How PCM Works – A Case Study from Team Development
As a division manager at an international automotive supplier headquartered in southern Germany, I—like most HR and organizational development professionals—was concerned with the question of what workshops and training sessions actually achieve. What sticks in people’s minds? Can team development truly bring about long-term behavioral change? Does it increase the team’s efficiency? Does the training improve the ability to resolve conflicts constructively?
The feedback forms—often called "happy sheets"—that are still used at the end of seminars don't help in this regard.
I am familiar with various personality models and have come to appreciate their use in different situations. Since 2016, I have been working as a certified trainer with the Process Communication Model® (PCM), a specialized communication and personality model, and have achieved particularly lasting results with it. This is because participants continue to feel the positive effects even years later, and they continue to apply much of what they’ve learned long after the seminar is over.
The PCM Effectiveness Survey confirms my experiences
In the PCM Effectiveness Survey, which took place from July through December 2020, 539 participants from 11 countries answered questions about the effectiveness of PCM. 45% of the participants are over 45 years old. 82% of the respondents have more than 10 years of professional experience. 44% of all participants are managers.
PCM in Leadership Team Development
Inspired by this survey, I conducted interviews with eight members of a team; some were conducted via online calls, while others returned the completed questionnaire to me. In my interview, 13 questions were identical to those in the effectiveness study. All eight individuals participated in a two-day team development workshop with PCM in July 2018; they were part of a management team for a product division with the following roles:
- Product Line Manager
- Head of Logistics
- Head of Purchasing
- Head of Sales
- Head of Quality Management
- Commercial Director
- Technical Director
- Product Manager
In other words, all participants were experienced executives, aged 34–58, with 20–31 years of professional experience and 8–25 years of leadership experience.
PCM is used very intensively over the years
78% of the participants in the effectiveness study reported that they had attended a PCM training or coaching session a year ago or even earlier. My participants attended the PCM training three years ago and continue to make extensive use of their PCM knowledge within their team.
70% of my respondents report that they use PCM frequently (daily or several times a week). This means that the same response pattern is evident here as in the effectiveness survey. 30% report using it “sometimes.” The leadership team specifically mentions the frequent use of personality types and the management of stress patterns.
Among my respondents, 75% say they use PCM when dealing with conflicts, 62% when structuring communication, and 62% in leadership roles. 37% use it for self-management and in personal relationships.
The high rate of use in conflict situations may be due to the fact that, based on the insights gained from exploring the different types of perception and PCM profiles, conflicts were resolved immediately during team development. An understanding of these differences has led to mutual understanding.
The fact that PCM is being used so extensively in leadership roles after nearly three years is certainly due to the fact that almost all participants have many years of leadership experience and quickly recognized the relevance of PCM to their leadership work.
I began my interview with the following question: You’ve already attended many workshops and training sessions, and perhaps you’ve also been introduced to other personality models, methods, and theories. Which of these has particularly shaped, impressed, or influenced you as a person and as a leader?
Here is a selection of the responses:
- “There are, in fact, a wide variety of personality models and methods that are presented and taught in various seminars. For me, PCM was the most influential of these, because the model addresses at least two levels: a standard level (where many of the other models stop) and a level related to stress patterns” (Head of Finance, Controlling, HR, and IT)
- “PCM was the most enlightening experience—few things come close” (Head of Purchasing)
- “During my training program for the position of vice president, I was introduced to the MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator); I really liked PCM—I think it’s more nuanced” (Technical Director)
Note: You can find an overview of all the results of the PCM Effectiveness Survey here: https://www.kcg-pcm.de/de/blog/praxistipps-anwendung/die-wirkung-des-pcm
The Team Development Process Using PCM
Before the workshop, all participants receive the online questionnaire—which consists of 45 questions—and fill it out. On the first day, there is an overview of the six personality types, their strengths, and their preferred communication and leadership styles. At the end of the day, all participants receive their personality profiles. Before that, they assess themselves and a colleague, so the profiles are eagerly anticipated and shared among the group.
