Inclusive Versatile Prudent Driven

Introduction

Employee engagement worldwide is heading South.

Gallup’s 2025 State of the Global Workplace report shows global engagement dropping from 23% in 2023 to 21% in 2024. This is only the second fall in twelve years and is linked to an estimated $438 billion in lost productivity in 2024 alone.

Most employees are not thriving in this picture.
Globally, only 21% feel engaged with their work; 62% report they are “not engaged”; and 17% say they are actively disengaged. Quiet quitting, more sick days, waiting out the week and feeling stuck in roles that drain energy have become common experiences in many organisations.

A clear pattern sits underneath these numbers.
Gallup’s long-term research suggests that about 70% of the difference in engagement between teams links back to the manager. Separate studies show that around one in two employees have left a job at some point in their career to get away from a manager and improve their life, even when they still cared about the work.

This does not place blame on managers.

Managers themselves sit under intense pressure. Manager engagement has dropped to around 27%, and young and female managers show some of the steepest declines. Many feel caught between demands from above, expectations from their teams and little support or training. In that context, both managers and employees experience rising stress, lower well-being and higher turnover.

The hopeful side of this picture is influence.
The same data that highlight the problem also show that engagement improves when people know what is expected of them, receive regular, useful conversations about their work and feel trusted to use their judgement. Research on motivation, including Daniel Pink’s work, points towards three core drivers: meaningful goals, a sense of progress and mastery, and autonomy – genuine freedom to decide how to approach work within clear outcomes.

People join organisations with energy and hope.
They leave managers, systems and cultures that ignore how they work best.

Many organisations have turned to personality tools in search of answers. Personality tends to remain stable across adulthood and does not shift in response to training or new slogans. Labels based on fixed types often leave people feeling boxed in, while expectations around behaviour still change little.

Preferences behave differently.

They respond to awareness, environment and intent. When you understand your preferences, you start to notice how you approach relationships, thinking, decisions and delivery. You also gain language to express the conditions that help you give your best. When managers understand those preferences across a team, they adjust communication, role design and expectations in ways that lift engagement and reduce friction.

Sariio MAPS (Motivations And Preferences Survey) exists for this purpose.
It focuses on four workplace factors:

• Connecting
• Thinking
• Deciding
• Implementing

Connecting and Implementing are the parts of you that others notice first. They shape how you come across in meetings, conversations and day-to-day delivery. Thinking and Deciding sit more in the background. They influence how you process information, weigh options and form judgments before you act or speak.

This report acts as a mirror.

It reflects how you tend to relate to others, organise your thinking, make decisions, and deliver work. It links these patterns with Daniel Pink’s ideas on autonomy, mastery and purpose, and with Alfred Adler’s focus on contribution and social interest – the belief that work matters when it supports something beyond the self.

If you manage others, this report offers a practical framework for understanding what drives different people, so you can work with their preferences rather than push against them.
If you are not a manager, it gives you clear language to express how you prefer to work and what helps you contribute at your best.

The purpose is straightforward: more transparent communication, better alignment and healthier working relationships.

Sariio MAPS gives you the insight to play to your preferences – so that work feels more sustainable, and you feel more engaged and aligned with the contribution you want to make.

Your Sariio MAPS Reflection At A Glance

Your profile brings together Inclusive in Connecting, Versatile in Thinking, Prudent in Deciding and Driven in Implementing.

You focus on people, options, careful judgment and strong momentum. You bring others in, explore routes, consider the consequences, and then push hard for progress.

You look for shared purpose, space to shape how you reach goals and outcomes that feel both ambitious and responsible. You dislike exclusion, rigid rules that ignore context, rushed calls on big issues and drift that wastes time. You prefer open discussion, flexible planning, measured decisions and visible results.

Others often experience you as warm and supportive in meetings and direct and insistent in execution. Your pattern usually feels like “bring people in, explore, think twice, then drive forward”.

The upside is engagement plus movement with an eye on risk.
The risk, if you do not manage it, is strain for you and others as you try to protect people while cautioning and pacing at the same time, and friction with more Cautious, Methodical, Analytical, Thorough and Pragmatic colleagues who experience your drive and change appetite differently.

How You Tend To Show Up At Work

What others see: Connecting and Implementing

In everyday work, people mostly notice your Inclusive and Driven preferences.

To others, you often appear as the person who includes and pushes. You notice who is in the room, who is quiet and who may feel on the edge. You invite contributions and try to build a sense that people are in it together.

