June | 2012 | CEO People Management

It’s easier to retain employees who feel their talents are aligned with their work. Companies can do more to foster this process. People who are hired as a good fit from the beginning are more likely to stay in the long run.

Any executive knows the success of the business ultimately depends on the quality of employee talent. But finding the best talent is a challenge.

Too many companies waste time, energy and money on hiring strategies that don’t pay off in the long run. Some hiring managers make impulsive decisions, desperate to get a job filled quickly. Others wait too long, hoping to find the perfect candidate. By then, the company goals, needs, structure or environment may have changed.

Superstars are few and far between in organisations, typically less than 5% of the employee population. They’re small in number, but pull much weight in the business. Companies would like to find more stars and weed-out poor performers.

Think about it. How much time are you spending on helping weaker employees improve performance as opposed to helping stronger employees leverage success? How much time are you spending trying to fix a problem instead of building strength? The more superstars you have, the more you can focus on the leadership and business management issues you really need to or should address.

Where are the superstars hiding?

Some may be hidden in your own organisation just waiting to shine. Others you’ll need to attract from outside.

So where do you start? Organisations often instinctively focus on hiring tactics: running ads, posting openings, enlisting recruitment agencies, etc. But they’ve missed a critical step in the process: being very clear about the skills and capabilities required for a particular job.

“But we have a job description.” The job description typically outlines the job duties or responsibilities, but it doesn’t state the skills or attributes that are most critical to success.

In fact, if you were to gather a room full of people who hold the same job (e.g., sales representative or branch manager or customer service representative), they would have difficulty agreeing on the skill that is the most important to that particular job.

What is a superstar?

Some may believe that self accountability is most important, while others see decision-making, problem solving or interpersonal skills as most important. They can’t help imposing their own biases or experiences. Each person views the job through a different lens.

When determining what a “superstar” looks like in your business, don’t be limited by the people you currently employ. Too many organisations make the mistake of trying to set job performance standards based on the performance of their strongest internal people. Get ideas from other companies, even other industries.

Stretch your thinking. The ideal superstar may not resemble anyone in your business at the moment. Raise the bar. If you raise expectations, people will often rise to the occasion.

Be careful about making subjective decisions. Keep in mind a superstar in one job will look completely different from a superstar in another job. It’s tempting to select a candidate you like, but it’s more important to select a candidate based on what’s most important for the job.

Reaching agreement

Here is a suggested process to help you identify star potential:

Determine key accountabilities for the job Not the “to-do” types of responsibilities, but the main outcomes the person in the job is expected to achieve. Do this as a first step.
Project the needs of the business into the future Don’t ask, “What do we need right now?”. Ask, “What will the role look like 3-5 years from now?”. Forward-thinking companies keep a more long-term focus.
Establish a job benchmarkGain input from multiple stakeholders, not just those currently in the role. Consider involving supervisors for people in the job being benchmarked or other employees who interface with people in that job.
Use assessment toolsQuick surveys and benchmarking assessment tools can aid the process. The benchmark should reflect the most important skills, behaviours and motivators required for the job.

The key is reaching agreement on these issues at the beginning and being able to speak about what you ultimately want for the position in a common language that everyone understands.

With a benchmark established, you can ask candidates to take an assessment which will help you measure their strengths and skills against it. Of course, this is only part of the process. You’ll also need to consider their background, experience and interview impression.

A common lens

When everyone sees the same picture, you’ll see star potential more clearly and you’ll make more confident hiring decisions. You’ll stop crossing your fingers hoping the new person will perform well. Instead you will predict success.

Being clear about the skills required for the job also helps employees focus their development efforts. You can help would-be stars develop specific skill sets for them to be most successful in a given position. They’ll see a potential path for themselves and engage in their own growth.

Guest Author:

Gayle Lantz, President of WorkMatters, has helped hundreds of companies and organisations just like yours improve performance and drive real results. She is also author of ‘Take the Bull by the Horns: The Busy Leader’s Action Guide to Growing Your Business…and Yourself’.

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Many CEOs are good business strategists; yet when it comes to integrating team approaches in the organisation, there’s no real strategy.

With multiple teams operating within large organisations, team success is often based on the capability of their respective team leaders. Each leader needs some basic skills, strategy and support to help his or her team succeed.

With teams that are floundering, a common reaction is to resort to some kind of team building exercise. After all, many leaders find it difficult to point a finger at themselves when teams aren’t working well.

