CliftonStrengths is, quite possibly, the most widely used positive psychology-based profiler in the world today. Its main user base is in the US, but it has been translated into multiple languages and is used over the world.
Both Strengthscope® and CliftonStrengths help individuals and teams identify their strengths and use them to improve performance, but they approach strengths differently. Understanding these differences—and how the tools complement each other—can help you choose the best solution for your organisation.
What is CliftonStrengths?
Formerly known as StrengthsFinder or Gallup Strengthsfinder, CliftonStrengths is an assessment tool which includes 34 ‘talents’.
The author, Don Clifton, described talents as “naturally recurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior”. In other words, talents are the innate, natural abilities you can productively apply. To turn those talents into strengths, Clifton maintained that you must invest in them, by practicing using them and adding knowledge and skills to them. So CliftonStrengths claims to identify areas of talent, and if you invest in those talents, you can develop strengths.
The tool measures 34 talent themes, which are grouped into four domains:
- Executing – Getting things done (e.g., Achiever, Discipline)
- Influencing – Persuading others (e.g., Woo, Command)
- Relationship Building – Connecting with people (e.g., Empathy, Developer)
- Strategic Thinking – Planning and decision-making (e.g., Ideation, Strategic)
CliftonStrengths offers short (Top 5 strengths) and full (all 34 themes) reports. It follows a fixed ranking approach, meaning it categorises individuals based on their dominant talents.
CliftonStrengths is very widely used, making it a relatively easy choice for people professionals as many people have come across the name, meaning that it is seen as a ‘safe’ option because other people have used it.
Potential Limitations of CliftonStrengths
There are questions over the reliability (and so also validity) of the tool. In its own internal technical review, Gallup reported that of its 34 talents, 25 fall below the minimum standard for internal consistency reliability (0.7) and 21 of the 34 fall below the minimum standard for test-retest reliability (0.7).
In practice, this means that the CliftonStrengths tool is not reliable over time or situation, so it doesn’t report findings consistently. And if a tool is not reliable, it cannot be valid, it cannot measure what it claims to measure. So unfortunately, it’s tricky to recommend the tool for use in workplaces as people are likely to receive inaccurate reports of their talents, and their reported talents won’t be consistent over time.
While it is used by millions worldwide, especially in the US, some of the language used by CliftonStrengths is seen as less applicable to a global audience.
When completing CliftonStrengths, a timer is used to force users to answer questions within a specified time limit. For assessments which are based on people’s typical responses (as opposed to ‘maximum’ responses, which relate more to ability), it is not seen as good practice to place a time limit on users’ answers.
Unlike Strengthscope®, CliftonStrengths has not attained British Psychological Society test registration status.
What Is Strengthscope®?
Strengthscope® is a strengths-based assessment that identifies the unique strengths individual and teams, and how they can be applied to achieve peak performance. It is the only strengths assessment with BPS (British Psychological Society) registered test status, meaning it is scientifically validated and free from bias. Strengthscope® helps individuals and teams:
- Identify their unique strengths and what energises them.
- Recognise overdrive risks, where strengths might become counterproductive under pressure.
- Develop strategies to optimise performance and engagement.
- Build resilience by understanding how to tap into strengths in different situations.
- Gather regular feedback on the visibility and effective use of their strengths.
- Measure factors that impact their leadership effectiveness and team effectiveness.
When to Use Strengthscope®
- If you want to understand what drives performance.
- If you need a development-focused approach that helps individuals and teams apply their strengths.
- If you want to improve resilience, energy, and engagement in the workplace. See our latest Strengthscope® Impact Report for more information on this.
- If you’re coaching individuals or teams to make a unique contribution at work.
- If you want the option to launch a self-serve strengths-based assessment at scale.
Unlike CliftonStrengths, Strengthscope® allows individuals to gather feedback from others on how their strengths are perceived.
Potential Limitations of Strengthscope®
- It requires more in-depth reflection rather than a fixed ranking system.
- It is less well known globally. While widely used in the UK and internationally, it does not have the same level of brand recognition as CliftonStrengths in some regions.
- If individuals have no prior experience with psychometric tools, they may need an introductory framework first.
Strengthscope® also offers StrengthscopeTeam™ and StrengthscopeLeader™ for team and leadership development.
Key Differences between Strengthscope® and CliftonStrengths
CliftonStrengths refers to strengths as ‘talents’, whereas Strengthscope® defines strengths as ‘underlying qualities that energise you’.
Strengthscope® offers brief definitions about each strength with information around what that strength might look like working at its best, ways to optimise and stretch the strength as well as information around strengths in overdrive and how to reduce that performance risk.
CliftonStrengths offers longer descriptions about each talent, similar in style to a synposis.
A key difference is that the information within Strengthscope® encourages tangible actions to be taken for each strength whereas CliftonStrengths descriptions outlining the characteristics and behavioural aspects of the talents.
CliftonStrengths offer reports for teams and leaders but no 360 feedback reports.
Strengthscope® is British Psychological Society certified, whereas CliftonStrengths is not.
Can Strengthscope® and CliftonStrengths be used together?
Since they are both strength-based assessments, we would not recommend that you use them together.
The short version of the CliftonStrengths report, which only includes your top five talents, could be cheaper than Strengthscope® and individuals can complete the assessment without the need for a debrief.
However, the CliftonStrengths full report, which includes all 34 talents, is more expensive than the standard Strengthscope® report.
The standard Strengthscope® report includes information about all 24 strengths as presented on the wheel of energy. The wheel is simple to understand and offers full visibility on all strengths.
Strengthscope® uses simpler universal language that is easily applied to the workplace whereas the language of the talents in CliftonStrengths is less easily accessible. Therefore, in terms of integration of strengths into daily life in organisations, Strengthscope®’s work-related strengths and language are seen as being more inclusive for a global audience.
Final Thoughts: Which One Should You Choose?
Ultimately, choosing whether to use Strengthscope® or CliftonStrengths will come down to a number of factors.
Recommended questions to ask in order to come to a decision include:
- Is the accuracy of the assessment tool important to the intended user group? That is, will it matter if the results reported are accurate and consistent? If the answer is yes, Strengthscope® is the favoured option.
- How will the language used by the assessment tool land with the intended audience? As mentioned, Strengthscope® tends to use more accessible and inclusive language.
- How important to the user group is it that the assessment has been used by millions of people? If this is important to the intended users, CliftonStrengths may be the better option.
Interested in how Strengthscope® can be used in your organisations or with your clients? Get in touch with us today!
Interested in becoming an accredited Strengthscope® practitioner? The foundational Strengthscope® Accreditation is delivered across 2 days. Once obtained, the accreditation is valid for life. Our accredited practitioners receive additional business development and training support to change more lives with strengths. Learn more here.
