A Culture of Better People

by Jonathan Jones

The idea that companies are currently in a talent war is an understatement. The reality is that the talent war has been going on forever. The successful companies recognized this a long time ago and have been strengthening their strategies and tactics for years. The best business schools always have great companies recruiting the best students. School boards used to be filled with company executives to ensure that the talent pool would be ready for industry. Steel town executives made sure the local students would be ready to staff the steel mills. They wanted the right people to sustain their success.

Employees must have the right attitude. Hire for the right attitude and cognitive ability first, then train them to do the job, because having someone who is an expert, yet has a bad attitude moves an organization backward. The most important person to focus on is the owner or leader. A leader of a company must emulate all the values of the organization and must continue to develop themselves. The leader must make sure the next level of leadership should be better than themselves; smarter and better qualified. Giving smart people the best opportunities will endear them to the company. Great leaders have enough confidence in themselves and their mission to make sure they hire the best people.

It is not just about having the right person for the job but making sure that the company is filled with the highest caliber at all levels. The first question for every leader should be “who should do it?”, not “what should be done?”. Everything else will work out unless you do not have the right people.

Remember Jim Collin’s powerful statement: Great vision without great people is irrelevant.

Jonathan Jones (Jonathan.jones@vistagechair.com or 314-608-0783) is a CEO peer group chair/coach for Vistage International.