There are many great personality assessments, but we encourage organizations to take another look at the Myers-Briggs Personality Type Index™ (MBTI™) as a powerful tool in determining which types you are most likely to get along with. Personality types get along that have similar values (values are what you consider most important and non-negotiable).
Each of the 16 personality types has a different set of basic operating values (BOV). Itis easiest to ally with personality types that most closely mirror what you values—what you think is most important. Like personalities are the easiest to get along with. Personality types different from yours may be more difficult to get along with, but may be the most valuable to you because theysupply what you most need and are least likely to have.
Curious to see which Meyers-Briggs types get along? Compare the Basic Operating Values (BOV) of your personality type to people of other types you know, and see why and how you clash or are drawn together as allies.
| TYPE | BASIC OPERATING VALUE | CLASHES/AGREES |
|---|---|---|
| ISTJ | What ISTJ’s Value
ISTJs value past experience. They value data and past experience to chart direction for the future. They value authority and chain of command. They believe in process and standard operating procedures. . They are the “gate keepers” of organizations. Past Performance indicates future success. Traditions are to be respected and rules are to be kept. |
ISTJs tend to clash with iNtuitives, who are future oriented and often unimpressed with past data. These include INFJ, INTJ, INFP, INTP, ENFJ, ENTP, ENFJ, ENTJ. Intuitives may see the ISTJ as obstructionist to progress. |
| ISFJ | What ISFJ’s Value
ISFJ’s value social harmony within communities and in organizations with a personal competence as close to perfection as possible. |
ISFJ’s are extremely effective in social interactions, leading groups to reach harmony and consensus. They may clash with ESTJ’s, ENTJ’s and ENTP’s, who place outcome above feelings and relationships. ISFJ’s are not apt to cut corners on rules and procedures, and may clash with those personality types who bend rules to get outcomes. These may consider the ISFJ to be obstructionist in gaining outcomes. |
| INFJ | What INFJ’s Value
INFJs value future vision of what a better world can be – perhaps the most visionary of types. They seek meaning in human relationships. |
INFJs do not often find themselves in conflict with other types, avoiding interactive teams. They are often physicians, clergy, or professors and are able to act independently. Conflict may center around causes rather than committees, which the INFJ will seek to avoid. |
| INTJ | What INTJ’s Value INTJ’s value intellect. One of the brainiest of types, INTJs find and use abstract models to explain physical reality. They do not so much create concepts, but apply them. They look for simple and elegant models and then apply them. |
INTJs gather great backing in an organization because of their intellectual ability to grasp complicated issues and to suggest elegant solutions. They tend to be the “ivory tower type.” They may come into conflict with action types such as the ESTJ, ESTP, ESFJs, and ESFPs who value action over intellect. INTJs interest is infinite, but not their attention span, and they may become suddenly disinterested in a project or initiative. |
| ISTP | What ISTP’s Value
ISTPs value observation, comradery, and traditional values. They are natural observers. When they see a problem in their general surroundings, they have already been observing it and step forward to solve it. |
ISTPs have few natural enemies among other personality types in organizations. They are normally conflict averse, socially skilled, and have an easy wit. Since their work style is reactive in the best sense of the word, they are natural troubleshooters and problem solvers. They run into problems with Judging types who require advanced planning. They do not do well in strategy meetings or long term planning roles, and may become withdrawn in most types of long range planning meetings. They do not react well to hierarchies or chains of command. |
| ISFP | What ISFP’s Value
ISFPs value an internal set of principles and values that are more important to them than the external day-to-day world. |
ISFPs tend to be individual contributors and rarely have organizational conflict. They are generally well-liked and have a defined role that they accomplish well. |
| INFP | What INFP’s Value
INFPs value their insights about people and share their insights with only the people they trust. They value personal accomplishments that help others. |
INFPs are generally very talented people in organizations and can excel in technology, design, and project management. They have outstanding technical and interpersonal skills. Because they generally have strong boundaries and personal definitions that they don’t articulate to others, they often confuse Judging types who do not understand how they want to be engaged. Since they have strong inner expectations, they can be desperately unhappy or offended and no one knows why. Once they disconnect from people and situations, they are difficult to reconnect with. There is no more insightful and able person if an INFP is engaged in what they are doing. |
| INTP | What INTP’s Value
INTPs value seeing important details missed by others, and “getting to the bottom” of things. Their mental tendency is to go to the heart of things to examine underlying detail. |
The INTP is able to drill down into projects, issues, and situations to find those elements that don’t line up with the overall plan. They can be excellent educators and writers. INTPs can run afoul with outcome oriented types such as the ESTJ, the ENTJ and other types that conflict with the INTP when they feel that he wants to call back the train after it has left the station. INTPs never feel it’s too late to have that post-mortem meeting, or to begin at ground zero again. |
