Interview with Jarosław Zamroch, Lumina Learning Partner working with Ornsson Solutions
Ornsson Solutions: So, what is Lumina? What does inclusive psychometrics mean? How can we truly discover the potential and talents of employees to support their development effectively? Jarosław Zamroch, Lumina Learning Partner and a collaborator of Ornsson Solutions, has the answers.
– Not everyone is enthusiastic about psychometric tools. What’s your stance?
Jarosław Zamroch: I used to feel the same. I considered them too generic, pigeonholing people and failing to reflect the multidimensional and complex nature of human personality. My opinion was based on experience – I’ve been active in the coaching and training field for over 20 years.
– … until Lumina came along.
JZ: In 2016, I first encountered the Lumina Learning methodology – bringing with me all my skepticism and reservations about such tools. But as I began to explore the solution and the know-how behind it, I realized how groundbreaking the concept is and how incredibly useful the insights it provides are.
– What changed your mind?
JZ: Two key areas that make a huge difference: inclusiveness and diversity. Lumina doesn’t categorize people, it doesn’t use typologies, and it doesn’t label them as having “good” or “bad” traits. It’s not a simple, one-dimensional assessment of competencies, but rather an effective and compelling picture of our traits and behaviors—free of stereotypes, labels, and false dichotomies. Lumina avoids generalizations, as generalizations exclude; they assign us to a category where we identify with one element and oppose another. That doesn’t reflect reality—it’s not constructive and locks us into patterns. We’re not simply introverts or extroverts—our behavior in a given situation depends on many variables: our mood, environment, pressure, or relationships.
When someone completes a basic psychometric test and is told they have a dominant style, they often begin to identify with that and act accordingly—overemphasizing their views, ignoring others, and abusing their dominance, which usually ends poorly—for the person and the organization. Lumina goes far beyond that. It shows us that humans are inherently multidimensional and nuanced—and that’s where the richness lies.
– What are the benefits of Lumina? Why should someone explore this path?
JZ: Lumina is grounded in positive psychology—it inclusively highlights people’s capabilities, talents, and development potential. When used skillfully, the results benefit everyone—the employer, who can better harness their team’s true potential and assign tasks aligned with individual strengths, and the employee, who gains valuable self-insight and deepens their self-awareness. It’s a reliable, precise, and high-quality form of feedback for both sides.
Lumina supports effective talent-based management—talent being a company’s most important asset. By raising employee awareness, it fosters team collaboration, embraces diversity, and enhances job satisfaction. It also helps attract top candidates—people want to work for companies that treat them as individuals and invest in their growth.
Another key benefit for companies is knowledge transfer. We move from “know-how” to “show-how”—we demonstrate how to work with Lumina so that the company eventually becomes self-sufficient. We train and certify internal trainers who pass on this knowledge and use it within the organization. Everyone who takes the Lumina assessment gets access to a mobile app—with all data and visualizations. Participants also get two companion apps: Spark Coach and Journey to Composure. These allow users to set personal development goals and areas for improvement based on their profile. The cost is one-time, but the benefits last for years.
– What does Lumina look like in practice?
JZ: The core tool is the Lumina Spark questionnaire, which creates a multidimensional portrait of a person. It reveals 24 personality traits and their correlations. The result is the Lumina Splash mandala—a visual representation of the individual’s personality.
The goal is to show a complete, true, and multifaceted picture of a person. It’s a fully person-centered approach that reveals how we act, who we are, and what our nature is. Lumina provides profiles across three dimensions: the natural self (who we are at our core), the everyday self (how we behave considering external roles), and the overextended self (how we act under stress). Analyzing how our actions and reactions shift across these contexts is fascinating and incredibly informative.
I’ve been in this industry for years and often see training programs miss the mark because they’re not personalized to participant profiles. Companies spend big and get no results. Lumina addresses this—by offering a complex portrait of the person, it guides which actions will be effective, what to work on, and which talents are untapped. It’s a powerful knowledge source and a long-term self-development tool.
