Why does Sabre use the Belbin Model instead of DISC in team building?

When it comes to understanding people and improving teamwork, there is no shortage of personality models and profiling tools on the market. One of the most widely promoted in team building is DISC.

While simple frameworks such as DISC can have surface appeal for team building, at Sabre we’ve found DISC to be somewhat narrow and lacking in scientific depth for our style of working. The complex realities of workplace individuals and teams demands a more researched and robust apporoach.  We feel that using a diagnsotic tool that lacks breadth and depth can undermine the chances of gaining genuine insights into working relationships and actual workplace team dynamics.

By contrast, we prefer the Belbin Team Role Model, which is grounded in decades of research and designed specifically to enhance real-world team performance. Belbin goes beyond static “types” and looks at the dynamic behaviours people bring to different team contexts. In our experience (over 37 years) it provides far richer insights, practical tools, and a more reliable foundation for leadership and organisational development.

Yes, of course we are now the Australian Distributor for Belbin, but one of the main reasons that we became the Belbin Distributor is that whilst we used many tools (such as DISC, MBTI, LSI etc), we gradually migrated more to Belbin for its impact and lasting value.  There’s therefore greater profesisoanl depth to our decision to use Belbin over DISC.

Some limitations of DISC

• Simplifies things into four static types, ignores the reality of nuance in teams.

• Low scientific validity and weak predictive power.

• Inconsistent reliability — results can change significantly on re-test.

• Encourages labelling and stereotyping (“You’re a D, so you must act like this”).

• Overlooks situational, cultural and motivational factors.

• Originates largely from pop-psychology / commercial training markets.

• Limited team application — more about individual style than true team dynamics.

Belbin Strengths in contrast with those limitations as we have experienced them

• Built from decades of peer-reviewed research at Henley Management College Oxford and at Cambridge, with decades of ongoing validation worldwide.

• Recognises nine interdependent behavioural team roles, not a handful of rigid types.

• Focuses on observable behaviours in a team context, not just self-perception.

• Uses a proven 360-degree feedback (Self + Observer Assessments) for greater reliability and accuracy.

• Provides dynamic and situational insight — showing how individuals flex across roles depending on the context.

• Designed from inception specifically to address team performance, culture, and leadership dynamics, not just individual profiling.

• Offers a suite of practical reports (Individual, Team, Working Relationship, Job, etc.) that guide real-world application in more depth.

• Avoids labelling — people are encouraged to see their potential contributions across multiple roles, not boxed into one “type.”

• Widely used by organisations globally as a trusted, evidence-based tool for L&D, OD, and leadership development.

  
  

In short:  Belbin shows you “how you contribute” in a team — and is backed by stronger science, richer data, and a direct link to teamwork outcomes.

At Sabre, we’ve been working with many tools including the Belbin Team Role Model since the 1980s, and we’ve seen first-hand how Belbin actually transforms the way organisations understand and develop their people. Unlike simplified tools such as DISC, Belbin gives teams a practical and genuinely research-backed way to recognise strengths, manage weaknesses, and align behaviours with real business outcomes.

For us, the choice is clear. If you want more than just a shallow label — if you want deeper insights that genuinely improve collaboration, leadership, and culture — Belbin is the tool of choice. It’s why we continue to recommend it to our clients, and why it has become such a cornerstone of our team building and leadership development work across Australia and beyond.