Saturday, April 14, 2018

Primary Research Index







ORGANIZATIONAL ENGINEERING
CUMULATIVE INDEX
1996-2018

This index is a summary of Organizational Engineering and “I Opt” technology research findings. The research conforms to academic standards of analysis. Some entries are juried academic articles and follow full academic standards, others do not subscribe to full academic publication conventions or format. The reason is that the purpose of this research is to more fully explore the operational implications of “I Opt” technology. Thus academic references to prior research, citations of potentially related publications and other matters peripheral to operational interests but common in academic publications are omitted except where they are immediately relevant to the study in question. Where they are relevant bibliographic citations are provided.

The summaries attached to the research title attempt to encapsulate the major findings of the individual papers. These are necessarily abbreviated and secondary findings as well as supporting material included in the study are often omitted. MSWord versions of all studies are available upon request as are the original research blogs on Google Blogger. Where videos were prepared the Google YouTube citation is provided and a standalone WMV file (Windows Media Video) is available on request. The WMV file is native to the Windows operating system and can be run independently of the internet. Those with a serious interest in the subject of the research are encouraged to review both the research blog and accompanying video when available.

The MSWord versions of the articles have sometimes been edited for textual clarity. The data, calculations and presentation of findings (i.e., charts, tables, graphs, etc.) were not altered, adjusted or otherwise modified from the original published submission.

Text: MSWord & PDF version of this index is available on request



EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCH

This section of the index includes academically juried publications and research blogs/publications founded on hard-data, which rest on a logical well-articulated foundation and which have been subject to statistical measures of significance. Since the information processing theory on which “I Opt” is based is universal, the subjects addressed vary widely. The common thread running through all of them is their application in social settings. “I Opt” is by design a tool whose “interest centers on the behavior of groups of people functioning in organized, goal directed environments” (excerpt from the corporate mission statement).



ORGANIZATIONAL OPTIMIZATION AT TAMPA ELECTRIC
Journal of the Organizational Development Network
by: John Stepanek-1996 and June 1999
This article was published in the Journal of the Organizational Development Network. The article describes the first use of “I Opt” technology in optimizing the organizational structure of an entire plant function. A 1999 follow up article provides the first evidence-based testimony of the durability and continuing value of “I Opt” over multi-year periods.
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


UNDERSTANDING AND OPTIMIZING TEAM LEARNING
The Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship (Juried academic publication)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD and Ashley Fields, September 1999
This article focuses on organizational learning using the analogy of an “organizational brain.” The article shows how “I Opt” can be used to “design” an organizational “brain” suited to a particular purpose. The article specifically addresses and operationally delineates concepts that can replace some of the indistinct prescriptions offered by Peter Senge in his book “The Fifth Discipline” which was popular at the time of the writing.
Text: PDF Manuscript: Available on request


"I OPT” VALIDITY: Validation Explained in English
Gary J. Salton, PhD, February 2005
The 79 page “I Opt” Validity Study book (in Supplemental Material section) is restated in 3 pages of ordinary English text. Validity is an argument about whether a theory can be trusted. Generations of serious scientists have defined eight dimensions all of which must all be satisfied for a theory to be accepted as valid. The blog uses a single paragraph to explain how “I Opt” meets each of these eight standards in non-technical language.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request:


A STUDY OF LEADERSHIP:
Selected Findings from Dr. Ashley Fields’ Doctoral Dissertation
Gary J. Salton, PhD, October 2005
This blog reports on select findings from Dr. Ashley Fields’ January 2001 doctoral dissertation which used “I Opt” technology. Dr. Fields found a “stair-step” relation between organizational rank and the strength of the Relational Innovator (RI) style commitment. Later research showed that the Changer pattern (which includes the RI style) appeared to be most favored in team leadership positions.
Based on: Nova Southeastern University, Doctoral Dissertation, 2001
A Study of Intuition in Decision-Making using Organizational Engineering Methodology:
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request:


CONSULTANT PROFILE: Getting the Gig
Gary J. Salton, PhD, June 2006
A sample of 185 external consultants is compared to 24,745 professionals and 67 internal consultants to identify opportunities and exposures in the consulting profession. The study is able to isolate relative advantages and exposures in obtaining and executing consulting gigs. It is also able to offer practical advice to aid the transition of moving from internal to external consulting and vice-versa. The study uses statistical tests to insure that the advice given is founded on a solid factual base.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request:


IMPROVING NURSING UNIT TEAMWORK
The Journal of Nursing Administration (Juried academic publication)
Beatrice J. Kalisch, PhD, Professor of Nursing, University of Michigan
Suzanne Begeny, PhD Applicant, University of Michigan,
January, 2006

The authors drew on and cited “I Opt” research to formulate the hypothesis and the structure of their research into nursing teams. Four nurses from the midnight, days, afternoon and evening shifts were tracked to identify the number of people in their unit with whom they had contact. The study showed that the average nurse interacted with 36 different staff members over the course of one month. The authors used the results to investigate variables such as familiarity with the contacts, stability of the relation, the degree of common purpose and the physical environment. The authors isolated the lack of common destiny (a critical factor in team structure emphasized in “I Opt” research) as a limiting factor for nursing teams.

The authors conclude with specific recommendations to mitigate the teamwork obstacles embedded in nursing operations.  These include smaller teams, consistent scheduling, the number of shift hours, reducing turnover and absences, more effect use of rewards and recognition and the creation of cluster teams. The article carries a copyright but is available for free download in PDF format.
Text: PDF Version Only Available on request:


CEO INSIGHTS
Gary J. Salton, PhD, October 2006
A database of 98 CEOs in both profit and non-profit firms was used to examine differences in their strategic styles. The average for-profit CEO was found to rely most heavily on the innovative RI and decisive RS styles. Non-profits followed the same trajectory but at a lesser strength. This was attributed to the lack of simple indexes of success (i.e., income statement “profit”).

Large and smaller firms share the same level of innovative RI but smaller firms are inclined to use the responsive RS strategy more aggressively. The reduction in RS among larger firms was attributed to greater decision complexity and larger numbers of stakeholders. Bantam (very small) firms were found to be bifurcated in the responsive RS commitment—one group highly committed and the other tending toward lower levels. This was attributed to the widely varying nature of the businesses involved (i.e., janitorial to high tech startups).
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request.


GENDER IN THE EXECUTIVE SUITE
Gary J. Salton, PhD, November 2006
A total of 300 corporate VPs and 1,429 mid-level executives were divided into male and female components. The information processing strategies of both men and women were virtually identical for both upper and mid-level management. This condition suggests that women are being admitted to the managerial ranks on the same terms as are males. Decisions will be approached in the same manner by both males and females. The research notes that this does not mean that the result of that decision will always be identical. Differences in biology, chemistry, culture and other such factors can sensitize the genders differently. However, these different focal points are equally “real.” Addressing all of them will serve to respond to a “real” aspect of the social system in which we all participate.
Video (9 min): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1L5_kuwHEI
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


HUMAN RESOURCES “SEAT AT THE TABLE”
Gary J. Salton, PhD, January 2007
This research compares a sample of 27 VPs of Human Resources with 207 VPs of other functions who are typically seen as having a “seat at the table” in guiding the strategic direction of the firm. The research found that VPs of human resources tend to “fit in” with other VPs in terms of their approach to decision issues. However, a statistically significant difference was found in the Human Resource VPs use of the Perfector pattern. The consequence of this was traced to the relative inability of HR to offer creditable scenarios of the likely outcome of alternative strategic options on the human asset capabilities of the firm. In other words, HR can provide “facts” but has limited ability to project what those “facts” might evolve into under different conditions. The research offers some options by which this condition can be improved.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


STRUCTURAL BARRIERS TO CHANGE AND
INNOVATION IN NURSING
Beatrice J. Kalisch, PhD, Professor of Nursing, University of Michigan
Suzanne Begeny, PhD Applicant, University of Michigan
April 2007
Dr. Kalisch and S. Begeny used a sample of 578 nurses and nurse aides from two geographically separate hospitals to explore the causes of change resistance among nurses. The authors reported on four findings which demonstrated that the difficulty was structural. It is here today and will be here tomorrow. The authors outline a self-reinforcing system which automatically acts to counter change initiatives. They go on to offer a specific 8-step strategy which can be used to deploy change initiatives in a manner which improves the odds of success.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


OPTIMIZING THE KOLB LEARNING MODEL
Gary J. Salton, PhD, June 2007
A sample of 3,116 individuals participating in 185 adult learning classes in 5 different organizations was used to examine and test the opportunities for enhancing the Kolb Learning Model with ’I Opt” technology. The research demonstrates the inherent limits of the Kolb “learning stages” taxonomy. The research demonstrates that applying the Kolb prescription of “touching all bases” will lead to a sub optimization of the actual learning experience. The research demonstrates both graphically and numerically how this shortfall can be overcome using the exact measurements available in “I Opt” technology. The potential learning “pickup” in the sample used was 30%.
Video (~10min): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbUJzqYghRg
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


ADDING MOTIVATION TO THE KOLB LEARNING MODEL
Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2007
A sample of 184 learners participating in 5 classes in three states was used to explore the effect of motivation in adult learning. Rational (i.e., utilitarian) and emotional (i.e., biochemical) motivations were measured using an ordinal scale. Learning success was measured using actual performance (i.e., long-term, visible improvement) estimated by the supervisors of the learners 4 months after class conclusion. The calculations involved required a relaxation of mathematical purity since both ordinal and ratio measures were mixed. However, the overall direction is deemed to be correct if not precise. The research concludes that the effect of emotional motivation is about 13% and rational motivation about 3% on learning outcomes. This order of magnitude is enough to warrant the attention of the learning community.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


HOW STYLES AFFECT PROMOTIONAL POTENTIAL
Gary J. Salton, PhD, October 2007
A sample of 8,997 professionals and executives was used to identify and explore a systematic association between organizational rank and strategic style elections. The analysis identifies a systematic bias in favor of styles using the unpatterned input strategies (i.e., spontaneous, opportunistic, etc.) of Relational Innovator (RI) and Reactive Stimulator (RS). The cause of this is traced to a decision horizon that lengthens with rising rank. The facts and stable situations on which patterned strategies depend weaken as horizon lengthens. The higher strength of the RI versus RS strategies is explained by consequence. The RS is a risky strategy and the consequences of failure increase as a person rises in the hierarchy. This condition caps the level of acceptable RS at higher organizational levels. The implication of these findings for leadership development is that a focus on techniques, methods and practices is necessary but not sufficient. Leadership candidates must be taught how to align their information processing styles with the organizational level that they are targeting.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


LEADERSHIP DIVERSITY AND THE GOLDILOCKS ZONE
Gary J. Salton, PhD, January 2008
A sample of 3,815 teams form all functional areas operating in profit, non-profit and governmental organizations were used to explore the costs and benefits of various sizes of teams. The research revealed that a simple cost/benefit equation was sufficient to explain why most organizations choose to use teams in the 4 to 9 membership range.