– You mentioned diversity as a core value—what does that mean in business practice?
JZ: The questionnaire shows a person’s full complexity without judging what’s good or bad. That opens up tolerance, acceptance, empathy, and understanding that people are different—and we should embrace that. In business, the goal is to integrate a diverse team into a functional whole, one that helps the company achieve its goals while ensuring good collaboration.
Awareness of human differences and acknowledging them should extend to relationships, team roles, and work conditions. Some thrive in silence, others in buzz and stimuli. Forcing socialization on introverts is harmful—to the person and the company. Creating “average” conditions satisfies no one. To personalize these effectively, you need deep insight into employees’ preferences—and Lumina provides that. It’s a concrete data set that, with proper analysis, helps remove barriers and leverage opportunities.
– Can you “cheat” Lumina? Answer the way you want to be seen, not who you are?
JZ: That’s much harder than with simple typology-based psychometric tests. In fact, nearly impossible. The algorithm is resistant to manipulation. Personality traits are tested from many angles and in various contexts. Spark has 144 questions with multiple interlinked correlations—it’s too complex to fake. Traits aren’t tested in binary terms.
– What kind of companies is Lumina for? Will it work everywhere?
JZ: The foundation is partnership and trust. The team must trust that the manager introducing Lumina has good intentions. There must be a shared goal—growth for individuals and the organization. This rules out rigid hierarchies where employees are afraid to knock on the boss’s door.
– Yet many companies still operate that way. Should we not approach them?
JZ: There’s always value in trying—good solutions are worth promoting. It’s just a matter of doing it effectively. We often start small—using Lumina with one project team. These are usually less hierarchical and more open. When Lumina-driven changes yield visible results, that success helps us scale the solution within the organization. I work with large companies where every employee now uses Lumina.
– How difficult is it to work with Lumina?
JZ: The questionnaire is the easy part—it takes 20–30 minutes. What follows takes more effort—as it always does when meaningful change is the goal. Working on self-awareness can be tough and slow, but the results are spectacular. It’s worth the investment.
The beauty of Lumina is that your profile remains useful for years. As our challenges and needs evolve, and we change too, each return to the profile reveals new insights.
– Do people fear filling out the questionnaire—worried their results might be used against them?
JZ: If that fear exists, it’s a red flag—trust is lacking. That’s a problem for both staff and managers. Still, I’d say it’s worth doing the questionnaire—your profile will serve you wherever you work, even in your personal life. And if that worst-case scenario plays out—it might be a sign to look for a new job.
Lumina can be a real game-changer for professional life. It helps people choose careers that fit who they really are. If students had widespread access to this tool, we’d have a much happier workforce.
– Lumina is more than just Spark.
JZ: Spark is just the start—a foundation for further work. But Lumina is a whole methodology applied across tailored tools. Lumina Emotion analyzes emotional intelligence, stress resilience, and adaptability. Lumina Leader helps identify and develop leadership styles. Lumina Select supports HR and management in recruitment and aligning candidates’ competencies with organizational needs. It can generate massive savings—bad hires cost tens or even hundreds of thousands. Select, combined with a strong behavioral interview, rivals assessment centers at a fraction of the cost.
– What would you say to a manager who says: “I don’t need this—I’m doing great”?
JZ: I’d ask if they’re ready to bear the cost of doing nothing—which is high. Not using people’s full potential harms results and increases costly turnover. Also, management models are evolving fast—rigid hierarchies are giving way to open, partnership-based structures. That shift is tough but inevitable—driven by effectiveness and generational expectations.
In this context, Lumina is the perfect tool—it empowers inclusive, diversity-aware leadership grounded in real knowledge. It unlocks employee potential, reveals talents, and strengthens team collaboration—for the benefit of both the company and its people. It’s incredibly versatile and fits many projects and settings. And it pays off quickly—we’ve seen that time and again.
