Theory | The Management Appraisal Program is a two-tiered diagnostic tool that compares the picture of oneself with that of how one is seen by others. It is used to assess individual management behaviour and supplies information on three competencies, namely personal, social and management. The MAP uses a comparison between a superior’s self-assessment and that by his/her employees. The test results are discussed with all participants and made plausible in a systematic feedback process.

Application | The MAP forms the basis of a systematic evaluation process of superiors and is used to optimise the management behaviour of individuals. By comparing average profiles, individual and business area specific management styles can be identified easily, and followed by the development of suitable measures in order to initiate focussed management development. The test takes about 30 minutes to complete.

Concept | The MAP test captures the self- and third-party perception of a manager by including his direct reports. The resulting measures are then implemented top-down. By answering 90 questions, the manager draws a picture of himself and his management style. The answers are assigned to 13 management criteria, such as DELEGATION or STRATEGIC ORIENTATION, and are evaluated accordingly. Next, the manager’s employees are asked the same questions and asses the manager in the same 13 management criteria. The employees’ answers are made anonymous by combining them into a statistical third-party picture. The assessment by his employees shows a manager in a discriminating way the impact of his own behaviour on others, and it is an excellent instrument to start him thinking about his self-assessment. This makes the MAP particularly suitable for the development of a specific management culture.

Individual evaluation criteria and the questions relating to them can be easily adapted to particular corporate management or behavioural principles, or to the requirements of a target group.

Evaluation | The MAP results are evaluated as graphs in the form of a “leadership radar”. By comparing the self- and third-party assessments, a clear judgement of a candidate’s management style, i.e. his/her management, personal and social skills, can be reached. With the MAP these data can be combined into statistical averages of organization units and management levels, and can then be compared to give valuable insight into a company’s actual management style and culture.