| ESTP | What ESTP’s Value
ESTP’s value reaching their destination with superior interpersonal skills through taking advantage of fluid options. To use military phrasing, ESTPs have a natural ability to act according to the situation on the ground— they move effectively and decisively in the moment. |
ESTPs have few natural enemies in organization. ESTPs are winsome and have the ability to gauge the crowd. They are excellent communicators, and often find themselves in the role of a spokesperson. ESTPs look for the shortest line between two points and dislike complicating anything that could be easy. They conflict with types more attracted to complexity such as the INTJ, INTP, ENTJ, and ENFJ. They grow impatient with long-term strategy or complex position papers. |
| ESFP | What ESFP’s Value
ESFPs value social interaction between people. They focus on getting things done through teams. They are generally “can do” and upbeat, and contribute positive energy to a team. |
ESFPs may clash with types who insist on a win/lose style of leadership. They may resist roles that are conflictive. They are often value gaining cooperation as friends and are most often individual contributors. They are diplomatic, fun-loving, and supportive of people in their organizations. |
| ENFP | What ENFP’s Value
ENFP’s value their own personal performance though charm, charisma and their ability to gain followership. ENFPs lead organizations through cycles of change by engaging the people around them by their own personal charm, helping organizations succeed. |
ENFPs find themselves at the heart of most organizations. They are often in human relations departments and have the ear of senior executive teams. They can be seen leading the latest organizational initiative. They have an affinity with their own ideas and will defend the ideas that they have generated. ENFPs often have difficulty staying engaged in projects through completion, often changing initiatives or jobs. ENFPs are most successful at getting organizations to see a vision and to engage in change management during the early stages. |
| ENTP | What ENTP’s Value
ENTP’S value technical ability, persuasive, as well as their ability to seize strategic opportunities. They are one of the least conflict averse types. ENTPs use their extroverted iNtuition to size up situations and are usually confident of their course of action |
ENTPs excel in organizations and as entrepreneurs. They dazzle many while at the same time confuse many others who get mental whiplash watching the ENTP’s rapid changes in direction. The ENTPs ability to communicate and solve issues is impressive. They can and do clash with most types who want to follow a steady course, as opposed to in-the-moment decisions and direction changes. Their confidence is admired and often justified, yet they clash when they come over as arrogant and all-knowing.They are all about skills, expertise, and they have a very advanced ability to communicate.. |
| ESTJ | What ESTJ’s Value
ESTJs are perhaps the most outcome-driven of all types. They want to understand the objective, what their resources are that they can draw on, and who they will work with to achieve the objective. |
ESTJs can rise to high positions in organizations because of their ability to achieve outcomes within the framework of organizational constraints — they deliver ahead of time and under budget. They can clash with Feeling types because they tend to believe that outcomes are more important than individuals. They may have difficulty finding innovative solutions that an ENTJ or ENTP might find, or implementing them, preferring time test ways of doing things. ESTJs may frustrate forward facing types like the ENFJ or ENFP because the big picture or overall view is often not important to them. |
| ESFJ | What ESFJ’s Value
ESFJs have the remarkable ability to manage and guide teams. They are highly organized and see disorganization as a personal failure, although they are often patient and are skilled at picking up the pieces for things that didn’t get done. |
ESFJs have some of the best interpersonal skills of all personality types, are conflict averse, and most always find themselves skillfully and diplomatically managing the needs of groups. Their abilities can become their disabilities in that they may place a critical problem on hold because they do not feel they have the authority to find unauthorized solutions. They often feel that their role is to work within a defined framework with an assigned set of duties, and may not feel that understanding how the larger organization works is important. |
| ENFJ | What ENFJ’s Value
The ENFJ is one of the types most attuned to people and groups. As moderators, facilitators, and trainers, the ENFJ has a finely tuned ‘sixth sense’ of the motivations and concerns of a group. |
ENFJs are the best skills to interrelate both to individuals and groups. People most often feel that the ENFJ understands them at a deep level, and it is often true that the ENFJ has an amazing ability to understand others. ENFJs can be frustrating to NTs and SJs in situations of conflict because not only is the ENFJ conflict averse, they often believe that conflict in and of itself is inappropriate and ineffective. When in charge, they can have a great sense of the appropriateness of their role and status, and may find it difficult to share the limelight and decision making with others. If everyone likes them, they must be right. |
| ENTJ | What ENTJ’s Value
ENTJs are the type that always leads, but are rarely leaders in the sense of popular political leaders, loved by the masses. They have a natural ability at strategy. |
ENTJs always attempt to lead groups through formal or informal authority. They see the end objective as more important than anything else, and frequently clash with almost everyone in the organization. Often chosen when outcomes are critical, people who want outcomes ally with them. |