The key to the cost element was operationalizing the concept of Transaction Channel. The research was able to show that beyond 9 people the cost tends to increase at an exponential rate. Beyond 12 people that rate begins to reach oppressive levels.

The benefit component of the formula was operationalized as the measureable increment in the unique information processing perspective offer by an additional person on the team. This was found to increase at up to 9 people and then decline.

The research results can be used to guide both the size and structure of teams in real world conditions. Costs can be minimized and thought diversity levels appropriate to the group mission optimized.
Video: Goldilocks: YouTube MISSING
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video files for both videos: Available on request


“I OPT” AND COMMUNICATIONS
Gary J. Salton, PhD, April 2008
This study was undertaken to help frame “I Opt” technology within the larger framework of general communications. The purpose was to be better able to provide counsel to clients on operational matters typically encountered in field settings. The research places “I Opt” as the bridge between individual interests on one side with outcomes on the other. It also differentiates Communications Channels from Transaction Channels and identifies the opportunities and vulnerabilities of each media.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: MSWord & PDF SUMMARIES: Available on request
VIDEO: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


APPLYING “I OPT” TO COMMUNICATIONS
Gary J. Salton, PhD, April 2008
This is an operationally oriented study which specifies how to use various tools to facilitate understanding using “I Opt” technology in field settings. The paper addresses a simple listing of behavioral preferences, how to use the Communications “Snowflake” and an experimental analytical “Card Deck.” The textual summary (available upon request) includes the tools (e.g., Snowflakes) in an appendix.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


FITTING THE LEADER INTO THE MATRIX
Gary J. Salton, PhD, May 2008
A sample of 529 undergraduate, MBA and EMBA (Executive MBA typically sponsored by a firm) university students were compared to 3,907 executives. The executives included Vice Presidents, Manager-Directors and 1st Level supervisor ranks. The focus of the comparison was to isolate differences in the information processing profiles. The purpose of the study was to provide information educators can use to better align student profiles with the likely demands of the positions two which they aspire.

The study found a systematic misalignment in students of all levels. Too much reliance appears to be put on the analytic HA style. They also put too little emphasis on the idea-oriented RI style. Undergraduates and MBA students also put too much emphasis on the established patterns of the LP style and gave too little emphasis to the opportunistic RS style. The study suggests that educators alert their students to these conditions and provide compensation methods might improve the student’s chances of success.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


PASTORS AS LEADERS
Gary J. Salton, PhD, June 2008
Data from 40 Pastors from 10 Protestant churches was compared to 5,090 executives from profit, non-profit and governmental organizations. The purpose was to determine the adequacy of leadership programs in developing pastoral leadership abilities.

The study found that pastors are unique in terms of their information processing strategies. They tend to share qualities of both senior and mid-management in a unique mix. This mix tends to put emphasis on the intellectual strategies of analytical HA and idea-generating RI styles. This is well-attuned to their religious responsibilities but falls short on the secular duties necessary to maintain the venue within which those religious duties are practiced.

The study also found that there is a cluster of Pastors who tend to strongly share a view focused on a Conservator pattern (HA and LP). The cluster is tight enough to suggest the opportunity for coalition formation. This can magnify the viewpoint of the smaller Conservator group beyond their numerical representation.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


ENGINEERING LEADERSHIP
Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2008
This research focused on leadership development for engineers. A sample of 456 engineers from over 60 different firms was used to explore the specific leadership skill needs of engineers as they rose in the hierarchy. The profiles of existing executives were taken as the standard. The profiles of engineering professionals were then matched to this standard and specific areas of needed professional development were isolated.

The study isolated different development needs for different hierarchical levels. The research suggests that leadership development focus on reducing the emphasis on the LP style (preplanned action) for engineers moving from professional to mid-management levels. Enhancing the RI (idea-generating) capacities is appropriate for mid-management engineers moving to upper management. The study includes examples of development initiatives that might be used to help accomplish these transitions.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


”I OPT” TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT
Gary J. Salton, PhD, January 2008
This study summarizes some of the major differences between “I Opt” technology and alternative psychologically-based tools. A textual summary was added in 2017 following the script of the video publication. Both media address validity, application issues and structural differences. The research concludes that both “I Opt’ and alternative psychological tools have their place. The choice depends on the particular issue being addressed.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


THE VALIDATION OF “I OPT” TECHNOLOGY
Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2008
This summarizes the original “I Opt” Validity Study (published in 2000) in easily accessible language. It addresses each of the 8 validity tests (plus reliability) and shows how these tests work together to create high confidence in “I Opt” technology. The summary was initially published in a video format. A text option was added in 2017 using the script from the video as a guide. The text was edited for clarity and a limited amount of supplemental material was added better inform the reader.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


HIERARCHY INFLUENCE ON TEAM LEADERSHIP
Gary J. Salton, PhD, September 2008
Data on 976 teams discovered both commonalities and differences in teams headed by people at different organizational levels. Teams headed by the average supervisor, manager and vice president all share a commonality of favoring the RI style (ideas, options, etc.) as the dominant preferred strategy.

Team leaders do not always have the highest strength in any of the four “I Opt” styles. Leaders having the highest LP and HA styles occupy that leadership position at about the same rate as would be expected by chance alone. This suggests that having the highest LP or HA score offers no particular advantage for leadership. Team leaders having the highest RI or RS scores occupy a leadership position at double the rate that would be expected by chance alone. This RI/RS style advantage is conservatively estimated at about 13%.

The secondary preferences do change with rank. Supervisors tend to secondarily rely on the LP and HA styles. Managers and VPs tend to reduce reliance on these styles in favor of higher RS and RI. The value of structured approaches systematically declines with rank. The study recommends that leadership development programs recognize and leverage these differences in their training curriculum.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


THE STAFF NURSING PARADOX
Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2009
This research traces nurses from their entry into university through their assuming a professional staff nursing position. Data from 344 staff nurses from two geographically separated hospitals and 189 nursing students from two universities provided the evidence-based foundation of the study

The study found that there the information processing preferences of nurses remained the same regardless of the educational or work venue. This preferred posture strongly favored the disciplined, process-based LP style. The paradox is that desirable qualities such as loyalty, diligence, integrity, consistency and dependability are accompanied by some challenging corollaries. These include skepticism, a reluctance to accept change and a slow pace of adaptability. All of these qualities come as a package. The uniformity of the posture among nurses means that the mitigation typically offered by a diversity of information processing perspectives is absent. The medical profession is facing a juggernaut that has to be managed, not changed. The study offers suggestions on how this might be done.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


STAFF NURSING PARADOX: ADDENDUM
Gary J. Salton, PhD, September 2009
A more detailed analysis of the data in the parent Staff Nursing Paradox article is presented. Included are more specific operational recommendations on actions that can be used to improve nursing outcomes.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


SPLIT STYLES: A TWO-EDGED SWORD
Gary J. Salton, PhD, September 2009
This study used a 42,952 sample and isolated 4,959 individuals with split styles to assess the frequency and impact of this strategy in organizations. The split style strategy has an inherent unpredictability that can compromise coordination in larger scale efforts. This cost is one edge of the sword.

The study found that people using split styles appeared at various levels in about the frequency that would be expected by chance. This means that organizations found no penalty from involving split styles at all levels from professional to vice president. This suggests that the ability of the split style to cover two diametrically different bases has value at least in particular situations.

The research tracks the prevalence of the spit style situation, the conditions under which it is harmful or relatively benign and its distribution by function within a firm. It also addresses strategies for improving the outcomes for both the individual and the organization as a whole.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


THE NURSING STAIRCASE AND MANAGERIAL GAP
Gary J. Salton, PhD, September 2009
The research uses data on 52 nurses in management positions and 344 staff nurses. The research discovered a nursing “staircase” where each higher level displayed a systematic increase in unpatterned input (RI and RS) and a decrease in styles using structured input (LP and HA). The differences are visually obvious in graphics and are statistically highly significant.

