# The Technical Expert (Low A, Low B, High C, Low D)

**Core:** Impatient, reasonably proactive person who excels in their area of expertise. Driven to be accurate, they will demonstrate their knowledge when given opportunities to correct others. Private and skeptical — feels it's their responsibility to share how things "should be."

**Strengths:** Deep subject-matter expertise with strong "book" knowledge. Becomes restless and energized when given new areas to research. Stickler for accuracy. Once respected for what they know, others find them cooperative and helpful. Informative and factual communicator who can deliver dense information quickly. Intent is always in everyone's best interest.

**Challenges:** Reserved and introspective — communication is quick, brusque, and filled with data. Requires volumes of information to be swayed; needs to be shown the resource to find it believable. Unlikely to delegate — believes "no one can do it better than me." Doesn't direct thoughts to the people that count; fear of failing or being wrong keeps them safe rather than sorry. Can over-manage others for accuracy. Delivers information in quick bursts that confuse audiences who lack context. In team settings, takes notes but withholds thoughts until after the meeting, and their input may then fall on deaf ears.

**Management approach:** Limit their management scope to small numbers of people revolving around medium projects and research-oriented tasks. They have a "by the book" style and can be inflexible with too many people; give them a system or process to manage instead. Don't expect delegation — they'd rather do it themselves. Reward with tangible, personalized items: specialized educational classes, one-on-one acknowledgment of their knowledge, or advancement opportunities rather than public ceremonies.

**Risk profile:** Risk-averse and cautious. Fear of being wrong is a huge concern — easier to be safe than sorry. Skeptical and distrustful until given proof.

## FlashPoints

| Area | Details |
|------|---------|
| Motivation | Independence, personalized rewards, private recognition |
| Communication | Factual, quick, email preferred. Direct and no-nonsense. Dark humor and wit once they choose to share. Won't expand on questions they've already answered — you must spoon-feed follow-ups. |
| Management Style | Instructional, micromanagement tendency, few direct reports. Expects others to put closure to delegated tasks and follows up to ensure correctness. Can be autocratic. |
| Organization | Structured. Very orderly and streamlined. Dislikes useless clutter; fine-tunes surroundings to an orderly style. |
| Environment | Fast paced, personal space, prefers to be alone rather than in groups or open work areas |

## Variations

Technical Expert patterns share Low A + Low B + High C but vary in D position. All variations are private, accuracy-driven, and knowledge-focused, with consistent low social energy and high analytical drive across variations.

## Summary

- **Motivating Needs:** Personal recognition for their field of specialty. Acknowledgment by peers they respect on an individual basis. Financial bonuses appreciated but personalized knowledge-advancing rewards preferred.
- **Communication Style:** Direct, factual, no-nonsense. Dark humor and wit once they open up. Won't volunteer information unprompted — must be spoon-fed for follow-up. Email over voicemail.
- **Management Style:** Gravitates to managing with few people in place. Expects others to close out delegated work and follows up to ensure correctness. Can be autocratic.
- **Organization Style:** Very orderly and streamlined. Dislikes useless clutter.
- **Environmental Needs:** Prefers to be alone rather than in groups or open work areas.
