Type A or Type B – Which Style Is Right For Your Utility Workforce?

Management personality types have become a hot topic in American business circles. One of the most common and most popular is the “Type A vs. Type B” management styles.

In the early 1980s, American companies started to actively seek out individuals who embraced and embodied the Type A style more so than individuals subscribing to the Type B style. As a result, the Type A became the desired choice to lead many global focused companies. In my own experiences, I have seen the Type A as a “Hot, Fast and Now” approach that is often seen as outgoing and “a go-getter”; and the Type B as a more methodical approach that can sometimes be seen as quiet and thoughtfully cautious. Many of the business oriented vendor companies I have worked with, headed by the movers and shakers of global industry, subscribe to a Type A culture; and many of our utilities, headed by engineers, thinkers and technology innovators, are still in a Type B culture. So what effect has this had on our industries?

Type A and Type B cannot simply be drilled down to right or wrong. Both personalities have leadership potential and which style is “right for the job” depends on the goals of the company. Where the bottom line is king, Type As can excel; and where innovation, technological advances and ingenuity are king, Type Bs can excel. The success of a Type A or a Type B really depends on how they interact in the corporate culture. I believe the subtle nuances in the utilities industries that make us different than our business driven counterparts, has lead to some disconnect in our interactions and a culture clash of Type A vs. Type B.

I was recently in a meeting with operational leaders from several utilities across the US and Canada. The vendor representatives came from a Type A dominated world and the utilities representatives were heavily Type B personalities. The Type A vendor presentations were forward, forceful and flashy; embodying the Type A style to a tee. They told their audience, our steady group of Type Bs, exactly what they should do and exactly what they should not do. This complete misfire in communication made the meeting a little contentious, to say the least.

So what type of personality culture should a utility company create? Would more Type As get the job done faster or would they send us into a hot, fast and now state of disaster? Would more Type Bs keep us thoughtfully moving toward calculated goals or leave us sitting in the dust as the lighting fast technologies of today pass us by?

As with most things in life, a well-balanced diet is the best choice. The proper mix of both Type A and Type B personalities working together is what creates the strongest culture. The way I see the industry moving forward, our utilities will need the Type As to get us in gear and moving along with the times; and the Type Bs will keep things in perspective with a focus on long-term sustainability. What we need to ask is “What is the right mix for my workforce?” and find the combination that will help your teams succeed. Building a culture based on a mutual respect for all personality types and management styles will bring in a stronger base of talent to the strategic table.

And we can’t always follow the utilities rule book for corporate culture. As we evolve and grow, American utilities should look to managers outside our own circles for ideas on how to spark new life in our cultures. One of my favorite examples is “the happiness factor” embraced by online retail company Zappos. This unorthodox method has proven to be a sucessful strategic move for Zappos and might be a positive philosophy for utilities to start to embrace.

While we can’t all run out tomorrow and change our Type B pocket protectors for Type A rocket pants, we should be taking note of each other’s successes and finding ways to find the right balance for success in our workforce.