If you’ve worked around leadership development or selection, you’ve probably heard someone say, “Have you done a Hogan?”. They’re talking about a family of personality assessments widely used to predict workplace performance and potential.

But what makes Hogan different, how reliable is it, and where does it shine?

A (very) quick origin story

The Hogan story starts not in a boardroom, but in the social movements of the 1960s. Psychologists Drs. Joyce and Robert Hogan began their research at a time when workplace assessments were often misused to discriminate, disproportionately excluding women, people of colour, and other marginalised groups from opportunities. 

Inspired by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the establishment of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Hogans set out to prove something controversial at the time: that personality (not just IQ) predicts job performance, and that you can measure it fairly. They founded Hogan Assessment Systems and grounded their tools in socio-analytic theory, the idea that, at work, we’re all negotiating for acceptance (to “get along”) and status (to “get ahead”), a revolutionary goal in an era when IQ tests and subjective interviews were the norm. 

Today, Hogan remains independent, and reports having assessed 11+ million people globally since its founding.

The “big three” Hogans (and what they do)

• HPI – Hogan Personality Inventory: Measures day-to-day “bright side” tendencies linked to how we typically show up when things are going fine. Seven core scales (think: Ambition, Prudence, Interpersonal Sensitivity, etc.) map cleanly to performance themes like drive, reliability, and people skills.
• HDS – Hogan Development Survey: The famous “dark side” tool itemising 11 derailers that can trip us up under pressure (e.g., Bold, Sceptical, Cautious). These are often strengths overused or stress responses that, unmanaged, erode trust and results.
• MVPI – Motives, Values, Preferences Inventory: Sheds light on what motivates a person: their values, goals, and drivers. This is the “inside” view of what we care about and the cultures we’ll thrive in (e.g., Recognition, Power, Altruistic, Tradition). Great for culture fit and long-term engagement.

Combined, these tools offer a 360-degree view of what an individual can do, what might get in their way, and what will keep them motivated.

Think of it this way: MVPI = what I want to achieve. HPI = what I do to get the things I want to achieve. HDS = the things I do that get in the way of getting the things I want to achieve.

So… how reliable is Hogan?

No assessment’s perfect, but Hogan is widely regarded for its psychometric rigor:

• Extensive validation: The HPI alone has been validated in more than 450 studies across 200+ occupations.
• Large, representative norms: Norm groups exceed 150,000 working adults for HPI, 109,000 for HDS, and 68,000 for MVPI.
• Test-retest stability: Reliability coefficients for major HPI scales range from 0.69 to 0.87, indicating stable measurement over time.
• No adverse impact: Decades of audits show no meaningful group score differences by race, ethnicity, gender, age, or disability.

In short, Hogan is predictive, fair, and transparent, three non-negotiables in modern talent science.

What Hogan is best at (and how to use it well)

1. 1. Leadership development and selection
      HPI highlights everyday strengths; HDS surfaces derailers that can quietly cap potential (e.g., overconfidence that reads as Bold, or diligence that morphs into micromanagement via Diligent). The magic is targeted development planning: keep the strength, manage the risk.
   2. Succession and high-potential pipelines
      Pair HPI/HDS with MVPI to spot who has the fuel (values), the habits (bright side), and the guardrails (derailer awareness) for bigger roles. 
   3. Team dynamics & culture shaping
      MVPI reveals the ‘culture soup’ in which your team works. If a leadership team scores sky-high on Recognition and Power, expect a competitive, high visibility culture; high Altruistic and Affiliation tilt toward service and collaboration. Use that insight to balance the team or intentionally double down.
   4. Risk management in critical roles
      The HDS was designed to flag predictable failure patterns under stress. For safety-critical or reputation-sensitive roles, uncovering those patterns early can prevent expensive mistakes.

What does this mean in practice? Two Fibre stories from the field

• The “too careful CFO”
  An organisational reshuffle led to the creation of a new CFO, who was popular and meticulous, but known to be sometimes painfully slow on decisions. HPI suggested strong Prudence (reliable), MVPI leaned Security/Tradition (risk-aware), and HDS flagged Cautious/Dutiful (decision paralysis under scrutiny). A Hogan debrief and six coaching sessions targeted decision thresholds, identifying the costs against the potential liability to get better at balancing ‘deep diligence’ vs. ‘good enough’. The outcome was quicker, better, more confident decisions and a CFO with a reputation as being an enabler of success, rather than a blocker. 
• The Charisma Chaos
  A Head of Marketing was getting a track-record of being late, last-minute and sometimes missing launch dates. HPI showed high Sociability and Ambition (great stakeholder influence), MVPI flagged Recognition (loved the stage), and HDS spiked on Imaginative and Colourful (big ideas, constant pivots). The fix wasn’t to be less visionary, but to partner with someone who would have the “kill criteria” for too much ‘colour and movement’ and ‘shiny objects’. To compensate, they had a one monthly forum for big ideas so the day-to-day could stay focused on delivery. The result was charisma without the chaos and an enhanced reputation for being reliable and innovative

These are typical patterns that Hogan helps to coach the risk and keep the strength. Dark-side risks are often strengths dialled up too far; the goal isn’t to sand off personality, it’s to add self-management.

FAQs leaders ask Fibre about Hogan

“Can candidates fake it?”
Less than you might think. Personality items are broader, lower-stakes, and less obviously “right/wrong” than, say, cognitive tests. Hogan’s designs and validity research anticipate impression management; more importantly, faking rarely creates coherent profiles, which Hogan flags.

“Is it fair across cultures?”
Hogan localises and studies its tools internationally (languages, norms) and reports extensive cross-cultural research. 

“What score is ‘good’?”
Trick question. No score is good or bad, it’s all about context, fit to role and risk profile. 

The Hogan Edge: Why It Stands Out

Several features make Hogan unique in a crowded psychometrics market and why Fibre loves using it:

• Predictive across contexts: Whether it’s a sales role, a technical specialist, or a senior leader, Hogan’s core dimensions consistently correlate with job performance.
• Derailer identification: The HDS’ focus on overused strengths that become weaknesses is a distinctive advantage for leadership coaching.
• Values alignment: The MVPI offers rare depth into motivational drivers, enhancing retention strategies.

Transparency: Hogan makes technical manuals and validity studies public, signalling confidence in its data.

Looking Ahead

As businesses grapple with rapid change, remote and hybrid work, and increased DEI demands, the need for objective, bias-free insight into human behaviour has never been greater.

In the words of Robert Hogan himself: “The key to success in business is money and people. No matter how well you handle money, if you get the people part wrong, you will lose.”

The upshot: Hogan won’t replace your judgment, but it will sharpen it. Used well, it gives leaders a shared language for strengths, stress behaviour, and values, so you can put the right people in the right roles, faster, and help them stay successful when the heat is on.

If your organisation is ready to make smarter talent decisions and invest in leadership that lasts, Hogan might just be the secret weapon you’re looking for.