In 2018, Thinkergy used TIPS to support the MBI Program of the Institute for Knowledge and Innovation, South-East Asia (IKI-SEA) at Bangkok University in identifying suitable candidates for an innovation leader development program developed with a Thai business conglomerate, Premier Group.

The IKI-SEA adapted its avant-garde Master in Business Innovation (MBI) study program to help Premier Group develop a critical number of in-house “Inno Leaders”. But how to identify the most suitable 25 candidates among 75 applicants?

Apart from an entrance exam (used to check on the prevalence of required skills such as creativity and critical thinking), the applicants were invited to take the TIPS online test to determine their innovator profile and preferred cognitive styles. A final interview round checked on the applicants’ motivation, commitment and the sincerity of the portrayed cognitive profile and real persona.

Finally, 25 candidates were selected for the “Inno Leader” program based on their overall performance in the exam and interview as well as their cognitive test result and TIPS innovator profile: 11 Ideators, 3 Theorists, 3 Partners, 3 Promoters, 1 Conceptualizer and 4 All-Rounders. How did we arrive at this mix of TIPS profiles?

TIPS made it possible to filter applicants with psycho-static minds out of the “Inno Leader” program (as these succeed more in operational and efficiency-driven roles). TIPS also helped to arrive at a variety of psycho-dynamic TIPS profiles; this allowed for composing project teams that were cognitively diverse within and balanced teams overall.

What were the results of this TIPS-powered selection process?

1. Premier Group’s senior executives felt satisfied with the final mix of Inno Leaders that emerged in the end.

2. The MBI Program Director had ensured sufficient creative talent and cognitive diversity to compose balanced, well-performing project teams.

3. Finally, the Inno Leaders confirmed TIPS’ efficacy in composing project teams that are cognitively diverse within and at the same time balance each other out, which led to better innovation performance and team satisfaction.

Do you need to pick the right people for a leadership or innovation program, and avoid costly mismatches? Contact us to find out how TIPS may help you select candidates with the right innovator profiles and compose cognitively diverse, high-performing teams.

Reference: Parisot, X., Reis, D., Hunt, B., & Mohammad, A. (2018). Empowering the Development Centered Paradigm using TIPS Cognitive Test. Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Management, Leadership and Governance, May 24–25, 2018, Bangkok, Thailand.