments and shows which qualities a person possesses and which ones they lack. The acronym DISC stands for Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness. These are the four primary personality profiles that the DISC model covers. These four profiles apply to every individual, and they are excellent for gaining a sense of how a person may function in a specific workplace.

To get the most out of DISC testing results, you have to start by breaking down these four main profile categories and understanding the specifics of each one. The following sections will briefly delve into the nature of each of the four profiles to give you an idea of what each one entails. From there, the rest of this guide will go over the many aspects of interpreting DISC tests, utilizing the information you gain from DISC tests, and the pros and cons every employer should remain aware of with the DISC testing results.

So, if you're looking to have the meaning of DISC results explained, read on.

Dominance

The dominance trait is one you will most often find in people that are natural leaders. It does not mean that they dominate others, but rather that they are willing to put a lot on the line to achieve greatness. Being highly goal-oriented, people with the dominance trait put the bulk of their focus on success in all work areas.

They also have a solid tendency to perform very well under pressure. An employee who can maintain a high level of productivity when stressful situations arise is something every employer looks for in the hiring process. 

Confidence is another major factor that people with dominant personalities often showcase in different areas. So, in general, the dominance trait emphasizes the type of qualities that can ensure everything is done with maximum effort, regardless of overall importance.

Influence

The influence trait refers to a person's ability to communicate with other people and impact them in some meaningful way. 

They are less about getting work done by any means necessary and more about ensuring their work environment is friendly and healthy for everyone. This trait can prove hard to find, especially in large companies with many employees.

However, people with the influence trait are incredible assets regardless of a company's size, as they are the ones who can help maintain a healthy working culture. 

Being very people-focused, those with the influence trait are very in tune with their emotions, which is a pro and a con as they can put emotion over logic at the wrong time.

Aside from this downside, companies need to have employees with strong influence personalities because being able to persuade and influence others is critical to success. Without them, a work environment can turn counterproductive quickly, and it isn't easy to recover when that happens.

Steadiness

The steadiness trait focuses on the trustworthiness and reliability of an individual. These are the types of people who will take on a last-minute assignment without issue, and they make it a point to put the well-being of their co-workers first and foremost.  It's the perfect trait if you're looking for someone who can work well with others and positively impact a team.

People with the steadiness trait are often very sincere as well. They won't come up with excuses to not show up to work or put in minimal effort. And if they are legitimately unable to work, they will give you the honest reason as to why, so everyone is on the same page.

The steadiness trait frequently considers every aspect of cooperation, making its specialty in that area desirable for any company.

Conscientiousness

The conscientiousness trait primarily refers to an individual's ability to overcome obstacles by using various problem-solving skills. These individuals will take the necessary time to solve issues with solutions that are well thought out and beneficial in numerous ways.

The conscientiousness trait is similar to the dominance trait in that both strive for success in all work areas. However, the former is much more concerned with accuracy than the latter. 

As a result, you can often count on those with the conscientiousness trait to work exceptionally well independently from others. The work they produce will also have a high degree of quality.

Accuracy, competency, and consistency are the three significant aspects of this trait, and together they make up an important section of the whole DISC test meaning.

Why DISC Tests Are Important During The Hiring Process?

A DISC test is important to incorporate into any hiring process if you're serious about finding the best candidate for any given position, which is not to say that you can't find quality candidates without a DISC test because you certainly can do that. 

However, a DISC test can provide you with invaluable information depending on how you utilize it. You can have several quality candidates who all have different backgrounds, strengths and weaknesses, and different levels of experience that make it challenging to select the best person for a position. 

Sometimes, the information you get from a DISC Test can help significantly with deciding on a particular candidate.

And even if you are not having any difficulty picking suitable candidates for available positions, a DISC test is still valuable in a general sense. It gives you a better idea of how your chosen candidates will fit into different roles, and that's an essential piece of information to have before hiring anyone.

Most employers naturally want to learn as much as they can about a potential new hire in a short amount of time, and a DISC test is a great way to do that. As this is a general concept, we'll discuss some specific points on how employers can use DISC tests most effectively in later sections.

What Does a High DISC Score Indicate About a Job Candidate?

A high DISC score can indicate the greatest strengths of a job candidate when it comes to dominance, influence, steadiness, and conscientiousness. 

The higher a candidate's score in a specific trait, the stronger the qualities of that particular trait will be in them. On rare occasions, a candidate may have high scores in a single trait while the scores in their other traits are lower.

It does not mean that they lack the lower score traits entirely. Still, the higher score trait will often be the most prominent one. Thus it will have the most significant impact on a work environment. The other traits can still appear from time to time, but you will likely take less notice of them the majority of the time.

What Does a Low DISC Score Indicate About a Job Candidate?

A low DISC score indicates a trait that a job candidate lacks to some degree. Sometimes, this results from two or three traits overshadowing one trait, as most people have more than one strong trait. There are multiple reasons why a specific trait might have a lower score than the others.

It could indicate that the job candidate does not make much use of that trait and is underdeveloped as a result. 

On the other hand, they may naturally lack that trait, which is common when you consider every person has strengths and weaknesses, so it's not alarming if you see low scores on a trait in a candidate's DISC testing results.

The most significant thing you can take away from low scores on a DISC test are the areas where an employee can do the most growing. It also gives you some idea of what you can expect from them, which is another crucial element discussed further below.

How Can Employers Use DISC Results To Assess a Job Candidate's Fit For a Particular Role?

