Working Genius Role Match
Define the real work, then match candidates to the energy it requires
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 97%
Role Match starts with the work rather than a generic title. The hiring manager writes a concrete description of what the person must repeatedly create, judge, mobilize, support, and finish, then identifies the Working Geniuses most likely to make that pattern sustainable. Candidates may take the assessment as a gift and compare their own energy profile with the disclosed role instead of being secretly filtered by a personality label. This creates a two-way decision: the employer tests whether the candidate can perform the actual job, and the candidate can reject work likely to make them miserable. Because two executive assistants or marketing heads may do completely different work, the framework forces leaders to define success before matching a person to it.
Origin
Patrick Lencioni explained how staffing firms and employers can match concrete job descriptions to Working Geniuses while respecting limits on mandatory hiring assessments.
Core principles
- 01Job titles conceal materially different work
- 02Candidates benefit from seeing likely frustration before accepting
- 03Role requirements should precede personality assumptions
- 04Assessment supports mutual fit rather than coercive screening
How to run it
- 1
Describe the real job
Write a short paragraph listing the recurring work, decisions, and outputs the role must own. Ignore the conventional title until the work is clear.
Pro tip Describe what success looks like under this specific manager and company.
Watch out Do not assume every role with the same title requires the same geniuses.
- 2
Map required geniuses
Translate each major responsibility into the Working Geniuses that best support it. Distinguish must-have energy from work that can remain a competency or be covered elsewhere.
Watch out Do not turn the profile into an automatic hiring verdict.
- 3
Offer candidate self-discovery
Invite the candidate to take the assessment voluntarily and explain that it can help them judge the role. Share the job's required work openly.
Pro tip Frame the assessment as information for both parties, not a test to beat.
Watch out Check applicable legal requirements before using any assessment in hiring.
- 4
Discuss the match
Ask the candidate where the role would give energy, where it would drain energy, and how they would cover non-genius work. Let them make a reasoned case for fit.
Watch out Do not confuse willingness to attempt work with sustainable energy for repeated work.
- 5
Adjust or decide
If the match is weak, reject the fit or redesign responsibilities instead of hoping the title will carry the person. If it is strong, set expectations using the same vocabulary.
Pro tip Separate responsibilities that were accidentally bundled into one title.
In the wild
Lencioni wants an assistant with discernment and tenacity because he will not provide detailed instructions; the person must infer what he needs and finish it. A CEO who gives explicit directions might instead need enablement and tenacity. The same title therefore points to different profiles under different managers.
→ The role is matched to its actual management context rather than a generic executive-assistant template.
A company defines whether its head of marketing must generate leads and close deals or develop brand strategy and understand the market. It then assesses candidates against that chosen work rather than prior success under a different marketing remit.
→ Leaders avoid hiring someone whose past title hides a fundamentally different job.
Common mistakes
Hiring the title
A familiar title can hide opposite daily demands, making prior title match a poor proxy for role fit.
Forcing the assessment
Coercive use undermines the mutual-match mechanism and may create legal concerns.
Treating type as destiny
The profile informs a fit conversation; it does not replace evidence of skill, values, motivation, or performance.
Is it for you?
Best for
Leaders filling flexible roles whose day-to-day work varies substantially by company or manager.
Not ideal for
Employers looking to automate hiring decisions or bypass legal and human review of assessments.
From the transcript
“it's related to work itself it actually allows us to avoid hiring people who are going to be miserable or hiring somebody and putting them…”
“it's not so much about every job with that title needs the same thing frankly one person's executive assistant is different than anothers”
“I don't know do you want somebody who's lead generation and closes deals or do you want somebody that's come up with new brand strategy…”
From the episode
Patrick Lencioni: Build an A-Team with Working Genius
Patrick Lencioni