In delivery, you bring urgency and stretch. You want movement, targets and impact. You dislike drift, slow response and repeated talk with no follow-through. You raise the bar on pace and encourage others to match it.

Under pressure, these visible patterns intensify. You gather people, rally energy and then push harder for outcomes. Some colleagues value this and see you as energising and committed. Others may react differently:

• Cautious colleagues may feel exposed by your inclusion and speed.

• Diplomatic colleagues may feel they must pick up the tension after strong pushes.

• Analytical and Prudent colleagues may feel you move ahead while risk remains.

• Thorough colleagues may feel rushed to release work that needs more time.

• Pragmatic colleagues may feel you stretch ambition beyond what the system supports.

If you ignore these reactions, you risk reputations such as “supportive but exhausting” or “great at getting things going, hard to keep up with”.

What others do not see immediately: Thinking and Deciding

Behind this visible presence sit your Versatile and Prudent preferences. They shape how you process information and reach decisions before anyone sees your actions.

Your thinking moves across options. You see more than one route, switch between procedures and flexibility and adjust plans as context changes. You seldom cling to one rigid way of doing things.

Your decisions aim to balance pace and risk. You think about consequences, especially on bigger calls. You want enough information to feel that a decision is responsible, but you also feel pressure from your Driven side to avoid endless delay. You weigh when to hold the line and when to move.

From the outside, people may mainly see your inclusion and your drive. They may miss how much flexible thought and risk sense sit underneath. In reality, you combine relationship focus, adaptable thinking, cautious judgement and strong push.

The risk is that others see only speed and energy, not the care behind them.

Deep Dive Into Your Preferences

Inclusive (Connecting)

You approach relationships with a strong focus on inclusion and belonging. You notice who is present, who stays quiet and who sits at the edges. You invite views and want people to feel that they count.

At your best, this lifts morale and trust. People feel seen, involved and less isolated. You build bridges, ease tension and help groups think more like teams.

Under stress, this preference strengthens. You put more effort into supporting colleagues, holding the group together and preventing anyonefrom  feeling pushed out.

You feel more engaged when people treat each other with respect, when leaders consider impact on people and when results do not rely on fear or exclusion.

Where this pattern may hold you back

With Inclusive and Driven together, you often invite many people in and then push them hard.

• Cautious colleagues may feel dragged into the spotlight before they feel safe.

• Prudent colleagues may feel that you pull them into commitments before they have checked the risk.

• Other Inclusive colleagues may feel pressure to match your level of involvement and energy.

You also risk saying yes to too many requests because you want to help and include. You then carry more work and emotional weight than others see.

You need more precise boundaries:

• Which discussions require broad inclusion and which need a smaller group.

• When support looks like honest feedback, not comfort.

• What you can take on and what you must decline or hand back.

Inclusion without limits leaves you stretched and others unclear about what they can rely on.

Versatile (Thinking)

You think in options rather than single tracks. You see different ways to reach an outcome and move between structure and flexibility depending on the context. You are willing to adapt plans when reality changes.

At your best, this supports agile problem-solving. You help teams avoid rigid either/or positions. You combine ideas, adjust sequences and keep work moving when conditions shift.

When pressure rises, your Versatile preference works harder. You look for alternative routes, shortcuts that still protect outcomes or changes in scope that keep goals achievable.

You feel more engaged when the purpose is clear and there is room to shape the route. Engagement drops when methods are imposed with no discussion, or when change feels random rather than anchored.

Where this pattern may hold you back

With Versatile, Prudent and Driven, you sometimes send mixed signals.

• Your Driven side pushes for speed and stretch.

• Your Prudent side highlights risk and wants care.

• Your Versatile side shifts the route in response to new information.

Methodical colleagues may feel unsettled by changes.
Analytical colleagues may feel there is not enough data to justify the shifts.
Driven colleagues may feel you ease off too much when risk appears.

If you adjust direction without sharing the path you saw, others experience drift or inconsistency.

You need to show more of your reasoning in short steps:

• “Here are the options I considered.”

• “Here is why this route makes sense now.”

• “Here is what would make me change it.”

That helps people travel with you rather than feel pulled around.

Prudent (Deciding)

You prefer decisions that feel responsible and proportional. You think about risk, consequences and who will feel the impact. You dislike snap calls on high-impact topics.

At your best, this protects people and outcomes. You raise concerns that others miss, highlight flaws in overly optimistic plans, and pause moves that would store up trouble.

Under stress, this preference can tighten. You seek more assurance, more detail or more support before you commit. You carry possible downsides in your head.

You feel more engaged when leaders treat risk as real, when caution receives respect and when there is time to think before major decisions.