The “staircase” condition has both positive and negative implications for the medical profession. On the positive side, when viewed from the perspective of each organizational level the styles selected are probably optimal. The responsibilities of a staff nurse differ markedly from that of Chief Nursing Officer. On the negative side, the gaps create a communication barrier where varying assumptions, standards and expectations can lead to managerial difficulties that work to the detriment of all involved. The research uses the data and analysis to offer specific strategies and suggestions which can improve communication and organizational effectiveness.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


THE NURSING MS DEGREE IN MANAGEMENT
Gary J. Salton, PhD, October 2009
This research explores the effects a Master of Science degree has on preparing nurses for management. The study found there was significant difference between students in Second Career MS studies (sample n=29) and those in a traditional MS program (sample n=89) with traditional students being more inclined to RI styles and Second Career favoring the LP style. However, there was no difference in the two groups when compared to Nurse Managers (sample n=52). Both were aligned to about the same degree.

Nurse students were compared to students in non-nursing Master’s programs. It was found that about 17% of nursing students shared a management perspective in contrast to 36% of non-nursing students. The study concluded that nursing is attracting students ill-prepared to assume management responsibilities although they are more prepared than are existing staff nurses (sample n=344). The study does not see a remedy in traditional management training. Rather it proposes a Migration Strategy that will attune selected nurses to a management perspective.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


THE NURSING MS DEGREE IN MANAGEMENT: ADDENDUM
Gary J. Salton, PhD, October 2009
This addendum specifies the Migration Strategy introduced in the parent article in more detail.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


PREPARATION OF NURSING
STUDENTS FOR CHANGE AND INNOVATION
The Western Journal of Nursing Research (Juried academic publication)
by: Beatrice J. Kalisch, PhD and Suzanne Begeny, January 2010

This is an academically-oriented article by a full professor and a PhD candidate at the University of Michigan. First and second year undergraduate nurses were contrasted with 4th year nursing students. The purpose was to determine if nursing education had an effect on the student’s innovative capabilities. Students were also drawn from two schools of nursing. One was a major research university (sample of 189) and the other a large regional school (sample of 80).

The study found that the research university recruited students more focused on the more action-oriented RS style while the regional students tended toward the more thoughtful HA style. However, the long-term pattern of both groups was the cautious Conservator style. These profiles remained constant. The willingness sponsor or accept change remained constant. Education had no effect on innovative capacity.

The study did uncover a gender based difference. Males tend to be more oriented toward the action-oriented Performer pattern (RS/LP) than were females. The females tended toward the more intellectual Perfector (LP/HA) pattern. While statistically significant these tendencies were secondary. The dominant pattern for both genders remained Conservator.
Published: Sage Publication Access for a fee: http://www. sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav
Text: Draft pdf version: Available on request:


ALCOHOLISM RECOVERY: MEASURING WORLDVIEW CHANGE
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2010
A sample of 103 recovering alcoholics who were at various levels of recovery was studied. There was no significant difference in males and females strategic profiles (i.e., worldview) and the proportions roughly corresponded to Alcoholics Anonymous general population. The respondent’s age was found to have no effect on their strategic style election.

The study found strategic styles systematically changed with the length of sobriety. The move from short to mid-term sobriety is characterized by a lessening of RS and an increase in LP style capabilities. Moving from mid to long-term sobriety involves a large increase in HA style strength and a lessening of both RS and RI style commitment. The overall movement is from unpatterned to structured approaches.

The research then matched the famous 12-step program. It found that the steps are almost perfectly geared to facilitate the changes witnessed in the measured results.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


12-STEP ALCOHOLISM RECOVERY:”I Opt” INSIGHTS ADDENDUM
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2010
This research provides an in-depth look into each of the 12 steps of the Alcoholics Anonymous s program. It attempts to trace exactly how each of the 12 steps facilitates the observed change in strategic profiles.
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries Available on request


ALCOHOLISM RECOVERY: ORGANIZATIONAL FACTORS ADDENDUM
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2010
This research investigates the structure of Alcoholics Anonymous itself. It found that the processes (i.e., public disclosure, meetings), sponsorship and the 12 Traditions were instrumental in creating an environment within which the 12 Steps can work.
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries Available on request


CITY vs. CORPORATE MANAGEMENT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, October 2010
This study is based on 175 executives and 75 supervisors drawn from 19 cities in 10 states. They are compared to 5,476 executives and supervisors from about 1,000 for-profit firms. The study found that city executives essentially matched their corporate counterparts in average profile. However, when the average was broken down into its components most corporate executives tended to be more moderate in their commitment to a particular style. City executives tended to be more extreme at both high and low levels of commitment. City management tends to have more “power” in the analytical HA and idea generating RI capacities. City management is also likely to have more internal difficulty bringing their ideas and analysis to fruition.

City supervisor’s average profiles differed from their corporate peers. They tended to be more committed to the disciplined LP style. This compounds the management issues at the executive level. What executives view as a completed task supervisors are likely to see as being “half-baked.” The research offers suggestions for using “I Opt” technology to improve city efficiency, effectiveness and internal harmony
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


SALES MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, November 2010
A sample of 711 people from 193 different firms was used to explore the relationship between organizational levels in sales and marketing. A “stair step” progression of style elections is visible. Lower levels favor structured HA and LP styles. Higher levels favor the unpatterned RI and RS styles. Sales and marketing mid and high level executives shared identical approaches. Professional levels differed in the intellectual HA and RI styles. Marketing put more emphasis on analytical HA while sales tended to stress idea-oriented RI. This was attributed to the nature of the two roles. Sales was also tested for a difference between transactional (i.e., one-time) and relationship (recurring) sales. Transactional sales tended to favor the unpatterned RS and RI styles. Relational sales tend to favor the structured LP and HA approach. Training and development implications of the findings are offered.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


“I Opt” STYLE RELIABILITY: A STRESS TEST
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, March 2011
A sample of 6,298 respondents was given access to free reports on a completely anonymous basis and with minimal effort required and no time delay in receiving a response.

2.7% of the people were in some way dissatisfied with the result and retook the survey. 75% of these results were unchanged—some after retaking the survey 3 or more times. The average time between test-retest was 1.6 hours for 67% of the re-testers and 7.6 days for the remaining 33%. Re-testers were unable to change the results even when they could easily remember their past responses. This result strongly confirms that “I Opt” is providing a reliable estimate of information processing preferences. It resists change even when a respondent is actively attempting to alter it.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


“I Opt” PATTERN RELIABILITY: A STRESS TEST
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, March 2011
This is a companion to the “I Opt” Style Reliability: A Stress Test Study.” This study focuses on patterns (i.e., sequences) of behavior. Like the companion study its subjects were people who were trying to change their “I Opt” outcome. The study found that a majority (76%) were unable to do so by re-taking the survey. Of those who did manage to change their results, the direction of that change proved to be random. In other words, they were unable to change their outcomes in a predictable direction. These results are interpreted as supporting the view that “I Opt” is a reliable instrument for accurately gauging the personal preferences of respondents.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


PREDICTING STRATEGIC STYLE CHANGE
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, March 2011
This study uses a sample of 1,515 people who took the “I Opt” survey multiple times over a maximum period of 12.8 years. The maximum number of re-takes was 8 and the average time between re-takes was 2.7 years.

The average change in survey responses for all 1,515 re-takes was 10% (2.5 response questions). Of these, 57% retained the same dominant style as they originally posted. The survey response change for the 43% whose dominant style did change was 15.6% (3.5 response questions). The small difference argues that the change is primarily a classification issue since the “dominant style” is merely an ordinal ranking category.

An investigation of the direction of change found that when a change in dominant style did occur it almost universally involved a person changing emphasis from their primary to their secondary style. Their overall behavioral pattern remained the same. In the 4% of the cases where an originally peripheral style replaced the dominant style it was found that the peripheral style had strength almost equal to the original secondary style. In other words, this anomaly is once again primarily attributable to the crude measurement nature of the categorical ranking.

The individual styles were tested for their susceptibility to change. The RI style stood out as the least likely to change in dominance. This was attributed to the fact that it is the most flexible of the styles and can easily accommodate environmental change.
Video-Style Change (15 min): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w3nmh2Ts9M
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


THE PROFESSORS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2011
A study of 254 professors from 109 different universities revealed the existence of two distinct categories of Professors. One is more heavily invested in the structured HA and LP styles which tempers their idea-oriented RI style. The other puts more emphasis on the RI style and less on the HA/LP. One group (RI) is better prepared to generate novel ideas and the other (HA) is better equipped to audit them. The result is a system that produces new knowledge of a reliable character. The cost is some tension between the groups. The reason for the selection of these two types of professors is traced to the tenure system.

The profiles of 1,800 students for 31 colleges and universities were compared to the professor profiles. A marked “disjoint” was found in the RI styles. This is likely to result in compromising the university mission of intergenerational transfer of knowledge. The study offers suggestions for minimizing negative effects.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


UNIVERSITY MANAGEMENT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, August 2011
The study draws on a sample of 732 positions in over 100 different universities to assess the structural disjoints and synergies inherent in the university structure. The aspect of interest is the universities dual role of inter-generational knowledge transfer and the creation of new knowledge. This is a much more complex challenge than faced by for-profit, non-profit and governmental organizations that typically have a simple single objective.

The study found statistically significant differences in the various levels of university management. It also found that these differences were structured in such a manner that they allowed the simultaneous pursuit of the university’s dual objectives. The study concludes that universities “have devised about as good of a management structure as is possible given their mission and constraints.”
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


K-12 SCHOOL SYSTEM MANAGEMENT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, December 2011
A sample of 37 school Superintendents, 208 school Principals and 218 Teachers from 12 States were used to examine the opportunities and exposures embedded in the structure of school system organization. The study found the Superintendents shared the Corporate CEO’s emphasis on the idea-generating RI style but were more reluctant to actually implement the ideas generated than were the CEO’s. Overall, the Superintendents and CEO had a coincidence in approach of only about 16% (i.e. R2)

Unlike Superintendents, school Principals closely matched their corporate counterparts at the mid-management levels. They also match the Superintendent on the action-based strategies of RS and LP. They differ on the thought-based strategies with the Principals putting more emphasis on analytical HA and less on idea-oriented RI styles. This tends to create an idea-analysis cycle which looks like a forward thinking approach to outsiders but tends to restrict tangible actions.

