Conscientious Styles are both indirect and guarded. They are concerned with analytical processes and are persistent, systematic problem-solvers. They can also be seen as aloof, picky, and critical. Conscientious Styles are very security-conscious and have a high need to be right, leading them to an over reliance on data collection. In their quest for data, they tend to ask many questions about specifics. Their actions and decisions tend to be slow and extremely cautious, but they rarely miss a deadline. Although they are great problem-solvers, Conscientious Styles could be better decision-makers.

Conscientious Styles tend to be perfectionistic, serious, and orderly. They focus on the details and the process of work and become irritated by surprises and “glitches.” Their theme is, “Notice my efficiency,” and their emphasis is on compliance and working within existing guidelines to promote quality in products or service.

Conscientious Styles like organization and structure and dislike too much involvement with other people. They work slowly and precisely by themselves, are time-disciplined, and prefer an intellectual work environment. Conscientious Styles tend to be critical of their own performance. They tend to be skeptical and like to see things in writing.

The Conscientious Style’s primary strengths are their accuracy, dependability, independence, follow-through, and organization. Their primary weaknesses are their procrastination and conservative natures, which promote their tendency to be picky and over-cautious. Occupations that they tend to gravitate toward are accounting, engineering, computer programming, the hard sciences (chemistry, physics, math), systems analysis and architecture.

The greatest irritation for Conscientious Styles is disorganized, illogical people. In business environments, they want others to be credible, professional, and courteous. In social environments, they like others to be pleasant and sincere.

Environmental clues include highly organized desks with clear tops. Their office walls contain their favorite types of artwork: charts, graphs, exhibits, or pictures pertaining to the job. Conscientious Styles are non-contact people who prefer the formality of distance. This preference is reflected in the functional but uninviting arrangement of their desks and chairs. They are not fond of “huggers” and “touchers” and prefer a cool handshake or a brief phone call.

To improve their balance and behavioral flexibility, Conscientious Styles need to: openly show concern and appreciation of others; try shortcuts and time-savers occasionally, adjust more readily to change and disorganization, improve timely decision-making and initiation of new projects, compromise with the opposition, state unpopular decisions, and use policies more as guidelines than hard and fast laws.