Looking past the Resume: Using Profiling to Build Your Perfect Team

How do you build the perfect team?

Traditionally most organisations will identify an empty role, post a job ad, scour through resumes and interview the candidates who seem to bring the skills and experience they need.

However, traditional methods don’t always guarantee the best outcome. What if you don’t have an empty role and need to create a new one. What if you already have the required skill sets within your team and a simple restructure is a better option?

In these situations, there is a rather elegant solution for organisations to build the perfect team: Profiling. 

The whats and whys of profiling

In simple terms, profiling is about gaining a better understanding of the talent within your organisation. It allows you to identify, arrange and secure the people that you need to hit your goals. It’s an all-encompassing concept, taking into account such factors as your team, your culture, your future, the skills and personalities that will drive your business to work more effectively.

The goal of profiling is balance – it is designed to build an effective team that balances different personalities and skill sets. Done well, it helps leaders understand the complex web of intra-team strengths and weaknesses to make better business decisions. 

Profiling brings clarity to a team. It allows team members to understand what each individual brings to the table and the key role each of them play in maintaining this balance. When these roles are clear, teams become more harmonious, accountable, trusting, adaptable and flexible to the requirements of your organisation. These elements are invaluable within modern, fast paced businesses. 

How to map your team’s profile

Your team’s ideal profile can be mapped in seven relatively simple steps:

• Identify objectives: What are your team’s goals, both short-term and long-term?

• Identify leaders: Who is best placed to lead the team to these goals?  

• Identify leadership traits: What characteristics do leaders need to do their job well? 

• Identify key workers: Which individuals will assist your leaders to achieve these goals?

• Identify worker traits:  What characteristics do key workers need to do their jobs well? 

• Profile your players: Create profiles of key players in your current and ideal teams

• Map your team: Match your profiles of players in your current team with players in your ideal team. Look for the gaps that need to be filled. Create pathways that allow individuals in your current team to follow to become a member of your ideal team

Profiling is a flexible exercise. It can range from a simple exercise to gather insights on your team to a complex roadmap towards sustainable business growth by building stronger teams.

No matter whether you take a more formal or more casual approach, it encourages more informed business decision making. Just remember, profiling your team is far from a ‘one and done’ process. It should be a constant and continuous review of the individuals within your team to ensure they align with your broader business goals and strategy. 

Making the most of what you’ve got

When you boil it down, profiling is simply an exercise in efficiency. It allows you to identify the right people you need to reach your business objectives by maximising your available resources. However, in some cases, when gaps can’t be filled internally, profiling enables you to bring in new talent that will actually drive you towards your business goals. 

If you need assistance profiling your talent to build effective teams, or are looking to bring in new talent to help you achieve your business objectives, look no further than Ignite.

 Click here to chat to our friendly team about profiling today.

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