When adjacent corporate levels (e.g., VP vs. Manager) and school system levels (e.g. Superintendent vs. Principal) are compared the degree of style strength differences are much narrower in corporate environments. This means that it is easier for corporate management to reach agreement between levels and act than it is for school executives.
Teachers tend to be focused on highly structured approaches of LP and HA. They willingly accept ideas of evaluation (i.e., HA) but tend to restrain implementation in favor of more traditional, proven approaches.

The net effect of the differences identified is that school system staffs are poorly positioned to respond to fast changing environments. Different organizational levels favor different strategies that tend to mesh on an intellectual level but fall short on actual implementation. The result tends to be modest—if any—improvements with a circular firing squad forming to explain any failures and short-comings.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


CREATIVITY SCIENCE
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, April 2012
This research uses validated theoretical logic to explore the implications of the various styles on creativity. It is able to demonstrate that creative volume (i.e., the number of ideas), direction (operational utility vs. abstract understanding) and creative quality (i.e., certainty, depth, clarity, etc.) are systematically affected by “I Opt” style. Knowledge of these effects and their underlying cause can be used to align individuals and groups to better meet the objectives of the issue in question.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


SECRETS OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, June 2012
A sample of 194 Administrative Assistants from 100 different organizations was compared to over 5,000 people in other professional and managerial roles. The study used “I Opt” technology to demonstrate that the role of the Admin is unique and complementary to the roles of other functions within the firm. The corollaries to the strategies necessary to fill the Admin role are specified and explained as a natural offshoot of the Admin’s position. Various statistical tests are included to provide assurance of the validity of the findings.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


ORGANIZATIONAL RANK AND STRATEGIC STYLES
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, October 2012
This study investigates the relation of strategic style with rank in an organization. The sample used included 10,617 people from 1,559 different organizations. It refined this core research with a sample of 1,801 people from 390 organizations who held 1st level management positions with varying degrees of autonomy.

The research found a highly creditable relation between style and rank based on the input strategy employed by the style. Styles using structured styles (i.e., predetermined patterns) tend to be disadvantaged at higher ranks. Styles based on unpatterned input (i.e. opportunistic strategies) are disadvantage at low levels but tend to prosper as rank increases. These findings were clear and unambiguous.

The relationships identified at a global scale were “stress” tested using a sample of 1st level management holding positions of varying autonomy. The study found that the same relationship found at the macro level held on a micro basis. Structured styles (LP and HA) were favored when the work content and process is stable in character. Unpatterned strategies (RS and RI) tend to be favored where the objective is known but the method of achieving it is uncertain.

The study is able to trace the effects found to the underlying predictability of the role responsibilities. Predictability works through four agencies. Resolution describes the clarity and detail with which potentially relevant variables can be seen. Uncertainty describes the degree of variability in process and/or outcome. Opportunity defines the degree to which advantage might be gained by a particular action. Finally, incentive expresses the motivation to actually engage a particular activity. The study outlines how these factors work together to produce the strategic style trends seen in the dominant ‘I Opt” styles at various organizational levels. A compelling logical argument is made that these factors and processes are inherent in any organization. They are universal through time, culture and geography.

The study also shows that the progress of style change by rank is itself functional. Adjacent positions tend to differentiate their information processing approach in manageable increments. This facilitates communication between levels and bridges the interests of the organization between near-term survival and longer-term prosperity.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


TEAM TENSION: CAUSES AND MANAGEMENT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, January 2013
The Organizational Rank and Strategic Style research (2012) revealed that formal organizations have a “built in” mechanism for managing tension (i.e., profile similarities between adjacent positions). This study recognized most teams have no such “built in” structure. 

The study outlines how team tension might be predicted, the direction it is likely to take and its probable intensity.The study shows the mechanics of inherent tension, Identifies how this translates into emotion attributions that resist logical resolution and offers specific methods of managing tensions that can arise.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


HUMAN RESOURCE THOUGHT DIVERSITY
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, February 2014
The thought diversity within Human Resources is investigated in depth in this study. A sample of 2,195 HR people formed the basis for the examination. These were contrasted with 9,072 people from other functions.

The study found that HR was among the most thought diverse functions in a firm exceeded only by Sales and Marketing. The source of this diversity was traced to the two major components of HR—Learning & Development (L&D) and Traditional HR. It was found that L&D was the major source of diversity. On a stand-alone basis L&D exceeded even Sales & Marketing. Traditional HR proved to be about 11% more thought diverse than the average function. This can be traced to the HR Consultants and Diversity/Inclusion parts of the traditional HR function. Suggestions for managing the diversity within HR are offered.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request

HR THOUGHT DIVERSITY: Different people, different approachs
HRZONE,a United Kingdom digital journal with 130,000 distribution
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, February 2014
This is a brief summation of the research on thought diversity (above) from the perspective of the HR function.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request

THE ENGINEERING PERSONALITY
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, April 2014
This study used a sample of 2,385 professional engineers drawn from 178 unique organizations primarily domiciled in the United States but with representation from 30 other countries. These were contrasted with 8,011 professionals from 8 other functional areas.

The study was able to demonstrate that the behavioral consistency attributed to the “Engineering Personality” was in reality a natural offshoot of the information processing styles needed to do the job. The reason that the attribution is applied to engineering and not to other disciplines (e.g. finance, science, etc.) is that engineering has significant proportion of people who are highly committed to the HA and LP styles. This generates a behavioral visibility and consistency that stands out by contrast.

The study explains how the “Engineering Personality” generates negative behavioral corollaries (e.g., slow, cautious, etc.) that can and should be managed so as to present a generally more positive image to other functions in a firm.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


3-DIMENSIONAL ORGANIZATION CHARTS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, September 2014
A small public university with a staff of about 700 people was used to explore the value of 3-dimensional organization charts in organizational design and development. A companion video examines the application of 3D technology in broader, accessible terms. The video visualization of rotation in 3D space offers important insights not available in two-dimensional textual representations.

The research paper is able to examine 3D technology in more detail and provides more background depth. It uses “snapshots” of the 3D animation to explain the mechanics of constructing the 3D models. It elaborates on the value of incorporating visual “I Opt” profiles into the models created.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


WOMEN IN ENGINEERING
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, January 2015
A sample of 2,855 practicing non-management engineers were contrasted with 619 exact scientists (excludes social scientists). The purpose was to attempt to isolate the reason that exact scientists had over twice the female participation rate of engineering. This occurs in spite of the fact that the two areas have equivalent intellectual complexity and importance as well as demanding comparable levels of rigor.

The study found that women in science and engineering were essentially identical in their approach to issues. The difference in participation rates resided in the men. That difference was not in the strength of commitment to a particular style. Rather it was found in the rank order of style use by the males in both areas. Male engineers tended to use the relatively rigid LP style as their secondary strategy. Male scientists tended to favor the more flexible, idea-oriented RI style. The net result is that male scientists find the female style election (common for both engineering and science) complementary to their approach. Male engineers tend to find the common female strategies tend to be more hostile to their way of doing things. Systematically negative relationships invites stereotyping which then acts to deepen the negative environment and further discourage female participation.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


ENGINEERING INSIGHTS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, July 2015
This study uses a sample of 4,240 engineers from all organizational levels and contrasts them with a sample of 29,893 people from other professions. The study finds that engineering has a near optimal internal design. Its staffs and management stress the predictability and quality that society demands. It achieves this by having a highly consistent information processing approach across all levels. The VP and selected pockets of variant styles act as the vectors for change and environmental adjustment. The uniform structure of engineering makes the VP’s change management role more challenging than it is in other functions.

The very strategies that foster an effective internal organization tend to distinguish it from its peer organizational functions. These differences invite negative responses which can limit engineering’s influence on corporate matters. Its homogeneity of approach invites negative attributions of a global nature.
Video: .wmv standalone video files: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


WOMEN IN ENGINEERING LEADERSHIP
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, September 2015
This study uses a sample of 3,685 engineers. The sample consists of 2,771 men, 543 women and 351 people of unknown gender. These people held organizational ranks from professional to Senior Executive.

The study found no statistically significant difference in “I Opt” style between men and women at any managerial level. It did find highly significant differences in the LP (women higher) and RI (men higher) styles at the professional level. The longer term pattern variation was more striking. Women differed form men at a statistically significant level in all four patterns at the professional level. Only 2 instances of marginally significant difference were found at the managerial levels. One of these was dismissed due to the extremely wide variety of responsibility between positions at the Project Manager level. The difference in the Perfector pattern at the mid-manager level was deemed to be real and appeared to be attributable to the low level of RI (a component of the Perfector pattern) among professional level women.

On the whole the study finds that women are being promoted to management using the same information processing criteria as being applied to men. The remedy for the low representation of women in engineering management was traced to type of women who are being attracted and retained at the professional level. The remedy appears to depend on an active role being assumed by senior management. It is unlikely that lower levels of engineering management will independently address the issue.
Video: .wmv standalone video files: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


ENGINEERING PROFESSORS: GENDER GATEKEEPERS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, January 2016
The study uses a sample of 155 tenured and tenure track engineering professors from 90 unique universities to explore their effect on the inclusion of women in engineering. These professors were contrasted with 285 non-engineering professors of similar rank from 139 universities working in 26 unique fields from accounting to zoology.