Where this pattern may hold you back

With Prudent and Driven together, you can feel torn.

• Your Driven side wants to move and hit goals.

• Your Prudent side sees risk and wants more care.

• From the outside, this may look like “push then brake”.

Decisive colleagues may feel you drag your feet.
Driven colleagues may feel you slow them down.
Innovative colleagues may feel frustrated by your caution at times.

You also risk treating medium-stakes decisions as if they were high-stakes. Time and energy are then spread thin across too many topics.

You need to tier decisions:

• High impact, high risk.

• Medium impact.

• Low impact.

Match depth and pace to each tier. Save your full Prudent attention for the first group instead of applying the same caution everywhere.

Driven (Implementing)

You approach implementation with urgency and ambition. You want movement, stretch and visible results. Long periods with little progress frustrate you.

At your best, this raises performance. You push projects forward, challenge low effort, raise sights and help teams turn decisions into action. You often supply energy when others stall.

When pressure rises, your Driven preference intensifies. You narrow focus to key outcomes, increase pace and expectations and push harder through obstacles.

You feel more engaged when goals are clear and stretching, when effort links to outcomes and when achievement receives recognition.

Where this pattern may hold you back

With Driven beside Inclusive, Versatile and Prudent, you often carry conflicting roles:

• Include people.

• Think flexibly.

• Protect against risk.

• Drive hard for results.

This combination creates strain.

• Cautious and Prudent colleagues may see you moving too fast.

• Methodical and Thorough colleagues may feel pushed past process and depth.

• Pragmatic colleagues may feel you set targets beyond capacity and then rely on extra effort to close the gap.

You may read hesitation as resistance rather than information. If you increase pressure each time, people adapt by hiding risk, softening feedback or disengaging quietly.

You need planned pause points:

• To ask those with Cautious, Analytical, Prudent or Thorough preferences what they see.

• To check capacity and workload.

• To adjust pace before people burn out or withdraw.

Drive without regard for limits leads to churn, not sustained performance.

Conditions And Triggers

What energises you

You draw energy from environments where:

• People feel included and able to speak up.

• There is some freedom to shape how work happens.

• Decisions are considered, not made on impulse.

• Ambitious goals sit on the table.

You respond well to roles that involve:

• Coordinating and energising people.

• Solving problems with more than one route.

• Balancing risk and movement.

• Delivering visible results.

You like knowing:

• The purpose and success measures.

• The level of stretch leaders expect.

• The main constraints and risks.

• Who decides what and by when.

You feel more engaged when you see that your inclusion lifts morale, your thinking opens options, your caution prevents unnecessary harm and your drive turns intent into outcomes.

Autonomy matters in how you organise work, involve people, weigh risk and set pace within agreed boundaries.

Patterns to watch

Several patterns deserve attention.

Trying to be a carer, brake and accelerator at once.
You try to look after people, protect against risk and push for outcomes. You become the person who holds everything and feel pulled in all directions.

Over-promising through care and energy.
You include people, encourage ideas and commit to outcomes, then rely on extra effort from yourself and a few others to make up the gap.

Slow on some decisions, fast on others, without clear logic.
You delay on issues that feel risky, then move quickly on topics that trigger your drive. Others struggle to predict how you will respond.

You internalise risk and load.
You see problems and strain, but work around them quietly. Leaders see delivery and assume that you’re coping well.

You do not need to drop your energy or care.
You do need to move more of your limits, concerns and trade-offs into open discussion.

Working Better With Others

How to work well with your manager

You work best with managers who recognise that you bring inclusion, flexible thinking, cautious judgement and strong drive. They involve you in shaping work and rely on you to move it forward.

You benefit from clear, honest and stretching briefs. You need:

• Defined outcomes and priorities.

• Context and reasons behind the work.

• Risk appetite and non-negotiables.

• Key constraints and available support.

Once those are clear, you involve the right people, explore options, weigh risk and then drive delivery.

You add substantial value when your manager involves you:

• Early in planning and change discussions.

• In turning goals into realistic but stretching plans.

• In leading work where both people and results matter.

You appreciate managers who listen to your view on risk and load, back agreed decisions and notice both impact and effort.

Where this pattern may hold you back with your manager

If you keep absorbing stretch and risk through your own efforts, your manager assumes expectations remain manageable.

• You work longer or at higher intensity.

• You protect people quietly by adjusting plans.

• You feel responsible when results slip, even when the plan was unrealistic.

