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What Are the 9 Belbin Team Roles?

Understanding Belbin Roles and How They Improve Team Performance.

Belbin Team​ Roles are nine distinct patterns of workplace behavior that determine how individuals contribute to team success. Unlike personality tests such as DISC, Belbin focuses on observable behavior — what people actually do in teams — giving leaders actionable, validated data.

Based on over 40 years of research by Dr. Meredith Belbin, the model shows that the most successful teams have a diverse mix of behaviors. Representing each of the nine Team Role behaviors at the right time improves collaboration, productivity, and engagement — delivering measurable results.

There are nine Belbin Roles, grouped into three categories:

Social Roles
CoordinatorCoordinator
TeamworkerTeamworker
Resource InvestigatorResource Investigator
CoordinatorCoordinator
Needed to focus on the team’s objectives, draw out team members and delegate work appropriately.

Strengths: Mature, confident, identifies talent. Clarifies goals.

Allowable weaknesses:
Can be seen as manipulative and might offload their own share of the work.
CoordinatorTeamworker
Helps the team to gel, using their versatility to identify the work required and complete it on behalf of the team.

Strengths: Co-operative, perceptive and diplomatic. Listens and averts friction.

Allowable weaknesses: Can be indecisive in crunch situations and tends to avoid confrontation.
CoordinatorResource Investigator
Uses their inquisitive nature to find ideas to bring back to the team.

Strengths: Outgoing, enthusiastic. Explores opportunities and develops contacts.

Allowable weaknesses: Might be over-optimistic, and can lose interest once the initial enthusiasm has passed.
Thinking Roles
PlantPlant
Monitor EvaulatorMonitor Evaulator
Specialist Specialist
PlantPlant
Tends to be highly creative and good at solving problems in unconventional ways.

Strengths: Creative, imaginative, free-thinking, generates ideas and solves difficult problems.

Allowable weaknesses: Might ignore incidentals, and may be too preoccupied to communicate effectively.
Monitor EvaulatorMonitor Evaulator
Provides a logical eye, making impartial judgements where required and weighs up the team’s options in a dispassionate way.

Strengths: Sober, strategic and discerning. Sees all options and judges accurately.

Allowable weaknesses: Sometimes lacks the drive and ability to inspire others and can be overly critical.
Specialist Specialist
Brings in-depth knowledge of a key area to the team.

Strengths: Single-minded, self-starting and dedicated. They provide specialist knowledge and skills.

Allowable weaknesses: Tends to contribute on a narrow front and can dwell on the technicalities.
Action Roles
ShaperShaper
ImplementerImplementer
Completer Finisher Completer Finisher
ShaperShaper
Provides the necessary drive to ensure that the team keeps moving and does not lose focus or momentum.

Strengths: Challenging, dynamic, thrives on pressure. Has the drive and courage to overcome obstacles.

Allowable weaknesses: Can be prone to provocation, and may sometimes offend people’s feelings.
ImplementerImplementer
Needed to plan a workable strategy and carry it out as efficiently as possible.

Strengths: Practical, reliable, efficient. Turns ideas into actions and organizes work that needs to be done.

Allowable weaknesses: Can be a bit inflexible and slow to respond to new possibilities.
Completer Finisher Completer Finisher
Most effectively used at the end of tasks to polish and scrutinize the work for errors, subjecting it to the highest standards of quality control.

Strengths: Painstaking, conscientious, anxious. Searches out errors. Polishes and perfects.

Allowable weaknesses: Can be inclined to worry unduly, and reluctant to delegate.

How Do I Find Out My Belbin Team Roles?

The official way to discover your Belbin Team​ Role strengths and weaknesses is by completing a Belbin Individual Report.

Unlike personality tools like DISC that focus on internal preferences, a Belbin Report reveals how you show up in a team — your behavior, strengths, and real-world impact.

It’s not about who you are. It’s about what you do — and how to make that work smarter.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

  • Your top Belbin Roles — and which ones may present challenges
  • How your team or observers perceive your strengths in action
  • Specific strategies to leverage your strengths and manage blind spots
  • Recommended working styles, team contributions, and ideal role placements
Sample page from a Belbin Individual Report showing team role scores and behavioral strengths
Sample page from a Belbin Individual Report showing team role scores and behavioral strengths
Sample page from a Belbin Individual Report showing team role scores and behavioral strengths
Sample page from a Belbin Individual Report showing team role scores and behavioral strengths
Sample page from a Belbin Group Report showing team role distribution and collaboration insights
Sample page from a Belbin Group Report showing team role distribution and collaboration insights
Sample page from a Belbin Group Report showing team role distribution and collaboration insights
Sample page from a Belbin Group Report showing team role distribution and collaboration insights

And when used across a group, a Belbin Team Report shows how individual behaviors interact — revealing gaps, overlaps, and untapped potential. It’s a practical tool for designing balanced, high-performing teams.