On an overall basis the study found a statistically significant difference in the analytical HA style. The cause of the difference was a cluster of highly committed engineering professors who held very high levels of commitment to the HA style. An analysis of patterns revealed that engineering was substantially less inclined toward the use of the Changer pattern than were other disciplines. A deeper investigation revealed that the global differences are attributable to the full professors. The more junior ranks are indistinguishable from their non-engineering counterparts.

The study observes that the teaching methods employed were developed to meet the needs of male students who historically populated engineering. This was the era in which today’s full professors developed. The structured preferences of this group (i.e., Conservator and Perfector) tend to rely on traditional approaches and thus fail to accommodate the interests and needs of women attempting to enter the profession. Since full professors tend to set the criteria for teaching the standards the more flexible lower professorial levels cannot effectively compensate.

The condition discovered is not without positive merit. The study found that the overall posture of engineering professors acts as a bridge to the even more structured field professionals. This relationship to industry is valuable to the profession and to the university.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


ROOT-CAUSE ANALYSIS OF GENDER BIAS IN ENGINEERING
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, June 2016
The study uses a sample of 5,130 engineers including 864 women and 4,266 men. Positions represented included all levels from non-management professional s through senior management.

The study identified statistically significant differences at all levels. Women tended to be more committed to the action based strategies (RS & LP) while men favored the thought based (HA & RI). The differences were visible in all areas of engineering. They were also visible regardless of the specific academic degree (e.g., mechanical vs. electrical).

The two genders shared the same primary HA style. They differed on their secondary elections. This difference is enough to produced irregular but persistent differences of an irreconcilable nature. Attributions of “reasons” for the differences that do arise get substantial reinforcement as they are exchanged among the more numerous men in the field. The attributions then can form the basis of systematic bias that appears to be evidenced in behavior. They are easy to believe.

The remedy for the distortion lies in attracting more women with a focus on those whose preferences are more closely aligned to those the men in the field. Currently the structure of the field appears to attract females whose “I Opt” preferences allow them to prosper in relatively hostile environments.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:
SENIOR EXECUTIVE ORGANIZATIONAL “FIT”
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD and Shannon Nelson, CEO, Professional Communications, March 2017
A sample of 2,526 senior executives in roles ranging from VP to General Manager was used to compare IT executive to similarly positioned executives in other functions. One phase of the study found that on an overall basis IT information processing is well aligned with other functions. In fact, it has a marginally significant advantage in the idea oriented RI style that is likely to cast IT in a favorable leadership role.

The study also followed up on published study by Deloitte Consulting of 1,271 CIOs. That study found that CIO’s were 5 times as “satisfied” working for the CEO as when they were reporting to the CFO. This study was able to isolate the cause of that difference. A linear relationship was found between the alignment of information processing profiles and IT job satisfaction. The relationship cannot be definitively confirmed because Deloitte used ordinal data in the measure of satisfaction. However, the direction of that relationship appears certain.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: HOW DIFFERENT ARE WE?
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD July 2017
A sample of 3.673 IT people was compared to 44,448 non-IT people from comparable organizational levels. Lower organizational levels of IT were found to enhance the leadership posture found in the study of senior IT management. They also exhibited a stronger than average idea-oriented RI style commitment.

IT functions in different organizations were compared and found to be about 71% similar in their approach to issues. The difference among the remaining 29% was focused on “how” things were to be done rather than “what” was being done. Differences in RS and LP action-based commitment far exceeded differences in the thought-based RI and HA styles. The overall judgement was that IT departments are best characterized as being far more similar than different from each other.

The specific mix of people at the professional IT level were found to be more different from each other that IT was different from other organizational functions. The basis of that difference was found in the speed with which the professionals received organizational feedback on the success of their work efforts. The diversity of approaches suggests that this professional group merits ongoing management attention.

Finally, the research addressed structural similarity between IT and engineering. The study found that IT males differed from engineering males significantly. IT males were more committed to the unpatterned RS and RI styles. This difference was balanced by female IT professionals. The net result was that there was no overall difference between engineering and IT in their information processing approach to issues.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


GENDER AND THOUGHT DIVERSITY IN CHEMISTRY
American Chemical Society Book Chapter (Juried academic publication)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD and Shannon Nelson,  Digitally published by ACS October 2017
This article summarizes the series of research blogs on women in engineering and incorporates data and analysis for chemical scientists. The article demonstrates that there is a cultural bias in engineering predicated on secondary strategic style differences between the genders. The strength of this bias is sufficient to cause a significant segment of women to accept 31% less pay by becoming chemical scientist versus becoming chemical engineers. This is in spite of the fact that the intellectual, educational and working condition demands are virtually the same in both professional areas.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request



ORGANIZATION: A FACT-BASED PROFILE
 by: Gary J. Salton, PhD  May 2018
 This research reports on the use of the "I Opt" database to develop an evidence-based model of organizational design. The research draws on 77,442 respondents domiciled in 115 different countries and affiliated with 5,549 unique organizations. The research is able to demonstrate that organizations have autonomic capacities which can maintain an organization without conscious guidance. The traditional hierarchical pyramid is appended to this base. It serves to provide rational guidance enabling the organization to optimize its ability to handle disruptive events and to sustain itself into the future. These organizational components are measurable and their relationships can be quantitatively defined.Operating together these components form an ecosystem which behaves as a single intelligent entity.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request





HUMAN INFORMATION PROCESSING DEVELOPMENT
“I Opt” technology does not have a validated instrument with which to measure the development of strategic styles in children. However, several women brought their children to work on a regular basis. We were thus privileged to be able to watch their development over time. This process has been documented over time in the form of blogs attributed to the children. While not “scientific” they do provide often cogent insight into the information processing development of the children at various stages of development. They are offered here as vehicles for insight and as potential guides for the future expansion of Organizational Engineering theory and practice.


HUMAN INFORMATION PROCESSING DEVELOPMENT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD, October 2011
This research uses deductive logic and practical illustrations to demonstrate the sequence of development of strategic styles from infancy to adulthood. The research shows that the sequence of RS to LP to HA and finally RI is an inescapable sequence. Each style provides the necessary knowledge base for the subsequent style. It also demonstrates that there is no “hierarchy” of styles in an adult. Different situations will favor different styles as a preferred primary strategy regardless of the position in the development sequence.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


CHLOE’S JOURNAL #1
GROWING UP WITH “I OPT”
by: Chloe. February 2005
The blog describes Chloe’s development from birth until 18 months. She describes her initial RS strategy in terms of how the strategy impacted her life as an infant. She also explains how the RS strategy naturally evolves into an increasing appreciation and use of the LP style.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


CHLOE’S JOURNAL #2
GETTING SMARTER  WITH “I OPT”
by: Chloe. November 2011
Chloe describes her development from 18 months to 8 years of age. She shows how normal life processes automatically introduce the essential elements of the LP style into an individual’s repertoire. She describes how procedures are introduced in simple physical things and then begin to evolve into learning basic social skills.

In this period Chloe starts preschool. She describes how learning to read was her first step into the more intellectual HA style. She shows how the phonics evolves into learning of systems. Squiggles on a piece of paper become sounds which then weave together to form words. She notes that the same thing happens in math. Counting becomes addition which then evolves into the other mathematical operations. Chloe deduces that of these processes involve discovering how things fit together. The foundation of analysis has been laid.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


CHLOE’S JOURNAL #3
“I OPT” IN THE “TWEEN” YEARS
by: Chloe. January 2015
Chloe is now 11 years old and is reflecting on her development in her elementary school years. She deduces that what the “I Opt” model describes as a linear process is really a dance between input and output which then act to develop and refine the “process” box of the model. She defines how mistakes, missteps and accidents serve to aid in the development of an effective “process” element.

Chloe also begins to explore the beginnings of the RI style. She reports on how the systems developed in refining the HA style are critical to the development of the creative RI style. She discovers that every style has creative capacity and they just differ in the nature of the product of that genius.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


FIONA JOURNAL #1
DISCOVERING “I OPT”: MY FIRST YEAR
by: Fiona. March 2013
Fiona describes her experience in the first year of life. She begins with the discovery of patterns that became the “things” that are the input variable in “I Opt”. She then describes how individual “things” become grouped through generalization. She found that generalization can take the form of modeling when she visited her cousin. She explains how this allowed her to learn without actually “doing” anything.

In this first year Fiona used her “kernel” (i.e., built-in behaviors like sucking, failing, etc.) to discover that she could affect the world. Fiona says that she learned that she could direct these effects and explains that this was her discovery of the “output” box in the “I Opt” model. She notes that this was a demonstration of causation. She then points out that causation was the link between input and output—the “process” box of the “I Opt” model.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request


FIONA JOURNAL #2
DISCOVERING “I OPT”: MY SECOND YEAR
by: Fiona. May 2014
Fiona says that her second year began with the discovery that things happen in sequence. She found that sequences of interacting behaviors patterns are just like the patterns she used in order to discover physical objects. She notes that physical edge boundaries have just been replaced with event boundaries. She describes how she could manipulate those behavioral patterns to construct and guide the social situations in which she wanted to participate. She says that she used her new insight to experiment by constructing play situations in which dolls substituted for real people. She found that grownups described this kind of thing as “simulations.”

Fiona realizes that she is accumulating a lot of new tools, processes and procedures. She found that this has resulted in an increased attention span. She says it just takes more time to work through all of the interacting patterns. She argues that attention span is nothing more than a reflection of the complexity and integration of the patterns that she is accumulating. The more patterns, the greater their integration and thus the longer will be the attention span. It is just mechanics.