Managers with Driven preferences push for more.
Managers with Pragmatic preferences push for lighter standards and quicker fixes.
Managers with Thorough or Analytical preferences press for more depth or data, while you feel pressure to change.

If you respond each time with more effort instead of clear choices, you move towards burnout and resentment.

You need to say things such as:

• “With this time and resource, this is what we deliver and this is what will slip.”

• “If we keep this level of ambition, we need to drop or delay other work.”

• “Here is the risk of the current plan and here is a safer alternative.”

That shifts responsibility for stretch and risk into shared decisions, not your shoulders alone.

How others can get the best from you

Colleagues gain more from you when they understand that you bring inclusion, adaptable thinking, cautious judgment and high drive.

They support you when they:

• Share context and constraints, not only tasks.

• Raise risks and limits early, not when deadlines loom.

• Engage honestly with decisions rather than resisting in silence.

• Respect agreed priorities, standards and timelines.

You help them when you:

• Explain your reasoning before you push for action.

• Mark clearly when you are exploring options and when you have decided.

• Ask for input on risk, capacity and detail, especially from Cautious, Methodical, Analytical, Prudent, Thorough and Pragmatic colleagues.

• Adjust pace when you see signs of strain, not only when performance drops.

Where this pattern may hold you back with colleagues

Colleagues at other poles notice friction.

• Cautious colleagues may feel exposed by your inclusion and speed.

• Methodical colleagues may feel you move faster than the process can support.

• Analytical and Thorough colleagues may feel you step past depth, then criticise outcomes that never had enough time.

• Pragmatic colleagues may feel you push for a stretch that the current capacity cannot sustain.

• Other Inclusive colleagues may feel guilty or stressed when they cannot match your level of effort.

You need more explicit, direct conversations:

• “Here is why I think this pace and decision matter.”

• “Here is where I need your challenge on risk or detail.”

• “Here is what your preferred approach gives us and what it risks.”

That keeps you in the role of partner rather than either bulldozer or quiet fixer.

Everyday Checklist: How To Explain Your Preferences

Use these suggestions as prompts to start conversations, so you play to your preferences with your manager and colleagues rather than working to someone else’s default style.

What to say to your manager

• I do my best work when the goals, priorities and constraints are clear. Once those are set, I like to involve the right people, think through options, decide and then drive delivery.

• At the start of an initiative, a short run-through of ambition, risk appetite, key constraints and success measures helps me match my pace and caution to what matters most.

• I tend to ask questions about impact on people, risk and workload. That is my way of protecting both the team and the outcome, not an attempt to avoid stretch.

• I respond well to ownership for outcomes. It helps when we are transparent about where I have authority to decide and where you expect me to consult.

• When priorities or scope change, a brief explanation of why, what moves up or down the list and what success now looks like helps me redirect my energy without losing focus.

• If you need more pace from me, it helps to agree on what to drop or simplify, and where you’re willing to accept more risk, rather than expecting everything to be faster with no change in support.

What to say to your colleagues

• I try to include people and encourage input. If I bring you into a discussion, it is because I value your view and want you to be part of the work, not to overload you.

• I like us to be clear on who is doing what, by when and to what level. Even a simple outline helps me stay organised and keep things moving.

• If I ask about risk, process or detail, it is to avoid problems and rework later, not to criticise your effort.

• I prefer to finish what we start in a way that matches our time and capacity. If deadlines or scope change, it helps to reset what “done” and “good enough” look like, so I know where to focus.

• I often bring energy and pace. If this feels strong at times, please say so. I am open to adjusting as long as we stay honest about outcomes and timelines.

• If you see a risk or limit that I may have downplayed, raising it early helps me balance drive and caution more effectively.

How this helps you play to your preferences

• You receive clearer briefs, expectations and decision rights that align with your Inclusive, Versatile, Prudent and Driven style.

• Your manager and colleagues understand that your questions, ideas and push for closure support engagement, risk management and progress, not resistance or impatience.

• You focus effort on work that matters, protect people and outcomes where it counts and help the team move from talk into results at a pace that stretches others without losing them.

Sariio MAPS: Liberating Conversations

Playing to Your Preferences

Sariio MAPS enables you to express how you prefer to work. It helps you put into words how you like to be briefed, how you prefer to collaborate and what supports you in doing your best work.

Share this with your manager and colleagues so they understand how to work with you, not against you. That means fewer imposed ways of working based on someone else’s preferences and more space to play to your own, while still meeting the demands of the role.

Used this way, Sariio MAPS supports direct conversations, a better fit between you and your role and a more sustainable, motivating work experience.