Your Privacy

We take your privacy seriously.

We collect analytics during use of the tool and anonymous responses. This data is used to improve the tool and to provide insights into how the tool is used. We do not share this data with any third parties. We do not collect any personal data. You cannot be identified from this data.

The data we collect may in future be used in aggregate to study the trends of management styles and to provide insights into how to improve management styles.

If you opt-out, we do not collect any data.

More Details

The Boss Trait Assessment Tool

Welcome to the Boss Traits Assessment Tool, developed in support of the book Bad Bosses Ruin Lives: The Building Blocks to Being a Great Boss, written by Debra Corey & Ken Corey. The purpose is to help you become aware of your boss traits, assessing you against the 10 types of bad bosses covered in the book so that you can address and action those requiring improvement.

You will answer a series of questions that relate to how you act and behave as a boss. For each, you will be be asked to select one of the following responses:

Always — I always act and behave in this way, there are no exceptions.
Often — I often act and behave in this way, but not all of the time.
Sometimes — From time to time I act and behave in this way.
Rarely — I rarely act and behave in this way.
Never — I never act and behave in this way.

Your Boss Types

Based on how you responded to the questions, for each of the 10 types of bad bosses, you will receive one of the following assessment scores:

High priority (Red) — This type of boss requires the most improvement. We suggest you make it a priority to focus on taking the necessary actions.
Moderate priority (White) — This type of boss requires some improvement as there are some things you are doing well and others requiring focus and action.
Low priority (Blue) — This type of boss could use some improvement, but is the lowest priority as there are many things you are doing well. Keep up the great work!

Here are your personalized results, listed in priority order. For each type of bad boss, the bar's length and priority indicate the urgency to address. Click on the "ⓘ" for a definition of the boss type.

Select "Go to Building Blocks" after you finish to see which building blocks to focus on.

Go to Building Blocks

Your Building Block Focus Areas

Based on the assessment of your boss types, there are specific building blocks from the Great Boss Building Block Model™ you should focus on to help you improve and eliminate bad boss traits. Please note that these do not represent all of the building blocks in the model, but those that correspond to the top three boss types identified as your priorities.

For those listed below, you will receive one of the following assessment scores:

High priority (Red) —This building block requires the most improvement, and we suggest you make it a priority to focus on taking the necessary actions.
Moderate priority (White) —This building block requires improvement, as there are some things you are doing well and others requiring focus and action.
Low priority (Blue) —This building block could use some improvement, but is the lowest priority as there are many things you are doing well.

Here are your personalized results, listed in priority order. For each building block, the bar's length and priority indicate the urgency to address. Click on the "ⓘ" for a definition of the building block.

For next steps and to see a PDF of these results, click on 'Finish' below. A link to your PDF will be created on that page:

Go to Bosses

More Details About the Tool

As you answer the questions it's important to be honest with yourself, remembering that we all have bad boss traits. Accept them and think of each as an opportunity and not a punishment. Embrace, and don't ignore these bad boss traits, for that will take you one step closer to being a great boss.

Once you complete the questions, you will receive a free personalized assessment of how you scored against the 10 types of bad bosses covered in the book, and areas you can work on to improve using the Great Boss Building Block Model™.

The book is available at this link: Bad Bosses Ruin Lives: The Building Blocks to Being a Great Boss

We'd love to hear from you about how the book and tool have worked for you, how they might be improved, or what you'd like to see next in this process. Please email us at inquries@badbossesruinlives.com.

If you'd like to share this tool with others, they can scan the QR code with their phone or open https://stepituphr.com/services in their browser.

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Latest Update: 2025-02-03

Next Steps

Congratulations, you have now completed your assessment! We suggest that you use these results to help you map out your next steps, including actions to take and areas to focus on. You may also find it helpful to talk to your boss, a mentor, and get feedback from your team to get their insights and perspectives as well.

It's important to point out that your traits can and do change from project to project, day-to-day and often person-to-person. This means that it is not a static process, you'll need to continually reevaluate and reassess where you were, where you are now, and where you need to be. For this reason, we suggest re-taking the test again in the future.

Let us wish you all the best in your journey to be a great boss! If you'd like to read more about the types of bad bosses or the building blocks, grab a copy of our book Bad Bosses Ruin Lives: The Building Blocks to Being a Great Boss.

If you'd like to share this tool with others, they can either scan the QR code with their phone or open https://stepituphr.com/services in their browser.

Once generated a link to the PDF will be here: