Don't Hire Top Talent
The English instinctively admire any man who has no talent and is modest about it.
~ James Agee
The current job market is rough. With all the recent layoffs in the tech industry there is a surplus of people searching for a job to sustain themselves. Salaries are going down and, generally speaking, the outlook is grim.
But I am not going to talk about the current market and how to navigate it; rather I want to delve into a common theme
you see over and over again:
Recruiters looking for top talent to join the ranks of their customers.
Talent is overrated. Top performers don’t perform in a vacuum, they are part of a team that allows them to perform the way they do. As a matter of fact, top performers, in the wrong environment, will under-perform or be toxic.
Instead of looking for (and hiring) top performers I propose something radically different. Something that will make your team go from good to high performing.
High performing teams deliver higher value results more consistently. They don’t become great because you recruited top talent into the team, but because the team created that talent.
Talent doesn’t make teams, teams make talent.
~ David Burkus
The three traits of high performing teams
- Common Understanding
- Psychological Safety
- A sense of pro-social purpose
Common Understanding
Common understanding, or shared understanding has two elements to it.
The first element is the understanding of your context within the team; your knowledge, role, other peoples roles and how our roles fit together. Each team member has an understanding of their role, other team members roles, the responsibilities and deliverables of the team. We could also call this Clarity.
The second element is Empathy. This means we understand about each other more than just our job and roles, but as humans. We are interested in our backgrounds, our strengths and weaknesses. It’s the recognition that different people have different preferences and bringing that knowledge into the fold to better collaborate with each other.
Common understanding is not only how to do your job, but also understanding the humans doing the job with us.
Psychological Safety
Psychological safety (also known as altruistic purpose) is a concept within organizational behavior theory that refers to an environment where individuals feel safe to take interpersonal risks, such as speaking up with ideas, questions, or concerns, without fear of being punished, humiliated, or marginalized. In a psychologically safe environment, team members trust that their input will be valued and respected, even if it challenges the status quo or involves admitting a mistake.
The concept was popularized by Harvard Business School professor Amy Edmondson, who found that teams with high levels of psychological safety tend to perform better because members are more likely to contribute their full potential. In such environments, employees are not preoccupied with self-protection, which allows them to focus on the collective goals of the team, ultimately leading to more effective and adaptive organizations.
“Drive out fear, so that everyone may work effectively for the company”
You can find references to psychological safety in Joshua Kerievsky’s Modern Agile.
There is a really great quote from Joshua’s latest book The Joy of Agility (I really recommend you reading that book) that I want to share:
“Fear stifles agility. When we are afraid of being injured, blamed, penalized, or dismissed, we become hesitant, defensive, or even paralyzed, and our ability to be quick, graceful, adaptable and resourceful is diminished.”
A sense of pro-social purpose
Pro-social purpose refers to the intentional pursuit of goals and actions that benefit others or contribute to the greater good, beyond one’s own self-interest. It involves a commitment to activities that promote the well-being of individuals, communities, or society at large.
A pro-social purpose is often driven by a sense of empathy, moral values, and a desire to make a positive impact. Organizations and individuals with a pro-social purpose are typically motivated by more than just profit or personal gain; they aim to create meaningful change that aligns with broader social or ethical objectives. This approach not only enhances social cohesion and trust but can also lead to greater fulfillment and long-term success, as it resonates with the growing demand for responsible and socially conscious behavior in today’s world.
We are told to define our why, but rather than “why” focus on the who; Who are you building this for?
When you build common understanding, psychological safety and a sense of pro-social purpose you get your best team ever; or at least the best team you’ve ever led.
If you are ready to unlock your team and create the most cohesive and high-performing team you’ve ever led (or been part of) contact me, and we will get to work on igniting your teams’ talent.