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Hi everyone,

I wasn't sure in which forum to post this..

I've seen some recommendations here already for books on the DISC profile, so that's covered.

I was wondering if anyone can recommend additional web resources?

And my actual question is if anyone knows if you have to be a certified trainer/facilitator in order to present or do DISC profiling in companies? Is there any organization that certifies people or can I just educate myself?

Thank you,
Anja

HMac's picture

Hi Anja - the owner of DISC is Inscape Publishing in the US. If you check out their website, you'll see resources for certification - plus an amazing amount of alternative versions and collateral materials.

http://www.inscapepublishing.com/

I have no connection to Inscape - they used to be owned by a company that also owned a company I was working for at the time. But I can vouch for their quality.

-Hugh

aniinl's picture

Thanks, Hugh!

So someone "owns" the DISC profile? Interesting :)
Now, that explains why they came up in every search I did - no matter what link, it all referred back to them :)
Their complete package is quite expensive, but if they are the address to go to and are known for their quality, then I'll contact them!

Thank you,
Anja

US101's picture
Licensee Badge

My company uses Resources Unlimited http://www.resourcesunlimited.com/

You don't have to be certified to deliver their materials in your company, though it wouldn't hurt.

Also, this is a good book for managers: The 4 Dimensional Manager: DISC Strategies for Managing Different People in the Best Ways. For each DISC style is shows managers how to delegate, feedback, motive, problem-solve, and make decisions.

http://www.amazon.com/Dimensional-Manager-Strategies-Managing-Different/...

aniinl's picture

Thank you, I came across them, too, through my search (and also they link back to inscape publishing..))

I don't want to use this in my company, but rather as a consultant in the companies I work with. Therefore I was wondering if I'd be "allowed" without a certification. I've given introductory presentations on DISC in my ex-company to jr managers, but they were just meant as an "interesting, fun and entertaining thing" that they could chose to use and learn more about or not. Now I want to take it to a more professional level and want to educate myself more.

For the introductory presentation to them I took most of my input from the two books "Positive Personality Profiles" by Robert A. Rohm and "Personality Plus" by Florence Littauer (she doesn't call it DISC, though), which I find highly entertaining, but have little to do with a work environment. As an introduction, to get someone interested in DISC and realize certain things about themselves and others (friends, family, colleagues) I think both books are great. I go back to mine frequently and they really triggered my interest in DISC.

So, thank you also for the book recommendation. You're not the first one to recommend it, so it must be good!

Thank you,
Anja

emilyricke's picture

Good morning! I work for Resources Unlimited (mentioned in a previous post) and we offer classroom and virtual DISC Certifications for U.S. based companies and consultants. I have included additional information and links to our certifications below.

[b]1) Attend a Live DISC Certification $2,495[/b]

http://www.resourcesunlimited.com/DISC_Train_the_Trainer_Certifications.asp

Choose from a variety of dates and locations to attend a 2-day Classroom DISC Certification with individuals from other companies.

September 24-25, 2008 – Alexandria, VA
November 12-13, 2008 – San Diego, CA

[b]2) Participate in the Virtual DISC Certification $2,495[/b]

http://www.resourcesunlimited.com/schedule/DISCVirtualTrainTheTrainer.asp

Personalized just for you, the Virtual DISC Certification eliminates the need to travel. Learn how to teach DISC to others in the comfort of your office or home. The Virtual DISC Certification takes approximately 15 hours to complete and combines independent study and personalized phone coaching.
===================
I noticed that you are in The Netherlands. You will definitely want to get in touch with our international partner, Hans Jakob. You will find his contact information below...

DISCOVER A/S
Hans Jakob
Telegade 1
2630 Taastrup
Denmark
Phone: +45 46 32 12 40
http://www.discover.dk/

If you have any questions, please let me know.

Best Regards,

Emily Ricke
Resources Unlimited
515.278.1292 Office
515.270.0694 Fax
[email protected]
www.ResourcesUnlimited.com

We love referrals!!

aniinl's picture

Thank you, Emily!

Anja

bug_girl's picture

I've found certification is a good investment for many of these tools--while some of it is completely obvious and snore-inducing, you'll also learn a lot of tips and techniques that you wouldn't get otherwise.

