BELBIN TEST TEAM ROLES

1. Plant

Plants are creative, unorthodox and generators of ideas. If an innovative solution to a problem is
needed, a Plant is a good person to ask. A good Plant will be bright and free-thinking. Plants can tend to
ignore incidentals. The Plant might be caricatured as the absent-minded professor/inventor, and often
has a hard time communicating ideas to others. Multiple Plants in a team can lead to
misunderstandings, as many ideas are generated without sufficient discernment or the impetus to
follow the ideas through to action. Plants can also create problems with the timing of their ideas. The
fact that the team has decided on a valid way forward and is now in the implementation stage will not
stop the Plant from coming up with new solutions and disrupting the implementation process.

Strengths: Creative, imaginative, free-thinking, generates ideas and solves difficult problems

Allowable weaknesses: Might ignore incidentals, and may be too preoccupied to communicate
effectively

Don't be surprised to find that: They could be absent minded or forgetful

2. Resource Investigator

The Resource Investigator gives a team a rush of enthusiasm at the start of the project by vigorously
pursuing contacts and opportunities. He or she is focused outside the team, and has a finger firmly on
the pulse of the outside world. Where a Plant creates new ideas, a Resource Investigator will quite
happily appropriate them from other companies or people. A good Resource Investigator is a maker of
possibilities and an excellent networker, but has a tendency to lose momentum towards the end of a
project and to forget to follow things up.

Strengths: Outgoing, enthusiastic. Explores opportunities and develops contacts

Allowable weaknesses: Might be over-optimistic, and can lose interest once the initial enthusiasm has
passed

Don't be surprised to find that: They might forget to follow up on a lead

3. Co-ordinator

A Co-ordinator is a likely candidate for the chairperson of a team, since they have a talent for stepping
back to see the big picture. Co-ordinators are confident, stable and mature and because they recognise
abilities in others, they are very good at delegating tasks to the right person for the job. The Co-
ordinator clarifies decisions, helping everyone else focus on their tasks. Co-ordinators are sometimes
perceived to be manipulative and will tend to delegate all work, leaving nothing but the delegating for
them to do.

Strengths: Mature, confident, identifies talent. Clarifies goals.

Allowable weaknesses: Can be seen as manipulative and might offload their own share of the work

Don't be surprised to find that: They might over-delegate, leaving themselves little work to do

4. Shaper

The Shaper is a task-focused individual who pursues objectives with vigour and who is driven by
tremendous energy and the need to achieve. For the Shaper, winning is the name of the game. The
Shaper provides the necessary drive to ensure that the team is kept moving and does not lose focus or
momentum. Shapers are people who challenge the team to improve. They are dynamic and usually
extraverted people who enjoy stimulating others, questioning norms, and finding the best approaches
for solving problems. The Shaper is the one who shakes things up to make sure that all possibilities are
considered and that the team does not become complacent. Shapers could risk becoming aggressive
and bad-humoured in their attempts to get things done. Shapers often see obstacles as exciting
challenges and they tend to have the courage to push on when others feel like quitting

Strengths: Sober, strategic and discerning. Sees all options and judges accurately

Allowable weaknesses: Sometimes lacks the drive and ability to inspire others and can be overly critical

Don't be surprised to find that: They could be slow to come to decisions

Monitor Evaluators are fair and logical observers and judges of what is going on in the team. Since they
are good at detaching themselves from bias, they are often the ones to see all available options with the
greatest clarity and impartiality. They take a broad view when problem-solving, and by moving slowly
and analytically, will almost always come to the right decision. However, they can become very critical,
damping enthusiasm for anything without logical grounds, and they have a hard time inspiring
themselves or others to be passionate about their work.

Strengths: Sober, strategic and discerning. Sees all options and judges accurately

Allowable weaknesses: Sometimes lacks the drive and ability to inspire others and can be overly critical

Don't be surprised to find that: They could be slow to come to decisions

6. Teamworker

A Teamworker is the oil between the cogs that keeps the machine that is the team running smoothly.
They are good listeners and diplomats, talented at smoothing over conflicts and helping parties
understand one another without becoming confrontational. Since the role can be a low-profile one, the
beneficial effect of a Teamworker can go unnoticed and unappreciated until they are absent, when the
team begins to argue, and small but important things cease to happen. Because of an unwillingness to
take sides, a Teamworker may not be able to take decisive action when it's needed.

Strengths: Co-operative, perceptive and diplomatic. Listens and averts friction

Allowable weaknesses: Can be indecisive in crunch situations and tends to avoid confrontation

Don't be surprised to find that: They might be hesitant to make unpopular decisions

7. Implementer

The Implementer takes their colleagues' suggestions and ideas and turns them into positive action. They
are efficient and self-disciplined, and can always be relied on to deliver on time. They are motivated by
their loyalty to the team or company, which means that they will often take on jobs everyone else
avoids or dislikes. However, they may be seen as closed-minded and inflexible since they will often have
difficulty deviating from their own well-thought-out plans, especially if such a deviation compromises
efficiency or threatens well-established practices.

Strengths: Practical, reliable, efficient. Turns ideas into actions and organises work that needs to be
done

Allowable weaknesses: Can be a bit inflexible and slow to respond to new possibilities
Don't be surprised to find that: They might be slow to relinquish their plans in favour of positive
changes

8. Completer / Finisher

The Completer/Finisher is a perfectionist and will often go the extra mile to make sure everything is "just
right," and the things he or she delivers can be trusted to have been double-checked and then checked
again. The Completer Finisher has a strong inward sense of the need for accuracy, and sets his or her
own high standards rather than working on the encouragement of others. They may frustrate their
teammates by worrying excessively about minor details and by refusing to delegate tasks that they do
not trust anyone else to perform.

Strengths: Painstaking, conscientious, anxious. Searches out errors. Polishes and perfects

Allowable weaknesses: Can be inclined to worry unduly, and reluctant to delegate

Don't be surprised to find that: They could be accused of taking their perfectionism to extremes

9. Specialist

Specialists are passionate about learning in their own particular field. As a result, they are likely to be a
fountain of knowledge and will enjoy imparting this knowledge to others. They also strive to improve
and build upon their expertise. If there is anything they do not know the answer to, they will happily go
and find out. Specialists bring a high level of concentration, ability, and skill in their discipline to the
team, but can only contribute on that specialism and will tend to be uninterested in anything which lies
outside its narrow confines.

Strengths: Single-minded, self-starting and dedicated. They provide specialist knowledge and skills

Allowable weaknesses: Tends to contribute on a narrow front and can dwell on the technicalities

Don't be surprised to find that: They overload you with information