From Insight to Action: Why Your Assessment Data Sits on the Shelf

Leaders love assessment data. Then it goes on a shelf. Former Hogan Assessments CEO Scott Gregory joins Kent to dig into why the gap between self-awareness and behavior change is so persistent — and what actually moves the needle. They cover how to filter what's worth developing, why context beats comprehensiveness, and the one question every leader should ask before acting on any piece of feedback.Guest: Scott Gregory is an IO psychologist, former CEO of Hogan Assessments, and longtime executive coach and assessment practitioner with decades of experience in personality research and leadership development.In this episode:02:00 — Scott's career arc: professional musician to IO psychology PhD to PDI, Pentair, MDA Leadership, and ultimately CEO of Hogan Assessments10:26 — Why assessment data ends up in a binder on a shelf — and what goes wrong between insight and action13:04 — The data overload problem: leaders are rarely surprised by their feedback, so why are we giving them 75 pages?19:37 — The definition of leadership nobody has (Scott once asked 50 Fortune 500 HR leaders to raise their hand — no one did)20:31 — Hogan's working definition: leadership is the ability to develop and sustain a high performing and highly engaged team21:01 — The shift from personal output to team output — why it's hard at every level of the pipeline, not just the first promotion26:17 — Why personality is stable after 25 and what that means for development (it's a marathon, not a binder event)28:48 — The "can do" vs. "will do" distinction — and why most leaders genuinely want to improve but still get stuck33:53 — The one question Scott uses to filter assessment data into actual development priorities: "Will it help me help my team?"35:02 — The coaching skills vs. vision-sharing example: why context determines which low scores actually matter36:49 — Using team feedback as the bridge from assessment insight to action — and as the check afterward40:19 — Advice for newly promoted leaders: the two herculean tasks of the transition, and why stopping yesterday's job is step oneResources mentioned:Hogan Assessments — Scott's former company; extensive library of research articles and leadership resourcesRobert Hogan — personality psychologist, foundational figure in IO psychology and personality measurementJoyce Hogan — researcher and co-architect of Hogan Assessments' foundational workJohn Holland — Holland Codes / occupational interest theory; foundational framework for career interests and fit (search "Holland Codes career interests")Personnel Decisions International (PDI) — acquired by Korn Ferry; kornferry.comMDA Leadership — mdaleadership.comLinks for today's show:Scott Gregory on LinkedInHogan AssessmentsKent Kniebel on LinkedInThe Promoted Leader ToolkitMusic for this podcast comes from a live recording of the song Needle & Thread and is provided with permission by Pert' Near Sandstone. Check them out on pertnearsandstone.com and on all major streaming platforms.Enjoyed the episode? Leave a rating and review wherever you listen — it helps more leaders find the show.