A recent conversation with a future client has really gotten me thinking about who an organization's "top performers" really are.
The conversation went something like this:
"We need a strategy to get more people like 'Jan' on our bus and we need to make sure we don't hire any more 'Freds'"
Jan is the "top performer" in her position and this potential client wanted more team members just like her on their bus.
While Jan is the current "top performer" in the organization for her position, what if she is only performing at 80% of what the position is truly capable of delivering? Don't get me wrong, Jan looks great when you stack her up next to Fred. However, I can't help but wonder… what if Jan isn't the perfect fit for the position. What if someone else could do better?
So the $100,000 question is do you really want to hire more Jans??? My short answer is probably not; at least not without knowing that she represents the best talent for the job.
Hiring additional team members who "look like Jan" is a hiring strategy that I think many organization unknowingly place themselves in. After all... It makes sense. This danger is even further exacerbated when "progressive" organizations turn to things such as behavioral profiling and personality assessments in a well intentioned attempt to discover what makes Jan "tick," and then use this insight to hire more people like Jan.
Is having more Jans and less Freds an improvement? Absolutely. However, if Jan doesn't represent the pinnacle of performance for the position an organization pursuing this strategy will invariably and unwittingly rob itself of possibility.
Sure… performance will improve, praise will be bestowed upon those who championed the strategy, and the organization will pat itself on its back for all the great things it has accomplished.
That, my friends, is where the real tragedy lies… an organization that is completely content with performing below its potential and not having a clue that it is doing so.
So, the question must be asked… are your top performers really top performers???
Is their performance really what you want to replicate, or could there be more to the performance puzzle than meets the eye???
Now go Maximize Possibility!
Other blog posts you may be interested in:
- How Poorly Fit Team Members May Pose as Top Performers
- Employee Love Paradox: Four Signs You Are Guilty of Loving Your Employees Too Much
- Improving Employee Performance with Coaching Score Cards
- 10 Barriers that Limit High Potential (HiPos)
- What it Takes to be a Rainmaker
