DiPrete employees during a CliftonStrengths training
“What leaders have in common is that each really knows their strengths, has developed their strengths, and can call on the right strength at the right time.” – Dr. Donald Clifton, father of strengths-based psychology and inventor of CliftonStrengths.
As part of Leadership Rhode Island’s “Make RI Stronger” initiative, Karen King, Managing Director of Administration at DiPrete Engineering, uses Gallup CliftonStrengths to provide strengths-based training to Rhode Islanders in an effort to boost engagement and well-being. Over the past five years, Karen has made it a priority for DiPrete employees to learn their strengths and understand how to best optimize them in the workplace and in their personal lives.
CliftonStrengths is a 35-minute online assessment that includes 177 paired statements in which employees choose which best describes them. The assessment measures an individual’s natural patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving and reports a customized order of 34 CliftonStrengths themes with personalized insights as to how they appear in that person’s life.
“When employees can do what comes naturally to them and they are positioned to use their strengths every day, they get closer to achieving consistent, near-perfect performance,” said Karen. “Rather than focus on weaknesses and fixing people, CliftonStrengths focuses on discovering what is right with people. A strengths-based approach creates a culture where employees have the opportunity to do what they do best every day because their talents are valued.”
The top five Strengths among DiPrete employees are: 1) Achiever, 2) Responsibility, 3) Adaptability, 4) Relator, and 5) Harmony. During regular performance reviews and check-ins, Strengths are recognized in individual achievements and help in setting future goals and roles.
“Gallup research tells us that people who focus on strengths are three times more likely to report a high quality of life than those who do not,” said Karen. “In doing so, we can build a more engaged workforce with a greater sense of well-being.”
If you are interested in learning more about CliftonStrengths, Leadership RI’s “Make RI Stronger” initiative offers a discount on the Top 5 assessment and provides training programs and Strengths tours: https://www.leadershipri.org/make-ri-stronger