There are various ways employers can utilize the information they get from a job candidate's DISC assessment results to determine a candidate's compatibility with a specific role. The primary method involves looking at the traits that a candidate scored the highest in and seeing how those traits fit into the role.

If the traits align well with the role, that's a good indicator that the candidate will make for a good fit. And suppose the traits don't necessarily match up perfectly with the position. In that case, an employer can make an effort to tailor the position towards the candidate if they like everything else that the candidate has to offer.

However, in this part of the hiring process, it's essential to not only use the general description and responsibility of a role to determine if a candidate is a good fit. 

Instead, an employer should have specific tasks in mind that the position will have to do regularly and intermittently and see how the candidate's DISC test scores match up.

The job description and responsibilities are not always 100% accurate to what the position will require of someone. 

So, the more specific the employer is when using the information obtained from a candidate's DISC survey results, the better their sense of whether the candidate is suitable for the position.

As an employer, if you have a job candidate take a DISC test before having an interview, you can use the information you gain from the test to structure your interviews.

While this does take time for each candidate, it's a proven way to ensure you select the candidate most fit for a position. It allows you to focus on specific areas during each interview and maximizes the quality of information you can get.

An example of this is if you have a candidate apply for a position that will have them working on teams. Suppose the candidate earns exceptionally high scores in the dominance trait and has experience related to team project work on their resume.

In that case, you can ask them questions about what types of team projects they have worked on in the past and the specific contributions they provided.

Alternatively, if they score high in steadiness and conscientiousness, you can ask questions about their idea of being dependable. Or ask for examples of how they use their problem-solving skills to develop well-thought-out solutions.

Because interviews are the primary way for an employer to gain a more thorough understanding of who they will hire, anything that can help shape the interview into an experience that will supply as much information as possible is beneficial. DISC tests are one great source for that.

What Should Employers Keep In Mind When Interpreting DISC Results During The Hiring Process?

There are several factors that every employer should constantly remain aware of when conducting DISC results interpretation during the hiring process, and the following sections cover some of these in detail.

Don't Use a DISC Profile To Make a Final Hiring Decision

For as much quality information as DISC profile results interpretation can provide, under no circumstances should you ever use it as the sole factor in making your final hiring decision. There are many reasons behind this being the case, but the main issue is that the data of a DISC profile is limited to the traits it tests candidates on.

It only gives a single impression of a candidate that is open to much interpretation rather than being something you can rely entirely upon. DISC interpretation is at its best when you use it as a supplementary tool to aid you in figuring out who your ideal candidate is for a position.

There will come cases where you find a candidate who seems perfect for a role solely based on their DISC test results, but don't neglect to get to know them further before hiring them.

The DISC Test Results Apply Only To Each Individual

Because DISC personality results only apply to a single individual, it's important to remember that the results do not compare one individual against the world's population. For example, suppose two candidates have strong scores in the influence and steadiness categories.

In that case, the test results can't necessarily tell you that one candidate is objectively more influential and steadier than the other.

You can only learn that by interviewing both candidates and comparing their past work. However, it can prove challenging to remember this when it's so easy to overvalue how well or poorly an individual performs on a test of any kind, not only DISC tests.

To avoid making this mistake, always remember that the DISC tests are not a hard and fast determining factor for how a candidate will perform. Instead, use the tests to set your expectations at a reasonable level.

Don't Assume That The Behavioral Style Of a Candidate Will Reflect The Work They Will Produce

Keeping in line with the previous point, you should never assume that a candidate's behavioral styles will reflect the work they produce once you hire them. Many factors determine how someone performs in a workplace, and the workplace environment is among the most significant.

When your workplace environment is better or worse than a candidate's previous workplace, you will likely see the candidate's behavioral style and production shift. 

Unfortunately, a DISC test can't make you aware of this possibility ahead of time, as it cannot account for what factors affected a candidate's behavioral style in the past.

It can only supply you with information about the present which is extremely helpful under the right circumstances, but again, it isn't enough to base your hiring decision on alone.

Use The DISC Profile Even After Making The Hire

The DISC assessment meaning does not lose its value after you hire a candidate, as the information in the profile can continue to help inform you going forward. Referring back to the DISC profile is an excellent method to see a candidate's progress or lack thereof after the initial hiring.

Ideally, you'll want to see if the traits they scored high on are having an impact on your workplace, as that will give you an indication of the DISC test's accuracy. It would also help if you also watched for any signs of improvement in the candidate's traits that earned a lower score.

Sometimes, this type of development can take time before you start to see definitive results. Other times, you can notice changes immediately. It largely varies from individual to individual. 

So, your best option is to observe your new hire from the start and refer back to the DISC profile occasionally to see their growth.

How Can DISC Results Help Employers Make Better Hiring Decisions?

Despite there being ways in which a DISC test results meaning fail to supply an employer with some critical elements of a candidate, they can still provide quality information. 

And more often than not, that information is valuable if you understand how to utilize it as auxiliary information to make a more informed hiring decision.

Understanding the difference between that and using a DISC score meaning as the final means for a hiring decision is the most significant point you should take away from this guide. 

You'll never be able to have DISC test results explained entirely, but that's okay because you don't necessarily need them to be.

So long as you know how to utilize DISC personality test results, you will increase your chances of selecting the candidate with the best qualifications for a position. You'll also reduce your chances of choosing one that appears suitable for the job when they're not.

So, keep that in mind as you begin or continue to incorporate DISC tests into your job hiring process.

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