LCa Resourcing is delighted to be able to offer access to a complete range of software and business tools designed to support team development across a wide range of businesses and organizations. The BELBIN® methodology is used successfully by over 40% of the UK's top 100 companies as well as by local government, hospitals and educational establishments throughout the world. The methodology originates from the work of Dr Meredith Belbin, internationally acclaimed father of team roles, whose experience spans over 50 years of personnel research and management consultancy.

The BELBIN® ream-roles were derived from a study of successful and unsuccessful teams competing in Business Games at Henley Management College, England. Managers taking part in the exercise were given a battery of psychometric tests and put into teams of varying composition. As time progressed different clusters of behaviour were identified as underlying the success of the teams.

How the team role concept originated is described in his book Management Teams - Why They Succeed or Fail (1981) which was recently cited by the Financial Times as one of the top 50 business books of all time.

The BELBIN® team role definition:

"A tendency to behave, contribute and interrelate with others in a particular way."

Applications of the BELBIN® team-role methodology

Using data obtained through the Self-Perception Inventory and Observer Assessments individually tailored reports are generated in order to provide comprehensive feedback. Most Psychometric Tests rely on self-reporting but here the behaviour assumed may not correspond with what others observe. The strength of BELBIN® lies in the emphasis on validity, as its counselling outputs are designed to take account of a consensus on observed behaviour, providing 360 degree perspectives.

BELBIN® team roles describe a pattern of behaviour that characterises one person's behaviour in relationship to another in facilitating the progress of a team.

The value of BELBIN® team-role theory lies in enabling an individual or team to benefit from self-knowledge and adjust according to the demands being made by the external situation.

BELBIN® feedback enables us to:

• Understand our own identity in terms of team roles
• Manage our strengths and weaknesses
• Learn how to develop our team roles
• Project ourselves in the best possible way
• Work more effectively in teams
• Build successful teams

Individual Reports

Data obtained through the Self-Perception Inventory and Observer Assessments is used to produce an individually tailored report. Each report contains:

Self-Perception Team Role Profile

This report shows how you see your team role contribution based on responses to the Self-Perception Inventory.

Counselling Report

Uses everyday language to offer personal guidance on your team roles based on your top two and bottom team roles.

Character Profile

Highlights your strengths and possible weaknesses and offers advice on job placement. If used for recruitment, suggestions are made on questions to ask you bearing in mind your team role profile.

Personal Work Style

Shows four styles of working that would suit your team role strengths based on either SPI or the overall ranking.

Assessments Results in Rank Order

Shows in rank order your team roles as perceived by the self and observers, which combined, provide an overall team role ranking.

Pie Charts of Self-Perception versus Observers

Shows the difference between the roles which you would like to play based on the Self-Perception Inventory and the roles that others see you as being good at based on responses from your Observers.

Bar Graph of Observer Words

How people see you in terms of team-role contribution (+) and allowable weakness (-).

Team Reports

Team Role Combination Report

Outlines the overall strength and weaknesses of the team, for between 3 and 15 people, and who should be allocated a certain team role(s).

Candidates' Working Relationships

Offers advice on the working relationship between two people in terms of their team roles. (It is the only report which takes account of the reporting relationship between individuals.)

Profile Average for Team or Organization/Department

This reports shows averaged data from either the Self, Observers or Combined in the form of a bar chart together with a narrative on the best and worst scenario for the group.

Job Reports

Job Direct

Generated from the Job Requirements Inventory and is effectively a job specification by the line manager in team role terminology.

Job Counselling

Generated from the Job Requirements Inventory and explains the kind of style that the job assessor expects the jobholder to adopt.

Job Observations

This report is generated from the Job Observations Inventory and shows the most important and least desired behavioural characteristics for a particular job, as identified by Observers.

Job Suitability

Looks at the team roles of the job (as specified from the Job Requirements) versus the team roles of a person (as specified by their SPI and Observers) in the form of pie charts. If Job Observations have been collected, the report will give a short narrative on the characteristics needed and observed within the candidate.

Job Compatibility

Suggests a fit between a candidate and a job as defined from the Job Requirements. It will show the ranked order of team roles required for the job against the ranked order of overall team roles for a candidate. It will then give the Job Direct Report and move into the narrative fit of the candidate to the job.

The above list is not exhaustive but demonstrates the practical value of the Belbin toolkit. It is strongly recommended that you discuss your aims and objectives with us prior to choosing which elements to use.