The Brain-Based Social Styles™ Course
For Coaches, Industrial Psychologists & People Leaders
Get certified to apply neuroscience-based strategies that improve communication, collaboration and performance for individuals and teams.
Self-paced
100% online Learning
R 7 800 ex vat (~460 USD)
Get Certified
Why Brain-based Social Styles™ matter
The Problem
When people misread each other, performance drops.
As a coach, industrial psychologist or people leader you see it daily: smart people talking past each other, avoidable conflict, and teams that never quite reach their potential.
- Conversations that get stuck in defensiveness or silence
- Managers who struggle to adapt their style to different personalities
- Teams wasting energy on misunderstandings instead of results
The Promise
Give people a shared, brain-based language for behaviour.
The Brain-based Social Styles™ Course equips you to use validated Social Styles assessments and a practical neuroscience framework to:
- Decode how different styles think, decide and respond under stress
- Facilitate powerful debriefs for individuals and teams
- Develop people to adapt their behaviour for better trust, collaboration and performance
What are Brain-based Social Styles™?
Brain-based Social Styles™ is a neuroscience informed model that describes how people typically interact, communicate and behave in social and professional settings. Each style reflects a unique blend of brain-based preferences and observable behaviour – how we process information, make decisions, respond under stress and connect with others.
The Brain-based Social Styles™ Assessment uses a statistically validated scale to identify a person’s primary and secondary styles, along with the neurological aspects that underpin them. Reliability testing shows an acceptable Cronbach alpha of 0.70, with strong validity scores for key dimensions such as versatility.
Instead of putting people in rigid boxes, the model gives teams and practitioners a shared language to talk about behaviour in a constructive way and to choose more effective responses in real situations.
Why organisations use Brain-based Social Styles™
- To give leaders, coaches and teams a practical language for behaviour that is grounded in neuroscience
- To improve day to day communication and reduce costly misunderstandings
- To surface differences in pace, priorities and decision making in a non threatening way
- To create more intentional, adaptable ways of working together across functions and levels
The four primary Brain-based Social Styles™
The model identifies four primary Social Styles. Most people have one dominant style with a strong secondary style that also influences how they show up.
Analytics are precise and they are experts in the area of techniques. They have a strong sense of duty and obligation and are driven by a forceful work ethic.
Expressives are impulsive people who love to socialise. They like to try the new and different, and enjoy commitment.
Amiables are known to be likeable and supportive of others. They work well with others, promote harmony, like to work with words and often influence larger groups through writing.
Drivers have a strong compulsion to perform and be in control. They take pleasure in almost any kind of work because it involves activity, therefore they dislike idleness.
What you’ll learn in the course
In this course you will build a solid foundation in Brain-based Social Styles™ and learn how to use the assessment and model confidently in your own practice and workplace.
Understand and apply the Brain-based Social Styles™ model
Integrate foundational neuroscience with observable behaviour so you can accurately recognise different social styles in everyday interactions.
Interpret Brain-based Social Styles™ reports
Read and explain a Brain-based Social Styles™ assessment report, highlight key insights and link them to real work situations.
Debrief individuals with confidence
Structure one-to-one debrief conversations that build self-awareness, help people understand their strengths and stress responses, and explore practical ways to adapt their behaviour.
Facilitate team discussions and workshops
Guide team conversations about different styles, work preferences, pace and priorities so that people can improve collaboration, influence and overall team cohesion.
Coach style-appropriate strategies for real work challenges
Use style insights to help leaders and teams handle conflict, decision-making, communication breakdowns and “back-against-the-wall” stress reactions more effectively.
Embed Brain-based Social Styles™ assessments in your practice
Integrate Brain-based Social Styles™ assessments into your coaching, HR, L&D or organisational development work as a
repeatable, neuroscience-based framework.
You’ll learn through short inputs on neuroscience and behaviour with practical examples, online and 100% self-paced.
The Brain-Based Social Styles™ Assessment
Every participant completes their own Brain-based Social Styles™ Assessment as part of the course –
the assessment and personalised report are included in the course fee.
During the course you will:
- Use your own report as a live case study to explore your primary and secondary styles.
- See how the assessment highlights strengths, stress responses, communication patterns and areas for growth.
- Practise interpreting reports and debriefing others in a safe environment before doing this with clients or teams.
After successful completion of the course:
- You are authorised by NIB to debrief anyone who has completed a Brain-based Social Styles™ Assessment.
- You can purchase additional assessments at practitioner rates for your clients or team members (current rate: ZAR 980 / USD 47.50 per assessment).
- You receive formal accreditation from NIB and may use our materials within the agreed guidelines.
Who is this course for
Coaches & Independent Practitioners
- Add a neuroscience-backed assessment to your toolkit
- Interpret and debrief Brain-based Social Styles™ reports
- Create a repeatable, billable service for clients
Industrial & Organisational Psychologists
- Integrate Brain-based Social Styles™ into assessments & interventions
- Link behaviour to underlying brain-based preferences
- Support clients with deeper, evidence informed insights
HR, People Leaders & OD Professionals
- Build a shared language for behaviour across teams
- Facilitate Social Styles conversations and workshops
- Strengthen collaboration, trust and performance
How the course works
- Complete the course enrolment form
- Pay for the course
- Register for the FREE BBSS™ Assessment
- Complete your FREE BBSS™ Assessment
- Register on the NIBLearn online platform
- You now have access to all the course videos and content
Outline of the course
- Welcome
- Ethics
- Overview of course
- Summary of each style
- Basic Neuroscience
- Behavioural Tendencies
- Ask Task Tell Relationship model
- Leading
- Following
- Compatibility
- Communication
- Back against the wall
- Work Style
- Pace and Priority
- Conflict, tact, patience and decision-making
- Versatility
- Your make-up
- Approach and avoid states
- Heart-brain connection
- Case study 1 and 2
Fees & payment
Standard course fee:
R 7 800 ex VAT per person (~460 USD)
For international participants:
NIB accepts international payments.
