MARS Model of Individual Behaviour and Competency-Based Approach
According to the MARS Model of Individual Behaviour as shown in Appendix A, there are four factors which develop individual behaviour. The four influences on individual behaviour and performance are motivation, ability, role perceptions and situational factors.
Besides using the MARS model to analyse employees’ personalities in order to achieve organisational objectives, “organisations are quickly moving toward a competency-based approach to employee performance” (McShane and Glinow 2001). Competencies are the characteristics of employees that lead to superior performance, along with natural talent and learned abilities; it also includes a person’s values and personality traits.
The main objective of using this approach is to identify the outstanding performers across the organisation. An example of such an approach used is, “Holiday Inn developed a list of competencies for executives, managers, technical, and administrative employees. The process began when the management identified characteristics and behaviours wanted in its future leaders” (Cohen et al. 2001).
From my perspective, the following example might indicate the use of the MARS model concept and the competency-based approach. In the latest season of The Apprentice, Sean Yezback stood out as the winner over Lee Bienstock because “Trump loved Lee's drive and ability to think outside the box, however, Sean's reserved, yet confident, air and solid leadership throughout made the mogul’s pick easy” (The Apprentice: Donald Trump, 2007).
Mr Trump observed Sean and Lee over a period of time and examined their respective behaviour and reactions respectively. In my opinion, Mr Trump compared the two finalists’ abilities to complete assigned tasks, how they used their role perception to make sure they accomplish given tasks on time, with desired results, how goal orientated they were based on their motivation and how they reacted, given situational factors like time and budget constraints to complete their projects; to see which one of them would best fit the job of The Apprentice to help achieve the Trump organisation’s objectives.
Myers-Biggs Type Indicator
The Myers-Brigg Type Indicator, known as MBTI, addresses four distinct dimensions and organizes personality traits into four types.
“These dimensions are: introversion - extroversion; feeling-thinking; sensing-intuition; judgement-perception. According to the test, everyone has a personality type with four letters; for example, an accountant may be an ISTJ - introvert, sensing, thinking, judgement” (Cohen et al. 2001). These personality types can tell an employer what type of person the employee is and how they interact with others (peers and managers). An employer can also discover what types of skills they bring to the table, how they work in a team situation, as well as what type of an environment an employee works best in.
Myers-Briggs personality types allow managers to see that an employee's talents should be treated as assets to be developed, leveraged and shared company-wide. By utilizing the information gleaned from the test, an employer can create a highly motivated work force capable of exceeding organisational objectives.
By using tests such as Myers-Briggs, a company can conduct a comprehensive assessment to determine style, motivation, values, skills, knowledge and barriers of its employees. Managers benefit from this testing process because it helps them take full advantage of their skills, abilities and competencies. In addition, the test will also help test takers make notes of any impediments that may be preventing them from moving ahead in their work life.
It’s ultimately about bringing together a group that reflects a cross section of the various preferences can enhance team building. The goals set by the manager for the group must be compatible with the people who will strive to meet them. Whatever the goals, they must be reachable. Teams that have people who are alike in personality work faster but do not have the benefit of ideas from other personality types. On the other hand, teams that have different types have more conflict in communicating but have more ideas.
Personally, I feel that each occupation is usually suited for a particular type of personality, for instance, a nurse; as quoted in The Sunday Times (29 July 2007, p.25), Professor Fock Kwong Ming said, “When we speak of the qualities a nurse should have, we frequently talk about a nurse being caring, compassionate, professional and gentle. To this list, I will add what is frequently overlooked – optimism”. For example, SingHealth’s vision is to “To be a renowned organisation at the leading edge of Medicine, providing quality healthcare to meet our nation's aspirations” (SingHealth Corporate Office 2007). Thus the above mentioned are indeed the essential qualities a nurse should have to achieve a health institution’s organisational objectives.
In conclusion, personality refers to the totality of a person’s individuality and it does affect an employee’s behaviour in the workplace. Managers of organisations can use the above mentioned concepts, namely the MARS Model of Individual Behaviour, Competency-Based Approach and the Myers-Brigg Type Indicator (MBTI) to comprehend their staff personalities to achieve organisational objectives. With knowledge of their staff personalities, managers will be able to apply their staff strengths to their niche area, and also treat their weaknesses as a challenge or opportunity when it comes to team work. And therefore, work towards a common goal and achieve organisational objectives.
APPENDIX
Appendix A: MARS Model of Individual Behaviour
Source: McShane, S & Von Glinow, M 2000, Organisational Behaviour, McGraw-Hill Higher Education, United States of America, pg. 32
REFERENCE LIST
Cohen, A, Fink, S, Gadon, H & Willits, R 2001, Effective Behaviour in Organisation, Singapore
Fairweather, A 2007 ‘Make your employees happy’, The Straits Times, 28 July, pg. 56 (CATS Recruit – Executive Appointments section)
Hahn, J 2007 ‘Give workers a chance to shine’, The Straits Times, 4 August, pg. 32 (CATS Recruit – Executive Appointments section)
Holbeche, L 2005, The High Performance Organisation, Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, Great Britain
McShane, S & Von Glinow, M 2000, Organisational Behaviour, McGraw-Hill Higher Education, United States of America
Middleton, J 2002, Organisational Behaviour, Capstone Publishing, Great Britain
Singhealth Corporate Office, viewed 2 August 2007,
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The Apprentice: Donald Trump 2007 – Official site on Yahoo!, viewed 25 July 2007,
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Wilson, F 2004, Organisational behaviour and Work, Oxford University Press, Great Britain