Hats off to risk vendors Active Risk, who are doing some research into an area long neglected. When recruiting, it is important not to judge the quality of a candidate based solely on their qualifications and experience. Personality counts for a lot too. Active Risk is doing psychometric testing of risk managers; see here. They found that 60% of risk managers are ‘reactive introverts’ per the DISC methodology. But Active Risk questioned if this personality type has the powers of persuasion needed to transform the culture of a business, and highlighted the importance of employing risk managers who can drive change. The other 40% of risk managers are inherently ‘proactive’. 30% are ‘proactive extroverts’ (aka ‘evangelists’) whilst 10% are ‘proactive introverts’ (best summarized as ‘demanding butt-kickers’).
You can find out your DISC personality type by taking the online test at Active Risk’s site. For the record, I am a proactive extrovert, but with a distinct streak of proactive introvert. Perhaps that explains why I keep mouthing off in public, complaining that risk management is too reactive… ;)
