---
title: "Get These 9 Types of People, and You'll Have an Unbeatable Team!"
description: "When hiring new people, avoid this common mistake: many only consider professional skills and job duties, overlooking the importance of temperament and personality. Even NASA made this error by assembling all the smartest people, who then wasted time on endless debates. According to Belbin's Team Role Theory, a balanced team needs nine roles: Plant, Monitor Evaluator, Coordinator, Implementer, Completer Finisher, Resource Investigator, Shaper, Teamworker, and Specialist."
author: "董琛"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
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published: "2017-05-24"
language: "en"
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---

# Get These 9 Types of People, and You'll Have an Unbeatable Team!

> When hiring new people, avoid this common mistake: many only consider professional skills and job duties, overlooking the importance of temperament and personality. Even NASA made this error by assembling all the smartest people, who then wasted time on endless debates. According to Belbin's Team Role Theory, a balanced team needs nine roles: Plant, Monitor Evaluator, Coordinator, Implementer, Completer Finisher, Resource Investigator, Shaper, Teamworker, and Specialist.

When hiring new people, avoid this common mistake:
Many people only consider what professional skills a candidate has and what they will do. You overlook an important factor—their temperament and personality are very important. This mistake can happen to anyone, even NASA.
NASA needed agile minds, so their strategy was to bring all the smartest people together to undertake major projects. This approach seemed ideal. What happened?
These smart people wasted a lot of time on pointless arguments, lobbying each other and pushing their own views. The team couldn't reach consensus, and a lot of urgent and necessary work was messed up.
>>>>
What's the problem?
In fact, every team member has two roles: a functional role and a team role. The functional role is what we usually consider: what they are responsible for. This depends on their skills and knowledge background. The team role is what we're going to talk about today.
According to Professor R. Meredith Belbin's latest book, "Management Teams: Why They Succeed or Fail," and his Belbin Team Role Theory, your team needs these nine roles: Plant, Monitor Evaluator, Coordinator, Implementer, Completer Finisher, Resource Investigator, Shaper, Teamworker, and Specialist.
After reading this article, check which roles you already have in your team and which ones you still need.
**Plant**
The "Plant" is the core member with the most creative potential, the smartest person. They propose the most ideas, though some may be impractical. They tend to work closely with managers, selling their new ideas and gaining approval. They are often seen as eccentric and unconventional.
Note: More Plants are not necessarily better; too many can have a negative effect. Also, Plants are either the most successful or the least successful members because they need strong support from another team role (like Teamworker or Monitor Evaluator).
**Monitor Evaluator**
The "Monitor Evaluator" is a natural judge with high critical thinking ability. They are serious, cautious, and never carried away by enthusiasm. They make decisions slowly and think things through carefully.
Their most valuable trait is considering all factors and making the sharpest judgments. They pride themselves on never making mistakes, but they don't flaunt their creativity or imagination.
However, Monitor Evaluators often lack drive. This apparent weakness hides an advantage: drive can interfere with judgment. Only without professional dedication can one maintain true impartiality and steadiness.
**Coordinator**
The "Coordinator" is the best team leader. They are calm, confident, mature, with high emotional intelligence and responsibility. They ensure everyone works together by having a good grasp of goals and overall dynamics.
Coordinators excel at unlocking team potential. They recognize and encourage the development of members' talents, as long as these help achieve team goals. They are good at uncovering creativity hidden in individuals.
**Implementer**
The "Implementer" is disciplined and likes to handle work quickly in an organized way. On one hand, they do what they say and are aware of their responsibilities; on the other, they have a clear self-image, giving them self-control. They are not afraid of difficulties, are practical, reliable, and tolerant. They are also usually conservative.
Implementers basically work for the team, not for personal fame or gain. They do their job in a practical way. They identify with the team and accept work goals as long as they help the team's mission, even if they don't like the work.
Their meticulous approach comes from attitude and personality, not just talent. Because of self-discipline, they are organized. Their talents are mostly integrated into their management.
**Completer Finisher**
The "Completer Finisher" excels at checking for flaws and ensuring work is perfect before it goes out. Their motivation comes from an inner desire to avoid errors.
Paradoxically, they may find it hard to finish a task because it never seems perfect. They finish by polishing and refining.
Others can do proofreading and review, but without a genuine desire for perfection, they can't do it as thoroughly.
**Resource Investigator**
The "Resource Investigator" is creative in absorbing fragmented ideas from others and developing them. They are especially good at finding resources outside the team. External networking gives them opportunities to bring new ideas back and turn them into team plans. Because they are good at sourcing resources, we call them "Resource Investigator."
They are creative, maintain close relationships, and use resources well. In contrast, the original "Plant" is seen as eccentric.
The better the Resource Investigator plays their role, the more they look like a manager. The better the Plant plays their role, the further they drift from the manager image. Resource Investigators integrate into management faster because their innovation fits popular management concepts.
Clearly, both types of innovators contribute. Their roles are complementary. The Plant often hides in a corner, thinking things through, sometimes bringing winning opportunities.
The Resource Investigator turns problems upside down and uses communication skills to find treasure in unexpected places. If the team leader is smart, both innovative roles are valued, and their strengths are fully used.
**Shaper**
The "Shaper" likes to argue and often disagrees. They are not swayed by people or things but drive the team direction according to their own will.
They lack patience and get frustrated easily. Because they are combative, they can cause resentment in others.
The worse the team performs, the more interested they become, though they may be pained by mistakes made by their team (usually another member).
**Teamworker**
The "Teamworker" can put team goals above personal interests, positively influencing team morale. They trust others, are sensitive, and have a strong interest in cooperation and communication.
Surprisingly, Teamworkers often hold high positions. In an environment dominated by Shapers, the Teamworker's diplomatic skills are a gem. Thus, Teamworker managers are seen as non-threatening, promote team interests, and many colleagues are happy to work under them.
**Specialist**
The "Specialist" is an experienced member in key knowledge areas. They are often highly intelligent but have a narrow specialty. This means they have little interest in team matters outside their field. That might be the price of specialization.
Many Specialists don't like teamwork and don't want to join a team. On the other hand, they like being consulted and sharing knowledge. Actually, to use their knowledge effectively, it's better to consult them face-to-face rather than invite them to join the team.
Let's recall the knowledge above visually through a comic.
**This article is extracted from the book "Management Teams: Why They Succeed or Fail"**
**Source: Business Review Selection**
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