On the second day, we turn to the classic tool of team development: feedback. But with an understanding of personality types, the session takes on a special intensity. And this feedback session serves as the gateway to what are known as “distress patterns.” Now the participants understand that when under stress, people tend to exaggerate the very traits that previously defined them positively. The positive quality turns negative.
For example, someone who is normally particularly thorough and dedicated becomes overly critical when distressed and sees only the mistakes others make. Participants recognize the connection between personality architecture and their distress patterns—both in themselves and in their colleagues. And they learn which psychological needs must be met so that they do not fall into their distress patterns.
This knowledge then becomes an integral part of team development. How should members of the leadership team interact with one another to avoid stress? And here, it’s important to remember that everyone on the team has different psychological needs and requires a different approach. Armed with this knowledge, situations are analyzed and understood in retrospect. In addition to the question of what this means for us as a team, there is also the underlying question of what this means for leadership. Each participant also reflects on their own team, formulates hypotheses about team members, and resolves to shape certain interactions more consciously in the future.
Now that some time has passed since that workshop, what is still different today?
There were a surprisingly large number of responses to this question:
- Team cohesion has increased significantly, and trust has taken a step forward
- I now know that a coworker is a “socialized rebel,” and ever since then, I’ve been willing to cut him some slack on certain things
- A very open and trusting atmosphere. And then there’s the “elevator ride” concept, which we still use today
- Openness with one another, talking about ourselves, and listening to feedback from others
- We notice more quickly when someone under stress stops “thinking logically”
- There is still a great deal of openness when it comes to addressing sensitive issues
In addition to these statements, let’s take a look at the results of the effectiveness survey. One of the questions asked was, “Which statement best applies to you? Since I’ve been familiar with PCM, …”. I also asked this question in the interviews. Here, I’m just comparing a few aspects that provide insight into what people perceive to have changed after three years. The figures from the effectiveness survey are shown in blue, and the results from my interviews are shown in red.
Understanding others' behavior and accepting them as they are
Both in the effectiveness survey and in my own survey, there is a high level of agreement with the statements “I can better understand the behavior of others” and “I find it easier to accept other people as they are.”
Dr. Taibi Kahler, the founder of PCM, said that PCM touches the lives of generations. If it becomes easier for me to accept people as they are—for example, within the family system—then this can have a positive impact on the lives of generations. And, of course, on the atmosphere within a leadership team as well.
How do the participants themselves describe the impact of PCM?
In what situations do participants still feel the impact today? Participants primarily cited examples from two areas:
- first, in self-management, and
- On the other hand, when they see that their teammates are under stress.
And here's what the executives have to say about it:
- “Ever since I’ve come to understand my personality architecture, I’ve known that I need energizing breaks. I don’t recharge by sitting still and staring out the window; I need movement—and ideally, some fun, too. The others know this. They’re no longer surprised; in the best-case scenario, they support me, and we have fun together.”
- “For me, it was a relief to realize that there are other people out there who are just like me. Here in the automotive supply industry, I’m surrounded by engineers and tinkerers who are fascinated by technology. They’re organized and love plans and lists. Until now, I’ve always felt like an outsider and different. Now I know that I bring something to the team that the others don’t have.”
- “After the workshop, it became clear that we have colleagues on the team who get very caught up in the details when under stress. Up until then, I’d found them to be petty and annoying. Now I know that they need recognition—and, ideally, clear facts—and then they’re able to work through their issues.”
- “We had a long online meeting. A colleague, a staunch advocate of the PCM approach, had developed a meeting structure. We really challenged him during the meeting; we made things difficult for him because we didn’t support his concept for the meeting. He then became stressed and started lashing out. Knowing his personality type, we then cut the meeting short. And in the end, we were still able to partially accommodate his plan and acknowledge his preparation, which helped him calm down. Without our PCM knowledge, this meeting would have escalated very quickly.”
My Conclusion
I am certain that when it comes to leadership development or team development, I will recommend the use of PCM to my clients. It’s a worthwhile investment because the insights are long-lasting and truly transform how the team works together.
If you'd like to learn more, you can find information on the website or contact the author of this article or the certified PCM trainers or coaches in your area at https://kcg-pcm.de/de/pcm-certified-professionals.
