Enhancing team collaboration: understanding your“social styles”

Effective communication lies at the heart of every successful team. Understanding the diverse social styles of your colleagues can significantly improve workplace relationships, leading to enhanced collaboration, productivity, and team spirit. The framework I like to use for deciphering people’s communication preferences is Merill & Reid’s “social styles”. In this blog, I’ll explore the four social styles outlined by Merill & Reid and offer practical tips on how best to communicate with colleagues of each style.

The Merill & Reid model suggests there are four distinct social styles, each characterised by specific behaviours, attitudes and communication preferences.  These styles are: Analytical, Driver, Amiable, and Expressive.  Although we can dip into any of these styles, each of us tend to have a primary and a secondary style, which show our most comfortable (and default) ways of communicating.  

No one fits neatly into any one (or two) boxes of course as we’re all complex individuals with different experiences and motivations.  However, these social styles provide a useful model for better understanding our own predilections when interacting with other people and also help us identify how our colleagues like to operate.  Here’s a pen picture of each of these styles:

Analytical:

 Analytical individuals prioritise accuracy, precision, and logical thinking in their approach to work. When communicating with Analytical colleagues, it’s essential to provide detailed information, avoid exaggeration, and focus on facts and figures. Be prepared to answer questions thoroughly and logically, and respect their need for space and time to process information.

Driver:

 Drivers exhibit high assertiveness and are risk-takers. They are goal-oriented, decisive, and results-driven individuals who value efficiency and productivity. When interacting with Drivers, be direct, concise, and get straight to the point. Focus on presenting solutions and outcomes rather than dwelling on details. Respect their time by being punctual and organised, and be prepared to negotiate assertively when necessary.

Amiable:

 Amiable individuals demonstrate low assertiveness and high emotional responsiveness. They prioritise harmonious relationships, cooperation, and consensus-building. When communicating with Amiable colleagues, emphasise empathy, active listening, and building rapport. Take the time to understand their perspectives and concerns, and be patient and supportive in your interactions. Avoid confrontation and strive for win-win solutions that consider everyone’s needs and preferences.

Expressive:

 Expressive individuals are both highly assertive and emotionally responsive. They are outgoing, enthusiastic, and people-oriented individuals who thrive on interaction and creativity. When engaging with Expressive colleagues, be energetic, open, and even humorous. Allow them to share their ideas and vision. Expressive people love praise and approval.  Embrace flexibility and spontaneity in your communication style, and focus on building positive relationships and a sense of camaraderie.

People leave clues as to which is their primary social style – for example in the language they use (Amiable people talk about “feelings” while Analytical people often use the term “think”); and the focus they have (Drivers want action, while Expressives are  excited by ideas and the big picture).  The pace of decision-making can also give you an indication of your colleague’s social style, with Drivers and Expressives being faster-paced and more directive and Analytical and Amiable individuals being more collaborative and reflective. 

Understanding and recognising the different Merrill and Reid social styles can help individuals and teams communicate more effectively and build better relationships with others.  The big learning point around social styles is to recognise that when interacting with others, don’t treat other people as you want to be treated – treat people as they want to be treated.  

The key is both to be aware of your own style and priorities and to understand and relate to those of colleagues who may well have styles that are different to yours.  And then adjust your working style accordingly, and lean in to what’s important to the other person.  That is the best way to achieve smooth working relationships and to enhance your influence and impact.  If you know you’re largely a Driver, and so you like taking charge and getting things done and you’re working on a project with an Amiable person, you might well cause tension by adopting your usual approach.  Because your Amiable colleague will want to ensure that everyone involved feels included and has a say, and that requires a slightly slower pace.  So, even though pace might generally be more important to you than people, with the self-awareness the social styles model gives you, you can be flexible enough to step out of your usual mode of operating and do some consensus building first, to make sure your Amiable colleague is comfortable, before pressing ahead with your action plan.

Learning about social styles and how to adapt your approach to accommodate others’ preferences is an eye-opening and highly effective way to improve your work relationships and team dynamics.  I run a half-day team event exploring the social styles within your team, with practical exercises helping you practise adapting your style to bond with and influence others.  As well as having long-term practical learnings for the team and its members in relationship-building, it’s a fun, team bonding event in itself, with plenty of enjoyable interactive activities.  Feel free to contact me for more information.