Fiona says that she also discovered she has different tools to use to work with all of the patterns. She can use words, pictures and her physical senses. She found each of these tools gives different information which affects the kind of options she could consider. She knows she has access to all three tools but figures that she will eventually come to stress one that fits with the style that best addresses the life situation in which she finds herself.
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request



OPERATIONAL “WAR” STORIES

The listings in this section are stories of actual situations where “I Opt” technology was employed to solve unusual problems. The stories are all real and are related as they were described by the consultant actually involved in the situation. Voice versions are available on our website under the listed “url” (i.e., World Wide Web address). Actual scripts for the voice recording are available upon request so that clients can incorporate the knowledge into other material which they may be using. Audio MP3 files are also available on request so that they can be incorporated into non-internet based presentations.


STRUCTURING TEAMS FOR THE BACKROOM
Addresses the importance of team design in achieving goals
This story describes a situation of a team addressing a multi-phased project where each phase required a different strategic style skill set. The initial team consisted of dominant Relational Innovators and was well positioned for the first phase of envisioning an ideal future.

The difficulty came when that same team was retained for the second phase—detailed analysis, planning and provisioning. The team was poorly suited to this task. The consultant used “I Opt” technology to design and implement a salvage plan. TeamAnalysis was used to identify strategies to compensate for structural deficiencies. The consultant used “Flexing” strategies to create missing team capacities. The result of the effort was an adequate response but far short of what could have been realized if the style structure of the team had better matched the needs of Phase II implementation.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “Backroom Teams”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


MANAGING PERFECTION
Demonstrates the value of the use of rules in modifying group conduct
Three groups of automotive engineers were assigned a common power train design objective. The group was exceptionally talented with many highly insightful people. Coordination had been arranged around weekly meetings where interim objectives were presented and reviewed. The problem became slipping deadlines as new obstacles, questions and considerations continuously arose.

The consultant isolated the problem. The group was dominantly HA. Complete mastery was a standard. Every question had to be answered. Every question burned time and resources. The solution was simple and profound. The order of presentation was changed. The presentation order was changed from logic to conclusion to conclusion then logic. Changing the order moved the demonstration of from defense of logic to defense of conclusion. HA’s hate to be wrong. The change moved the meeting tone. Minor issues and improbable conditions tended to be dismissed rather than answered in detail. Merely changing the order of presentation put the project back on track and lead to a successful conclusion.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “Managing Perfection”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


PEOPLE MIX IS IMPORTANT
The simplest of tasks can still benefit from a mix of styles
A Vice President of R&D in a frozen food company assembled a big time group of innovative Relational Innovators to come up with new product ideas. An all-day meeting produced a plethora of ideas. At the conclusion the VP asked “who took notes?” No one had. The VP realized that he had forgotten the value of structured approaches and that the inclusion of a few Logical Processors (LPs) could have better preserved what had been created. The VP salvaged the job and also learned a lesson. Few efforts of any consequence benefit from restricting entry to one strategic style.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “People Mixing”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


UNORTHODOX CAN WORK
People are smart. Sometimes all you need do is to define the problem.
A large health insurance company in the Northeast was experiencing a pervasive level of tension in a team. Everyone was mad at everyone else. The consultant used “I Opt” technology to isolate the problem. It was immediately obvious—the problem was the leader. She was a big time RS and the staffs were equally strong LPs. There was an automatic disjoint of objectives. The leader wanted speed and volume. The group wanted efficient execution and perfection in result.

The consultant did not even get a chance to recommend a solution. The executive in charge called a group meeting. She used her “I Opt” report as a script and outlined her expectations and told the group why she had them. The group members spontaneously got up and using their “I Opt” reports outlined their expectations and goals. Then the meeting was simply closed. No plans, no resolutions, no nothing.
The consultant circulated after the meeting. He discovered that everyone judged the meeting to be a great success. His diagnosis was that the meeting had reduced tensions and laid out a common landscape for all involved. The people involved believed that with this knowledge they could navigate that landscape for the benefit of all.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “Unorthodox Strategies”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


BIG TEAMS, BIG PROBLEMS
Sometimes there is more than one cause to team issues.
A team of 25 people had been working for 6 months to develop a diversity program. They were no further along than the day they started. An “I Opt” analysis revealed that the team was dominated by strong HAs. Their critical evaluation skills were bouncing off each other to create a swirl of considerations that demanded resolution before moving forward. Paralysis by analysis was “built in.”

The leader acted first to get a common understanding of the problem. In a 4 hour meeting she got a consensus on the “I Opt” diagnosis. She then broke up the team into sub-teams and introduced a ratification approval process so that everyone got to participate in the final decision. The result was outstanding. In six weeks the program was done and approved. Four weeks later it was implemented. Everyone involved won—the leader, team members and the organization as a whole.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “Big Teams”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


MAKING IT “REAL”
An exercise shows that failure can be due to organization and not the people.
A professor at a major Midwestern university designed a teamwork experience. Teams of graduate engineers were formed into teams designed to produce predictable results. To prove it, the professor wrote his predictions on an index card as the teams were constructed. He then read the predictions aloud after each team concluded their debriefing. They proved to be unerringly accurate.

The exercise was designed to produce teaching moments. The first was that the result did not depend on the particular people. He could have substituted a different person with the same style profile and got the same result. The second teaching moment was that the emotions released in the process had long term implications. If the people involved were put on a future team they would go in with a bias. The third was that every style is good for somethings—and not others. There are no “good” or “bad” styles. Finally, the predictions demonstrated that there was nothing “fuzzy wuzzy” involved. The technology could be accepted as a tool appropriate for an engineer’s toolkit.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “Making ‘it’ Real”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


DEALMAKING IN TEAMS
A corporate sub was destined for a fire-sale until they reorganized themselves.
An internal consultant domiciled in Texas got an assignment to help fix a subsidiary in Michigan in the winter. His objective was to do the job but get in and back to the warmth of Texas as soon as possible. The 70 person subsidiary firm was having problems in virtually all areas. All signals pointed to an organizational problem.

The consultant got a full set of individual, team and leader reports for each team. He studied them in warmth of Texas. He flew into Michigan and held a slide-show for 70-person group meeting on arrival. The overall consensus—with quibbles—was the analysis was on target. A common understanding had been established.

The consultant then met with each team in the group. He used to “I Opt” reports to show how the groups could compensate for some of the issues of each specific team. Then he went a step further. He pointed out that if they could acquire team members with a needed style, there would be no need to compensate.

He then went home to warm Texas. Two days and done. He tracked progress from Texas. The results were jaw-dropping. The sub had been a target for take-over by other firms. The situation had been reversed and these other firms themselves became targets. The subsidiary moved from the bottom to the top of almost all performance categories on the corporate books.

The consultant reported that what had happened was that “I Opt” had provided a framework and some initial guidance. He had facilitated that understanding and worked into his guidance some local conditions that the “I Opt” computers had no way of knowing about. Once this was done, the people involved did the rest. They traded people between teams and rebuilt their individual teams with the appropriate capacities. And he got to go back to the warm confines of his home in Texas.

Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “Team Deal making”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


THE POWER OF A NAME
Changing how memos were written caused a group to become a team.
A 12 person team was getting nowhere in smoothing out the transactions between groups in a metal working plant subsidiary of a Fortune 250 company in the Midwest. They were getting nowhere. An internal consultant was charged with fixing the problem.

 “I Opt” analyses were run and its recommendations were accepted and implemented. Everyone was actively engaged. All of the people were cooperative. There were no resource problems. Traditional measures said the team should perform well. It was not.

The consultant traced the problem by going back to the fundamentals outlined in “I Opt” theory. The communications from the organization (e.g., plant and department managers) to the team were all individually addressed. There was no “reward” for team achievement, just individual contributions. The group had the right “horses”, they were attached to the wagon in the right way and they were arranged to pull the wagon in the same direction. The problem was that there was no motive to pull. The team had common purpose but no common destiny.

The consultant addressed the problem by going to the reward sources (management) and getting them to begin addressing their communications to the team as a whole. Now there was a motive to achieve group objectives and not just individual contributions. After this change things moved rapidly to conclusion. All the pieces were there, they just had to be put together in the right way.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “Team Deal making”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


THE MEETING ROOM
A young consultant reserves a room and harnesses team power.
A young consultant was assigned the task of rationalizing and improving performance on the factory floor using the workers actually doing the job. He produced “I Opt” reports. Everyone agreed that they hit the mark on vulnerabilities and opportunities. But when it came to recommendations one or another person pointed out that the idea had been tried 20 years ago—about the time the consultant was running around in diapers.

The consultant figured out that his age or the recommendations were not the issue. The problem was that the workers did not believe that their views would be respected and treated seriously. He decided to correct that impression. He reserved the board room at Corporate Headquarters and called a team meeting. The consultant did not do anything more. The dark paneling, mahogany table, leather chairs and Oriental rug did the work. The same recommendations that had been dismissed as outdated were suddenly relevant again. The meeting site had demonstrated in “real” terms that both they and their ideas were respected and considered of value.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html   Click “The Meeting Room”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


SPONSORSHIP CAN HELP
A competent team was stuck. A consultant fixed the problem with a memo.
An administrative team of 9 people was charged with improving information flows in a plant. They knew what to do, how to do it and had the needed internal capacities. But nothing was happening. A consultant figured out why. To actually get the job done they needed the cooperation of the various departments. And it was not forthcoming.
The consultant solved the problem by getting the plant manager to release a memo citing his interest in the team’s work. His memo also referenced the various departments involved. The team members and everyone referenced was put on the memo’s copy list. Things instantly changed.

