Most people in corporate life have completed some form of personality or behavioural assessment. But knowing where someone sits on a profile is one thing. Knowing how to use that insight to get the best from them is another.
One practical way in is through communication styles. Understanding how individuals prefer to give and receive information offers a more direct route into what drives them. Their motivations, values, and commitments. At Achieve Breakthrough, we use the ICS-Connect tool to map the interpersonal connecting styles of team members, giving leaders a concrete and accessible framework for adapting their approach.
What you say (and how you say it) defines performance
Leadership is language. The words leaders choose, and the way they deliver them, shape how teams think, feel, and perform. Tuning into the communication preferences of individuals builds trust faster than almost anything else. We’re not talking about mimicking people or abandoning your own style. It's simply about understanding the impact your style has on others, and being willing to flex it when it counts.
In ICS-Connect, four colour energies describe different communication preferences. Red energy favours bold, assertive, action-oriented language. Yellow energy gravitates toward creativity and enthusiasm. Green energy is values-driven and collaborative. Blue energy is analytical, methodical, and detail-focused. Most people carry a blend of these, but everyone has preferences, and people are naturally more open to those who communicate in ways that feel familiar.
Balance matters here too. A team dominated by red energy might chase ambitious goals with real momentum, but risk overlooking detail, closing down alternatives, or struggling to collaborate with people who think differently. The strongest teams tend to reflect a genuine mix.
Start with yourself
The first step for any leader is understanding your own style. Importantly, this includes identifying any potentially unhelpful tendencies. Many senior leaders lean toward red energy: direct, decisive, and action-oriented. Those same qualities can read as aggressive, controlling, or dismissive to others, particularly under pressure.
Every communication style has both strengths and shadows. What matters is being aware of both, so you can play to the former and watch for the latter. It's also worth paying attention to how your style shifts when things get difficult. A leader whose natural yellow energy brings warmth and energy can, under stress, become detached and withdrawn (a change that can unsettle a team if it goes unacknowledged).
Learn what works for the people around you
Leaders who take time to understand how their team members prefer to communicate are far better placed to build genuine rapport. Using a tool like ICS-Connect accelerates this by surfacing preferences that might otherwise take months to discover through trial and error.
The application is straightforward: someone with high green energy needs to feel a personal connection before they can fully engage; someone with high blue energy wants the time and detail to properly assess what's being asked of them. Knowing this changes how you frame a conversation, and it changes what becomes possible within it.
Harness the full range
Every communication style brings something a team needs. Green energy keeps people connected to purpose and to each other. Yellow energy spots opportunities others might miss. Blue energy makes sure effort is well-directed. Red energy keeps momentum and drives toward outcomes. Strip any of these out and something important is lost.
The goal is creating conditions where every style can contribute fully, and where people are also exposed to ways of thinking and communicating beyond their own defaults. That combination drives performance and supports genuine development.
When leaders understand the communication preferences of the people they lead, and are willing to flex their own approach without losing authenticity, trust builds faster and engagement runs deeper. It's one of the most practical and underused levers available.
If you'd like to explore how a deeper understanding of communication styles could strengthen your team's performance, get in touch.