b'I GET BY WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDSHigher conformity, similarly, has a tendency to equate with processes, rules, systems and high degrees of detail orientation. A focus onqualityofworkisalsoatraitofhighFor a company of the type examined here, conformity.Again,thisisperhapslogical, as all construction projects seek to outputstrong structural support and systemic decision high-quality work, and more individuals of this type support that outcome. making align with the low dominance traits, which What is perhaps less obvious is the correlationexplains the increased performance of this trait between low dominance and higher project outcomes. Many individuals in constructionon the examined projects.mightself-characterizeashighdominance, and indeed many individuals who have risen to senior roles. However, consider what the Drakeprofiletellsusaboutdominance. Lower-dominance traits include a tendencycommencement of a project, and too oftenAbout the principal authortoward caution, the tendency to seek groupis left simply to selecting from the personnelDr. Awad Hanna is a professor and chair of input and consensus when decision making,that are available. If companies contemplat- theConstructionEngineeringandManage-andaneventemperament.Whereashigh- ing or embarking upon a new venture werement program at the University of Wisconsin-dominance individuals can be intimidating,able to leverage the personality traits of theirMadison.Dr.Hannaisalsoaproviderof perceived as aggressive and prioritize quickstaff to create teams that meet a holistic setmanagement education and claims consulting decisionmakingevenwhenitresultsinof criteriawhose skills complement eachthrough Hanna Consulting Group Inc. www.more risk-taking. For a company of the typeotherit is possible to realize even greaterhannaconsultinginc.com. He can be reached at examinedhere,strongstructuralsupportproject success. ashanna@wisc.edu.and systemic decision making align with the low-dominancetraits,whichexplainsthe increasedperformanceofthistraitonthe examined projects. It is important to understand that personal-ityprofilesareausefultoolbutshould beconsideredwithinthecontextofthe companyasawhole.Acompanythatis moreindividualisticandagilethanthe structuredandteam-drivenoneexamined heremightachievehigherCIMwithvery high-dominance project teams, for example. Prior to applying any outcome of personality profiling to project data, work to understand what culture and methods are already in place at the company, as simply collecting the data will not change that culture. Once a sense of the dynamics already in play is achieved, then decisions can be made about leverage areas for improvement. It was in 1917 that Cyrus McCormick coined the now oft-cited proverb, If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together, a maxim which is as true today as it was then. With declining construction productivityandanagingworkforcein need of new hires, it is evidently critical that project teams be correctly selected given their impactonprojectsuccess.Theformation of a project team is one of the earliest and most critical actions that must be taken in the Ontario Electrical Contractor25'