TRACOM Introduces Online SOCIAL STYLEsm Self-Perception Profile: Online questionnaire and report improve workplace and interpersonal effectiveness

HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo. – June 23, 2005 - The TRACOM Group, a workplace performance company, today introduced the Online Social Style Self-Perception Profile. TRACOM is the only company to offer an online self-perception profile that measures a person’s behavioral Style and Versatility, a measure of how well they work with others.

The new Profile takes just 15 minutes for an online questionnaire and is an easy introduction to the world-renowned SOCIAL STYLE MODEL™. Millions of people have used Social Style to improve their effectiveness working with others. Thousands of companies including Accenture, Kraft, GE, Starwood Hotels, Johnson & Johnson, Nike and Microsoft use TRACOM’s Social Style in their human development programs.

“TRACOM’s new Social Style Online Self-Perception instrument is miles ahead of the competition,” said Steve Kirkpatrick, executive vice president of Regis Learning Solutions, who has used TRACOM profiles and those of competitors. “It’s easy to use, and it’s the only one that includes Versatility, which is the high-impact piece of interpersonal skills training.”

Participants complete TRACOM’s online questionnaire and receive a personalized 24-page color Profile, distributed via e-mail as a PDF document. The Profile explains the Social Style Model and their Profile results, and provides Style-specific insights for successful interactions. Self-perception instruments can be easily built into existing training classes or used in coaching sessions. They require no pre-work, certification or instruction to administer. For employees without access to computers, TRACOM offers paper-based, self-scoring versions of the Self-Perception Profile.

The new Online Social Style Self-Perception Profile was developed as an introduction to Social Style concepts and to provide a fast, inexpensive and easy-to-administer way to measure a person’s own view of their behavior. It’s an alternative to multi-rater questionnaires where a person invites others – colleagues, superiors, direct reports, etc. – to complete a questionnaire about that person’s behavior. The combined scores from this group are then reported and compared with the participant’s own rating. Multi-Rater Profiles add a high degree of value by providing a comprehensive view of behavior, but are more expensive and typically take longer to administer.

The availability of both Self-Perception and Multi-Rater Profiles lets organizations select the most appropriate option for their various development needs. Some companies use Self-Perception Profiles for one set of workers or as part of a specific initiative and use Multi-rater Profiles for others. TRACOM offers a variety of training classes and resources to maximize impact of the development programs.

The Social Style Model identifies four key behavioral Styles and offers insight into working effectively with each. The model was originally developed by TRACOM in the 1960s and has been continually improved and successfully used worldwide.

The key benefit of Social Style is understanding Versatility, a measure of how well a person works with others. Research studies have proven that people with high Versatility are more effective. They are significantly better team leaders, more effective at coaching, sell more and achieve better employee commitment. Versatility is closely related to the concept of Emotional Intelligence.

“Clients tell us and research shows that Versatility makes a difference in the workplace,” said TRACOM President John Myers. “Our new Online Profile is the first online, self-assessment to measure both Style and Versatility. That makes it more useful than DiSC or Myers-Briggs reports that help a person understand themselves, but don’t address working better with others.”

TRACOM offers a variety of Social Style courses for organizations looking for a more in-depth examination of the way people work together. The Social Style Model is licensed to thousands of organizations that include it in leadership development, employee training, quality management and other development programs. TRACOM also offers a wide array of other packaged training courses and custom workplace performance services.

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The TRACOM Group helps individuals and organizations improve workplace performance by building interpersonal skills, improving teamwork, developing leaders and enhancing communications. TRACOM offers measurement-based learning models, courses, surveys, assessment tools and consulting services, which have been used successfully for nearly 50 years. Much of TRACOM’s work is based on Social Style, a model for effective work and personal relationship created by industrial psychologist Dr. David W. Merrill and Roger H. Reid, M.A. TRACOM’s Sales Effectiveness Division helps companies achieve sustainable double-digit revenue and profit growth. A division of Reed Business Information, TRACOM is based in Highlands Ranch, Colo., a suburb of Denver.