Despite best team building efforts, many organisations are still operating on low power when it comes to producing desired results. They’ve invested time and dollars in events that supposedly help team members bond and function coherently, yet results are short term at best.

So what’s the problem? Every situation is unique, but here are a few possibilities:

Some or all members don’t want to function as a team. They’ve become accustomed to operating independently and don’t see the value of operating as a whole. This can be especially common at senior executive levels where egos get in the way.
Team building isn’t linked to business results. Instead the team experienced artificial feel good exercises. Although the team has learned about each other’s behavioral styles, motivational profiles, individual strengths, etc., they have failed to connect their efforts to desired business outcomes.
There’s no follow-up beyond a one-time event. A successful team building process should be approached strategically, not as a one-time event hoping for the best. It should result in actionable ideas to help the team and organisation achieve their goals. Continued learning, action and reinforcement are critical.

Of all of the potential issues that can negatively affect team building, here are some of the most common impediments to team success in my experience and ways to overcome them.

Team building impediment #1: Fuzzy focus

In this situation, the team doesn’t really know how to function. Either the team has lost focus on results or members have never been clear of their goals in the first place. Instead, they’ve become too internally fixated on other team members – judging what they’re doing, making assumptions, speculating, back stabbing, finger pointing, etc. Without a clear focus, team members frequently react to events in their immediate environment. They become distracted by other team members or simply respond to whatever issue lands in their lap. There’s no strategic team focus or energy to move forward.

Leadership suggestion:

As the leader, you must step in and clarify big picture goals and expectations. In order to complete this task effectively, you must communicate the goals in a number of ways that appeal to a variety of team members. Some may need a visual representation (e.g., a roadmap); others may need to know the “why” behind the goals to buy in. Check for clarity. Ask the team to articulate their understanding of the overall goals in their own words. Then clarify or correct as needed.

Team building impediment #2: Lack of leadership

Leadership is critical to help the team succeed. Without it, team members will resort to their own methods. Some will run as far and fast as they can to prove themselves, pushing boundaries and taking on too much risk. Others will sit idle for as long as they can, performing as little as possible, yet complaining about how much work needs to get done. Some leaders are too busy concentrating on their own political or career agenda. Other leaders just don’t understand their role or possess good leadership skills.

Leadership suggestion:

Conduct regular strategic focus sessions. Strong leaders will help the team focus on the goal (the what) and key strategies (the how). Hold consistent informal one-on-one development meetings with direct reports to gain feedback, uncover trouble spots and leverage opportunities. If you need to build leadership skills yourself, make that a priority. If you value your career, find a coach or mentor to help you. Remember, in order to develop others – you must first develop yourself.

Team building impediment #3: Stuck in sameness

The team is stuck in practices that may have been established years ago. They’ve gotten lazy or stopped trying new approaches. New team members may be frustrated by the apparent lack of openness to new ideas or ways of operating. Experienced team members defend the way things have always been done.

Leadership suggestion:

Identify one aspect of the team that you would be excited to see change come about. Talk with your team to make sure everyone agrees it would be worth it to affect change in that area. Determine what the best possible outcome could be if the team made the change, adopted a new procedure, tried a new approach or do whatever it is you’re suggesting. Then call for ideas from the team on how to make it happen. Generating excitement about new possibilities makes it easier for the team to get unstuck.

The most effective teams can maintain best practices while adapting to new environments or organisational changes. They are not content with sameness or status quo. Their best practices include constantly seeking new and better ways to perform their job. They are not content with going through the motions or frivolous exercises that may help increase awareness, but stop there.

Final thoughts

Self awareness is critical at the CEO level, the executive team level as well as other levels within the organisation. However, if individuals can’t connect self awareness to business results, you’re not maximising productivity. Team members may find it interesting to learn more about team members, but be sure to help translate learning into results.

Great team leaders spend time clarifying goals, cultivating their own leadership skills and identifying new ways to achieve great results. Not to be confused with micromanaging, an effective leader will check in from time to time to make sure the organisation’s goals and strategies remain clear. At the same time, they help build capability of individual team members versus taking on the work of the team themselves.

Simply opening productive and constructive communication to a greater degree will help leaders increase their effectiveness and their teams function most effectively. Leaders often feel unnecessary pressure to tell everyone on the team what to do. Focus on influencing versus doing.

Team building is a means to an end, not an end in itself. What do you want your team to achieve?

Guest Author:

Gayle Lantz, President of WorkMatters, has helped hundreds of companies and organisations just like yours improve performance and drive real results.