What's included
Your course fee includes:
- Video sessions by Dr Charlene Heyns-Nell.
- Your personal Brain-based Social Styles™ Assessment and report.
- Access to course presentations, readings and activities for 3 months.
- Access to an ongoing WhatsApp Community of Practice (COP) where practitioners can ask questions and share experiences (currently open-ended).
After the course
On successful completion of the course, you:
- Receive formal accreditation from the Neuroscience Institute for Business (NIB)
- Receive a digital badge you can add to your email signature and LinkedIn profile to showcase your status as a Brain-based Social Styles™ practitioner.
- Are authorised to debrief anyone who has completed a Brain-based Social Styles™ Assessment.
- May purchase additional assessments at practitioner rates for your clients or team members.
Course convenor - Dr Charléne Heyns-Nell
Dr Charléne Heyns-Nell is a certified neurofeedback practitioner, brain researcher and strategist, and the founder and Managing Director of the Neuroscience Institute for Business (NIB). She specialises in applying neuroscience to leadership, coaching and organisational development, helping leaders and teams understand how the brain works so they can change how they work.
Selected credentials
- Certified Neurofeedback Practitioner; NeuroCoach & NeuroMentor; Neuroscience Change Specialist
- Certificates in Medical Neuroscience (Duke University), Neuroeconomics, and Quantitative EEG Recording and Analysis
Enrol in the Brain-based Social Styles™ Course
Our Customer Success Stories
Rated 5 out of 5
I appreciate the clear goals that were established from the beginning, and I am impressed by how we consistently focus on those goals throughout each session. Although stepping out of my comfort zone was challenging at first, I found great comfort in your approach and guidance on how to improve.
The sessions exceeded my expectations, and I firmly believe that I have gained significantly insights, both personally and professionally.
This is one of the best workshops I have attended in my career. I really enjoyed the way the team opened up and came together through shared vulnerability.
Charlene had good understanding of the company dynamics. Great interaction amongst the team. Good combination of serious topics discussed and some good fun. Team felt comfortable to address concerning topics – action plans created. Also relevant in personal life scenarios. Great facilitator!
Neurofeedback really helped me to regain control of my life. After falling into depression I found myself at times contemplating wheather I would ever get out of this situation and be my “old self” again. It is something that is hard to explain to someone. Today I am back to being my “old self” thanks to Dr. Charlene, and it is wonderful. D T.K
I enjoyed the safe space created to share personal experiences. Thank you for allowing us to wander off topic sometimes, the sharing was therapeutic.It helped to identify my weak areas, and gave me tools and techniques to address them. I feel empowered to make the changes I identified during the training. I will listen better, flex my style when I need to, face challenges knowing that I am well equipped. Dynamic, introspective, life changing!!
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About the Neuroscience Institute for Business (NIB)
At the Neuroscience Institute for Business (NIB) we develop teams through neuroscience. We’re an innovative brain research and training company that specialises in Neuroscience for Business, offering individual, team and organisational development solutions underpinned by solid brain science. Neuroscience provides the intellectual foundation for our work and equips managers and their teams with structured, evidence-informed interventions.
We research and train the mind and the brain using medical-grade brainmaps and EEG, and we translate those insights into practical workshops, accreditations and interventions for individuals and teams. Whether through neurofeedback, accredited courses or programmes like the Brain-based Social Styles Course, our guiding question is always the same: how do we leave individuals and organisations improved?
Licenses and Affiliations
Brain-based Social Styles™ FAQs
There are no formal prerequisites for the course.
The course is ideal for coaches, industrial/organisational psychologists, HR and OD leaders, L&D professionals and consultants who work with people and teams and want a practical, neuroscience-based framework for understanding and improving behaviour at work.
Yes. Every participant completes their own Brain-based Social Styles™ Assessment as part of the course, and the cost of the assessment and report is included in your course fee.
From the day you have access to the NIBLearn Platform, you have three months to earn your certificate.
All course materials are hosted on NIBLearn, our online learning platform. You’ll get access to:
- Course presentations
- Readings and reference materials
- Activities and exercises
You’ll receive instructions showing you how to create your NIBLearn account and email support for any technical issues. Your access to the online materials lasts for 3 months from the start of the course.
Yes. On successful completion of the course you:
- Receive formal accreditation from NIB as a Brain-based Social Styles™ practitioner
- Receive a digital badge you can add to your email signature and LinkedIn profile
Yes. You’ll be invited to join our WhatsApp Community of Practice (COP) where practitioners can ask questions, share experiences and support each other in applying Brain-based Social Styles™ in their work. At the moment, this community is open-ended with no fixed end date.
Yes. We welcome participants from outside South Africa.
For payments, we accept international payments and you can pay:
- By bank transfer, or
- By credit card on our website, or
- Via PayPal using a link we send you once you’ve enrolled
Your bank and currency provider will handle the currency conversion into ZAR (South African rand).
Yes. We are an Accredited Service Provider with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA). This course carries 10 CPD points which we will, on your behalf, upload to the HPCSA portal.
We run a free Brain-based Social Styles masterclass on MS Teams on a regular basis. It introduces the model and the assessment, and helps people understand how Brain-based Social Styles™ can elevate leadership and team effectiveness. Upcoming dates are updated on LinkedIn and the NIB website
If you’re ready to work with Brain-based Social Styles™ in your professional practice or organisation, the course is the right next step. If you’d first like to learn more and experience the model, the masterclass is a great place to start.
Our cancellation, refund and substitution policy is set out in our Terms and Conditions, which we link to in our quotations and invoices. You can read the full policy here.