An examination of personality type dominating leadership positions in Department of Defense program management

If acquisition workforce personnel with certain personality types dominate leadership positions in program management, their work on integrated teams, their actions, and decisions will be influenced by their preferred behaviors. Can an analysis of Myers-Briggs Personality Type for acquisition work force personnel in program management training courses predict dominant behaviors and indicate individual leadership training needs?; This was a descriptive research project using MBTI and Profilor data bases of Defense Acquisition University student information and a Leadership Effectiveness Profile survey to obtain insight into potential relationships between selected personality preferences, reported behaviors and leadership style preferences. The population of interest was composed of acquisition work force personnel (military, government civilian, and defense industry) participating in program management training and those advancing to leadership positions.; Examination of the Advanced Program Management Course, Executive Program Management Course and related Center for Creative Leadership MBTI baseline data has supported the conclusion that Department of Defense program managers not possessing TJ preferences may have a reduced opportunity for selection to a program management leadership position. The non-TJ program manager may have to work at strengthening their knowledge and skills in those areas necessary for functioning in a leadership environment that seems to prefer TJ behaviors. Profilor data showed that the perceived performance was compatible with that expected of the TJ leader and reflected skill strengths and development needs described by MBTI theory as characteristic of Thinking-Judging persons. The Leadership Effectiveness Profile survey results showed that overall effectiveness and leadership styles ratings were generally no better nor no worse than the instrument's norm ratings. There was some dissonance between the expected preferred styles, S1-Telling/S2-Selling for the TJ manager, and the survey data that indicated the preferred style was S3-Participative. This difference may be symptomatic of the influences of the workplace environmental factors or may indicate there was no link between type and style.