The consultant had used “I Opt” technology to prep the team. They had addressed their internal vulnerabilities and positioned themselves to magnify their strengths. When the world changed, they were ready. The consultant commented that this was a necessary precondition. Not being able to actually deliver when the top dog certified his faith in you is a formula for some serious career damage.

Upon reflection, the consultant commented that what had happened was that the department managers got reprioritized. None of them were bad people. They just felt that the team members were relatively uninfluential relative to other parties and interests that they had to serve. The Plant Manager’s memo served to let the team borrow some of his influence and use it for the good of the organization.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html      Click “Team Sponsorship”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


HONEST BROKER
A leader was not getting things done. He was always mediating.
The CEO of a chemical company in the Southeastern United States found himself arbitrating issues between factions of his managerial staff. The final decisions seemed to be good and the firm was doing well. But the price being paid by the CEO was high.

The consultant did an “I Opt” analysis and the issue jumped off the page. The management group was split between a Conservator and Changer faction. The CEO was a balanced style and saw merit in both positions. Rather than the factions working things out for themselves they had delegated the task to him. Effectively he had to work through each factions detail to get to a final decision.

The management team agreed with the “I Opt” diagnosis. The CEO said he wanted to stay in charge but wanted out of the middle of every issue. The team agreed that the direction of “I Opt” recommendations was right but that they needed to add some things, modify some and eliminate others. It took some time to work through the issues but they were ultimately resolved. The consultant’s job was done.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html      Click “The Honest Broker”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request


LEVERAGING LEADERSHIP
A consultant creates a 1-day transition program to handle multi-retail sites
A new head of OD combines a program used by the Army with “I Opt” technology to create a site-specific 1-day leadership transition program to handle site leadership transitions at hundreds of retail sites. The program is introduced in a way that maximized visibility across the firm. The implementation was designed to leverage the acceptance of the OD function as a valuable part of the management of the firm. The final value of the program is demonstrated by the fact that it continues to be used after the OD leader left the firm to accept another position.
Internet Voice: http://www.iopt.com/war-stories.html      Click “Leveraging Leadership”
Text: MSWord & PDF Version: Available on request
Standalone Voice: MP3 voice files: Available on request





“I OPT” REPORT INTRODUCTIONS

This section of the index provides detailed overviews of the various reports offered by “I Opt” technology. The text files are summaries created in 2017 that were taken from the scripts that were used to create the YouTube video explanations. The text files have been edited for clarity and to compensate for the absence of animation available in the video format.


INTRODUCTION TO THE ADVANCED LEADER REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD July 2008
The Advanced Leader Report is intended for use by experienced leaders who have been or are in a leadership position. The report presumes that the reader has experienced both success and failure in various positions. It is assumed that this experience enables them to accept somewhat direct and sometimes abrupt assessments. The introduction is intended to provide the consultant or facilitator with the background on what to expect when administering the report to the intended clients.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE COACHING REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD July 2008
The Coaching Report is designed to be companion to the Advanced Leader Report. It attempts to put the observations and insights of the Advanced Leader into the specific context of the particular leader. It can be used by a coach as a guide or by the leader as a self-study device. Experience has shown that this report is a bit of overkill. However both the Summary and the report might be useful to consultants and facilitators as a source of ideas which might be extracted to service particular needs of specific clients.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE CAREER REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD September 2008
The “I Opt” Career Report is written in accessible language but it does not compromise content. It is mature in tone and respectful in character. Its focus centers on leveraging the natural strengths inherent in the strategy that is being used to navigate life. The text is non-judgmental and matter of fact in character. It has been used at all levels form management to high school upper classman.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE INDIVIDUAL “I OPT” REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD March 2008
This report explains “I Opt” technology in simplified terms to help orient the recipient to the nature of the analysis. It then proceeds to explain the contents by stepping through the report page by page
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE EMOTIONAL IMPACT MANAGEMENT REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD January 2009
The “I Opt” Emotional Impact Management Report addresses the emotional impact which one person can have on others. This impact can have positive or negative consequences. The report offers methods to control this impact in a manner which is favorable to both the individual and the organization of which they are a part.
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


EMOTIONAL IMPACT MANAGEMENT REPORT TRAINING PROGRAM
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD January 2009
A 66 page PowerPoint training program includes both textual notes and MP3 voice sample delivery. The slides are designed as a card deck that can be mixed and matched to fit various instructional needs. The training program summary gives content orientation and timing estimates. Some of the slides are a bit out of date but the content remains both relevant and timely.
Video of training summary (6 min): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SYR9QNOYm8
Video: .wmv standalone training summary video file: Available on request
PowerPoint Training Program (66 Slides): Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Training Program Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE CHANGE MANAGEMENT REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD March 2010
The “I Opt” Change Management Report is designed to address group as well as individual adjustment challenges. It includes an explanation of “why” difficulties can be encountered as well as “what” can be done to address them.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE LEADERANALYSIS REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD January 2009
The “I Opt” LeaderAnalysis™ analyzes the dynamics of a specific group of people being led by a particular leader. It offers extensive explanations of exposures and opportunities embedded in the relation of the leader to the group as well as considering the effects of team members interacting with each other in a particular leadership context. Extensive tables and graphics provide “proof” and validation of judgements and recommendations. Experience has shown that the rigorous disciplines such as engineering, scientists and Information processing professionals readily accept the analysis. Other areas such as administrative, non-technical and similar staffs find the analysis accessible and relevant.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE SALES REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD February 2009
This “I Opt” Report applies “I Opt” technology to the area of sales. It identifies the primary and secondary approach a person is likely to use and traces the implications of those on sales performance. The report isolates the individual’s preferred organizational environment and outlines the nature of the likely interaction with both clients and sales support staffs. Suggestions and recommendations are made as appropriate.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE LEARNING REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD April 2010
The “I Opt” Learning Report applies “I Opt” technology to the area the transfer of knowledge. The report describes the learning relevant qualities of an individual’s primary and secondary styles. The best learning environment, probable frustrations and learning strengths and vulnerabilities are addressed.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO THE TEACHER ADDENDUM FOR LEARNING REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD April 2010
This addendum provides an instructor with background information on the application of “I Opt” technology to learning. In addition to providing an overview it offers a comparison of “I Opt” to the Kolb Learning Model (popular at the time of this writing) . It also shows how “I Opt” technology can be applied to classroom (i.e., group) situations as well as individual instruction.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO “I OPT” STYLES AND PATTERNS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD February 2008
“I Opt” styles and patterns are explained as responses to situations that do not carry labels as to the optimal response strategy. Individuals develop strategies that work for them in the mix of situations which they confront. The particular mix of strategies creates a profile that come to characterize their typical response. A brief illustration describing the predictive power of specific types of profiles is provided.
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO “I OPT” TEAMANALYSIS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD February 2003
The “I Opt” TeamAnalysis Report analyzes a team who is committed to a common purpose and share a common destiny. The report provides assessments and recommendations applicable to the group (not its individual members). Graphs, tables and listings provide detailed support for all of the observations and recommendations made. Two summaries are provided. One is a Summary based on the video. It is easy to follow and short. The other is in article format and is more detailed in its explanations.
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request
Text: MSWord & PDF Article: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO “I OPT” SPLIT STYLES
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD August 2009
This research is not a report but rather outlines the source and implications of “I Opt” split styles. The Split Style profile occurs infrequently and involves the display of apparently contradictory behaviors. This evidence-based research explains the implications of this profile to both the person holding it and the people with whom they interact.
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request


INTRODUCTION TO “I OPT” TWO PERSON REPORT
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD May 1998
This report focuses on two people functioning as a team. The analysis considers and contrasts the strategic styles, patterns and overall profiles of the individuals. It identifies opportunities and exposures embedded in the information processing elections of the two people involved. the report contains an adjacent sidebar that provides explanations of the concepts being analyzed.
Video: None
Blog: None
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request





SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL

The entries in this section do not qualify as research. They include various applications of “I Opt” tools, training programs focused on particular subject areas and other such matters which are related to but not a part of the various evidenced-based research efforts. The items in this section were typically published in video or as PowerPoint presentations. Textually accessible summaries were developed using the video script or PowerPoint notes as a guide. The summary was edited for clarity and in some cases augmented with information unavailable at the time the publication was prepared. However, the substance of the summary follows the original documents.




ORGANIZATIONAL ENGINEERING (Book)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD June 1996
This is the seminal book outlining the basic structure of Organizational Engineering as an information-processing based technology. The book was written as a way of consolidating the learning that occurred from its inception in 1991. The effort was a strategy to offset the author’s tendency to forget past discoveries while in pursuit of new insights—a condition common among people with a strong RS commitment. The knowledge outlined in the book remains valid. However, its insights have been substantially enhanced and much new knowledge has been added since the book’s publication. Thus the book’s value is primarily as a historical document.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: PDF Manuscript: Available on request
Hard cover book may be available from Professional Communications, Inc.


