Spotting the game-changers to drive your business forward

22 September 2015 -

New tool helps businesses spot the key talent in their teams to ensure they are given the responsibility and support needed to be a success

Risk-takers. Perfectionists. Visionaries. These are just some of the words used to describe game-changers, those individuals who push boundaries in the way they work and form the impetus behind the innovation of successful companies.

These mavericks however, often attract a reputation of being hard to find and difficult to manage effectively. But a new tool has been launched to help businesses both identify and capitalise upon the game-changers hidden within their organisation.

Launched by business insight and talent consultancy eg.1, The GC Index is the first online assessment tool aimed at alerting managers to uniquely talented staff at all levels of the business.

With the goal of grooming game-changers to thrive and deliver outstanding results in the workplace, The GC Index measures the preferred inclination of how individuals contribute to an organisation, role or project and focuses on output rather than personality or the ability to climb the corporate ladder.

Employees will benefit from discovering their strengths and will be categorised as either a game-changer, play-maker, strategist, implementer or polisher. With a comprehensive break down of the composition of their whole workforce, eg.1 hopes managers will be able to assess whether they have well-balanced teams and ensure people with the right skills are in the right teams.

John Mervyn-Smith, eg.1’s chief psychologist, said employers will benefit from gaining an empirical assessment of just how their staff work and what makes them tick.

“For the last three decades, talent development has focused largely upon identifying those individuals who have the potential to make hierarchical progress,” he said. “By definition this approach has been elitist and exclusive, which leaves organisations and individuals missing out.

“The GC Index defines talent as the contribution that an individual can make to a team and organisation, regardless of hierarchical position. It is inclusive regardless of demographic. Moreover, while it focuses upon an individual’s inclinations and strengths, it also provides practical insights into development.”

Proposing that The GC Index has the ability to reshape talent management, Adrian Furnham, professor of psychology at University College of London, who works in partnership with eg.1 to develop the tool, said: “The discovery of a game-changer’s unique obsessive imagination allows us to delve more deeply into the 'natural' character of game-changers and assess how other factors have an impact on the contribution they make.

“The GC Index will enable board members, CEOs, HR professionals, investors and line managers to easily assess the composition of their workforce and ensure they apply individuals to the right roles based on real and potential contribution.”

As UK productivity remains low and businesses look for a significant advantage to edge ahead of competitors, many leaders and recruiters yearn for staff that have that 'special something' and have the ability to ‘re-write the things we do’.

However, almost three quarters (72%) of leaders say less than 11% of their employees are game changers who can shape the future of the company, according to an eg.1 study, The DNA of a Game Changer.

Nathan Ott, eg.1’s chief executive, said: “Our study has shown that game changers exist in the corporate world but they are being neglected, not always fulfilling their potential because they do not readily conform to traditional definitions of talent. In a world where today’s employee can be tomorrow’s competitor, identifying and embracing these game-changers is critical to long-term business performance.

“It doesn’t matter whether the individual is a successful CEO or just about to finish school, if they are a game-changer they are a game-changer, regardless of gender, shape, colour or any one of the many boxes that exist today. The GC Index allows leaders to easily identify game changers in the far corners of their organisations, ensuring they are in the right culture and have the right mix of people around them. Doing this will allow these special individuals to fulfil their game-changing potential."