🚀 Why Belbin Roles Drive Results

  • Spot behavior gaps that personality tools miss
  • Improve role clarity, reduce team conflict
  • Assign work based on strengths-in-action, not assumptions
  • Build trust, engagement, and retention with aligned team dynamics
  • Apply insights immediately — no fluff, no “type” box


👉 [Learn about Belbin versus other team assessments]

Move beyond personality. Get to team dynamics.

Evidence your CFO will love.
HR and L&D leaders are under more pressure than ever to prove ROI. Belbin measures what people do in teams — so you can spot collaboration gaps, reassign work smartly, and see measurable gains in productivity and engagement. No personality labels. No fluff.

Curious how your team stacks up?
In one session, we’ll show you how a Belbin assessment works, what your Team Collaboration Map could look like, and how we help teams perform at their best — without guesswork.

Let’s talk.
Fill out the form or call us now  to book your free discovery session.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How is Belbin different from DISC or other personality tests?
A: While tools like DISC measure personality preferences, Belbin focuses on observable behavior — what people actually do in a team. This provides leaders with actionable insights to improve collaboration, assign work effectively, and boost team performance.

Q: Why are Belbin Team​​ Roles important for HR, L&D, and OD leaders?
A: Belbin helps identify behavioral strengths and gaps within teams, allowing HR, L&D, and OD leaders to design balanced, high-performing groups. This leads to improved productivity, engagement, and retention.

Q: How can Belbin improve team performance?
A: By understanding each member’s preferred team role, leaders can assign tasks that align with strengths, reduce conflict, close collaboration gaps, and ensure critical roles are covered.

Q: How do I find out my Belbin Team​​ Roles?
A: The official way to discover your Belbin Team​ Roles is to complete a Belbin Individual Report, ideally combined with feedback from colleagues using the Observer Assessment for a well-rounded view.

Q: Can Belbin be used with DISC or other assessments?
A: Yes. Many organizations use Belbin alongside DISC, MBTI, or other personality tools. Belbin builds on personality insights by showing how people behave in teams, turning “type” information into practical action.

Trusted by the Teams Who Can’t Afford to Miss

Belbin has been trusted by global organizations for over 35 years—including Fortune 1000 companies who know performance isn’t about personality, it’s about team chemistry.

It’s not just theory—it’s the Gold Standard in team dynamics.

“Belbin gave us a framework we didn’t even know we needed. It changed how we collaborate.”

— Director, Global Strategy, Pharmaceutical Company

Lindsay Lalla

Lindsay Lalla is the VP of Marketing and Client Support for Belbin North America. Most recently, she has been spearheading the introduction of the Belbin Team Role methodology into North America. Lindsay is a skilled facilitator, and also runs the Belbin Accreditation classes where she certifies others in the Belbin method.
Lindsay’s formal education is in instruction and performance. Combined with her 17 years of adult education experience, she brings a depth of understanding in how to deliver the highly experiential workshops that are a hallmark of the Belbin North America approach to education and organizational development.

Patrick Ballin

Patrick offers more than 25 years of experience with some of the most successful businesses in Europe as a consultant, change manager and executive coach.

He has helped many well-known organisations to get their ideas and projects off the ground by working with business leaders and their teams to optimise interaction, strategy and execution.
Patrick was Global Head of Supply Chain and Logistics Development for The Body Shop, an international retailer of ethical health and beauty products, and managed its change programme across 52 countries. In 2009, he set up the national redundancy coaching service, Rework, for the UK industry charity, Retail Trust. Patrick spent his earlier career with ACWL Group, one of the pioneering UK Apple Centres, where he was a divisional Director.
He holds an MA in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge, is a Visiting Lecturer for Brighton Business School, a Fellow of the RSA and coach for social enterprise incubator On Purpose.

Max Isaac

Max is the CEO of 3Circle Partners. He brings a depth of knowledge and experience from his career in general management and consulting in North America, England, Europe and Asia.
Max has assisted CEOs and senior leaders within client organizations with the design and implementation of Interaction Planning processes, team based organizational development programs and Lean Six Sigma initiatives.
Prior to moving into the field of organizational development, Max was the CFO for the Retail Division within The Molson’s Organization, where he took a lead role in growing the business to over $1 billion in revenues, doubling its size in four years through acquisitions and internal growth.
Max is co-author of Close The Interaction Gap, The Third Circle – Interactions That Drive Results, Setting Teams Up for Success and A Guide to Team Roles. He is also the contributing author of the Organizational Change sections of Mike George’s books Lean Six Sigma published in May 2002 and Lean Six Sigma for Service published in June 2003. Max is a registered CPA, CA in Canada. His undergraduate degree was earned at Witwatersrand University, South Africa.