MANAGERS’S GUIDE TO ORGANIZATIONAL ENGINEERING (Book)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD June 1999
A few copies of the softcover book published in 2000 are available from Professional Communications at the time of this index publication. The final manuscript draft of a softcover book published in 2000 is available for distribution in MSWord and PDF formats. The book includes some minor textual adjustments made by the publisher prior to book printing but is otherwise identical to the manuscript. The publication was written to be accessible by anyone without prior knowledge of “I Opt” technology. It is a “fast read” and provides a reasonably comprehensive review of the basics of the technology.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: MSWord & PDF Manuscript: Available on request
A limited number of softcover books are available from PCI


“I OPT” COMPANION MANUAL
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD June 1999
This is a 12 page pamphlet designed to accompany orientational sessions. It includes an explanation the underlying information processing theory, outline of “I Opt” technology and a brief summary of characteristics for each style.
Discontinued in print format
May be available in digital format


FLEXING YOUR STYLE PAMPHLETS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD June 1999
These are 7 page pamphlets that outline how a person can emulate the behavior of styles other than their own. The booklets are intended to help teams consisting of people with divergent styles better coordinate their efforts. Each style has a unique pamphlet.
Paper copies available for purchase from Professional Communications, Inc.


VALIDATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL ENGINEERING:
Instrumentation and Methodology (Book)
by: Robert Soltysik, 2000
This was commissioned and published as a softcover book by HRD Press and validates “I Opt” technology under all eight accepted validation standards. The 79 page work includes a 3-page curriculum vitae (CV) testifying to the qualifications of the author.
Text: MSWord & PDF Manuscript: Available on request
A limited number of softcover books may be available from Professional Communications, Inc.


TEAM BUILDING SIMULATION (Computer Program in .exe format)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD May 2000
This is an executive program (i.e., “.exe) that was intended to help consultants and professionals demonstrate “I Opt” technology to prospective clients. The simulation asks for the selection of 3 participants from a pool of 6 people each with distinct “I Opt” profiles. Once selected the simulation offers a selection of the probable team behaviors under consensus and majority decision rules as well as an overall directional assessment. The program proved to be something of an “overkill” and found only limited use.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
TEXT: None available
“Team_Bldg_Simulation.exe” program available on request


IOPT JEOPARDY GAME (Annimated PowerPoint Program)
by: Shannon Nelson. October 2001
This is an automated PowerPoint game that queries contestant on “I Opt” content. It has been used to solidify learning at the conclusion of various “I Opt” training seminars. The PowerPoint comes without instructions. Shannon Nelson can quickly provide guidance via voice or email for interested parties.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
PowerPoint: Version with embedded audio available


“I OPT” THEORY OF CULTURE (Lecture notes, PowerPoint, Articles)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD April 2004
This is a summary of the lecture notes for a segment of a seminar conducted in Ann Arbor by Dr. Salton. This segment outlined the R&D underway at the time and was presented in a PowerPoint format. The PowerPoint contains detail slides and notes not incorporated in the summary. Three articles published in the Journal of Organizational Engineering refine and solidify the concepts outlined in the PowerPoint presentation.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request
PowerPoint: of the Seminar presentation with speaker notes is available
Articles in MSWord Format are available


IOPT LEARNING MODEL SUMMARY (Lecture notes, PowerPoint)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD June 2004
Research was conducted from 2002 to 2004 applying the “I Opt” model to learning. The result was framed as a book. However, the firm participating in the research underwent reorganization and changed ownership. As a result it withdrew it permission to use some of its proprietary data. As a result the book was not published. However the non-proprietary material was incorporated in a seminar presentation. That presentation showed how emotional and rational motivation could be combined with specifying the method and mode content structure to improve learning outcomes. Other variables such as the instructor and interaction effects were also measured but found to have a small impact.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request
PowerPoint of the Seminar presentation with speaker notes is available


CREATING RESUME CONTENT USING “I OPT” TECHNOLOGY
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD July 2009
This publication outlines a method to use the “I Opt” Career Report to help create resume content. It is not focused on the form or look of a resume. Rather it uses the strengths and vulnerabilities cited in the report as triggers for creating a list of accomplishments and preparing for interview questions. The underlying idea that it is the content of a resume, not the form, is what will get a person hired. The textual summary was created in 2017 using the video script as a guide. Clients may want to extract elements of that text to incorporate into their own materials targeted at their specific audience interests.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Video: .wmv standalone video file: Available on request
Note: the internet video is in two parts and requires clicking a button during the presentation to view the second part. This is due to a 15 minute limit that YouTube had in place at the time of publication.
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


EXAMPLES OF FAMOUS PEOPLE ESTIMATED STYLES (Listing)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD June 2014
This is a one page listing of the likely dominant styles of famous people from various disciplines. The estimate was made from reported behaviors. It is intended to illustrate that there is no single style that preordains success or failure. This information can be useful in orienting people unfamiliar with “I Opt” to the technology.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


MANAGING EMOTIONAL IMPACT (PowerPoint Training Program)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD February 2014
This is a 66 slide PowerPoint training program. The program explains in great detail how “I Opt” technology is able to link the rational analysis of individual and group reports to emotional elements of individual and group behaviors. It then proceeds to offer advice on managing the emotional impacts that an individual causes as they navigate life.

The slides are dated and the program is an exercise in overkill. However, some clients have found value in segments and have adapted portions to their own more targeted presentations. The original PowerPoint and MP3 voice files are available on request. Of perhaps more value is a transcript of the slide notes that were prepared in 2017 in MSWord format.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: MSWord & PDF Script Transcript: Available on request
PowerPoint: Version with no audio available on request
PowerPoint: Version with embedded audio available but very large size.


CARTOONS ILLUSTRATING CONCEPTS (Flash format)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD  2007 through 2009
These are a series of Adobe Flash based cartoons based on actual occurrences among “I Opt” staff members, cooperating clients and vendors. They were intended to illustrate differences that arise from the interplay of varying strategic style orientations. Each cartoon has 4 frames and a concluding “moral.” The text version has all four frames laid out in sequence with one cartoon per page and an explanation of the underlying concept. The Flash version requires a Flash Reader or Flash enabled browser and presents one frame at a time.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: MSWord & PDF Summaries: Available on request


SINGLE FRAME STYLE CARTOONS (Single frame jpg for each style)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD 1996
These are individual cartoons for each of the four "I Opt" styles set in an office environment. The office arrangement and condition signal the likely style of the character. Office plaques and blackboards contain "saying" that typify the behavioral posture of the style involved. These cartoons have been frequently used by clients in introducing "I Opt" to groups.
Research Blog: Not published on Internet
Text: .jpg image files available on request


“I OPT” SNOWFLAKES (Templates identifying style characteristics)
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD 1999-2007
These "Snowflakes" are templates that identify characteristics associated with different strategic styles or patterns. The "Snowflakes" are designed so that transparencies of individual or group "I Opt" profiles can be overlaid on them. The characteristics identified will be proportional to the degree that the graphic overlays the particular area of the snowflake. At the time of this writing there are "Snowflakes" for General Behavior, Communication, Corporate Culture, General Culture, Learning and Emotional Impact.
Text: .jpg image files available on request, selected images in pdf and MSWord




“I OPT” CERTIFICATION


“I Opt” technology does not require certification prior to use. However, professionals can require a full command of the “who, what, when, where, why and how” of the technology to meet potential challenges by sophisticated, high level clients. “I Opt” certification fills this need using medical educational as its model. Scientifically grounded academic learning is combined with actual experience applied to “real world” team level interventions guided by fully qualified experts.

The listing below addresses the academic element of the program. This aspect of the program is arranged as a series of “classes” delivered in either narrated PowerPoint or video format (wmv files native to Microsoft Windows computers). The “classes” are broken up into 5 to 30 minute segments to provide an opportunity for reflective learning and to ease the time demands placed on candidates. Email, supplemental material and voice consultations with experts between the class sessions ensure a full grasp of knowledge. Multi-year experience on a worldwide basis has demonstrated the effectiveness of the certification program format.


CERTIFICATION SESSION 1: THEORY
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD  Session Length: ~ 15 min
This session shows how the entire “I Opt” model is derived. It shows why and how the resultant “I Opt” model produces measureable variables that are behaviorally predictive for both individuals and groups. The session shows how these variables create tools that can be applied in operational situations.
PowerPoint and .wmv video: Provided in Certification program


CERTIFICATION SESSION 2: INDIVIDUAL ANALYSIS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD  Session Length: ~1hr
This session applies the tools developed in Session 1 to predict the behavior of individuals. It explains the importance of secondary styles, shows how patterns can be measured and compared, how centroids can be used to estimate behavior and the implications of split and balanced profiles. It then examines style change, the equality of styles in their organizational importance and shows the characteristics of the organizational population as a whole.
PowerPoint and .wmv video: Provided in Certification program


CERTIFICATION SESSION 3: GROUP ANALYSIS
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD  Session Length: ~1hr 15 min
The process used by people in arriving at joint decisions is defined. Methods for estimating the likely direction and magnitude of joint decisions are specified for groups of all sizes. “I Opt” tool applications are demonstrated. The origin, logic and content of leadership traits by rank are outlined. The content and use of “I Opt” reports are reviewed. The application of the technology to large scale, firm wide issues is demonstrated.
PowerPoint and .wmv video: Provided in Certification program


CERTIFICATION SESSION 4: GUIDANCE
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD  Session Length: ~45 min
This session focuses on methods of changing behavior for individuals and groups. These methods all involve changing the situation rather than the individuals involved. The positive and negative aspects of multiple generally applicable strategies are outlined. The cost in terms of the maintenance effort required and probable duration of the change are specified.
PowerPoint and .wmv video: Provided in Certification program


CERTIFICATION SESSION 5: MATERIALITY
by: Gary J. Salton, PhD  Session Length: ~15 min
This session addresses the degree of confidence the candidate can have in “I Opt” technology as it applies to the various dimensions of organizational interventions. Statistical validity, certainty of analysis, scope of coverage, depth of insights and duration of effects are addressed.
PowerPoint and .wmv video: Provided in Certification program