I've lost track of how many things I was certified to give out at one time or another--CDFM, MBTI, Knowdell, and a bunch of others.

I have no knowledge of this particular instrument (disc) though.

dfbfloyd's picture

Hi Anja -

The answer to your question on [url=http://www.corexcel.com/everything_disc_certification.htm]DISC certification[/url] is, it depends.

If you want to use the [url=http://www.corexcel.com/html/disc-profile.htm]DISC Profile[/url] to consult and/or present training sessions in the U.S. you do not need to be certified. However, certification is highly recommended. There are resources you can use to present DISC training sessions and the most current/comprehensive is the Everything DISC Facilitation System. However, there are several other "flavors" of DISC on the market but I'm not sure how many of them have comprehensive trainer materials.

It looks like you're from the Netherlands and Emily has provided the contact information for the international partners in one of her posts above. In order to present/consult with DISC outside of the U.S. you would need to be certified by the appropriate Inscape International Partner. Of course, this is if you chose to use the Inscape DISC Profile. At least this is the way I understand it. Hans Jakob would be able to provide more information about that.

[url=http://www.inscapepublishing.com]Inscape Publishing[/url] is the publisher of DISC (notice the small "i") but they are not the "owners" of DISC. However, you cannot purchase DISC directly from Inscape. They use a distributor network and people purchase DISC Profiles and resources from authorized Inscape Publishing distributors or one of the Inscape International Partners.

Let us know if you have any other questions. Good luck with your search.

AManagerTool's picture

Are we recommending that we get DISC certification for $2500? What does certification provide in terms of value that we can't get simply by studying the existing materials scattered throughout our own companies HR pages, the internet, etc?

HMac's picture

[quote="AManagerTool"]Are we recommending that we get DISC certification for $2500?[/quote]

Not necessarily - everybody seems to be agreeing that it isn't necessary, if all you're trying to do is "use" it.

On the other hand - if you're going to try to [i]make money [/i]from using it (for example, by selling consultative services where you're using DISC), then I think you have to consider certification as an investment in your professional service offerings.

Just my two cents.

-Hugh

dfbfloyd's picture

The certification is well worth the money if you have the $2395 or can work it into your training budget. People come away with a thorough understanding of the DISC model. It also opens their eyes to the training possibilities and other ways to use [url=http://www.corexcel.com/html/disc-profile.htm]DISC[/url].

I’m not sure the decision should be made based on making money as a consultant. There are quite a few companies with in-house trainers that have attended the certification. Basically, if you present training sessions on DISC, certification is highly recommended. It’s just not mandatory in the United States. One other thing to consider is the $2395 price for the [url=http://www.corexcel.com/everything_disc_certification.htm]DISC Certification[/url] includes the Everything DISC trainer kit. The kit sells for $1595 by itself so the certification is actually only $800 plus any travel expenses you incur.

RichRuh's picture
Licensee BadgeTraining Badge

I risk stating the obvious here, but since it hasn't been stated, maybe it isn't obvious.

The Manager Tools Effective Communication conference, held last week in San Antonio, focused on the DISC model. In addition to covering the model itself, Mark and Mike taught how to observe communication behaviors to judge someone's profile, and how to tailor your communication behaviors to be more effective in your communication with them. They even taught how to read someone's DISC profile from an e-mail message. Of course, the conference was focused on learning [i]and then practicing [/i]these tactics. Very practical, and very worthwhile.

I believe they will hold the conference again in 2009.

--Rich

AManagerTool's picture

* tiptoes up to microphone and whispers *
[b]and at $1600, is a bargain....[/b]
* walks away *

emilyricke's picture

Hi all,

Many of our clients become DISC Certified because the client they are working with are requiring them to have a certification it in order to conduct business with them. In our experience, this is most often corporations…

Another reason people love our live certifications is because of the camaraderie that they find with the other participants. There are other people, just like them, in these sessions and can share great insight into new ideas, developments, best practices, and procedures they use.

Finally, our trainers have over 25 years of experience with DISC. They teach exercises and best practices that they have learned and developed over the years... These are things you cannot find in the facilitation materials! :D