Humor me for a moment. Close your eyes and say, "Availability is NOT a skill set." Good. Once more, "Availability is not a skill set." Perfect! Unfortunately, saying it a third time while clicking our heels together won't fix the problems created by a leader who continually hires the wrong people.
Have you ever glanced at a coworker and, in utter disbelief, thought, "What on earth is THAT dude doing in THAT role? No background, no experience, no clue. Great guy, tries hard, but...no." After we make those observations we typically joke about the person having compromising pictures of the boss. In reality, it's usually because a leader got lazy and hired someone for the wrong reasons.
Many years ago, I worked with some leaders who often determined a candidate's skills by administering the "foggy mirror test". If the candidate had enough breath to fog a mirror, he got the job. Some places half-jokingly refer to this as "checking for a pulse", or getting a "warm body". It's amusing on the surface, but not so funny when you consider the potential for damage.
The truth is, plugging the wrong person into the wrong place is no laughing matter. The same goes for putting the right person in the wrong place, and the wrong person in the right place. There is only one winning combination: putting the right person in the right place. This is true from coat-check volunteers to C-level positions. Why? Because the success of any organization depends upon the effectiveness of it's people. Each and every one of them. There is no such thing as a throw-away hire.
I think we can agree that no one is great at everything - each of us is a unique blend of strengths and weaknesses. Would you hire a musician to fix your muffler, or a pilot to fix your plumbing? Probably not - it would be like hammering a square peg until it "fits" into a round hole. If you forced them, could a musician fix your muffler? Could a pilot fix your plumbing? Sure, they might figure out something workable sooner or later...but is that the level of excellence you want for yourself and your organization? If your answer is anything but a resounding "NO", you had better step aside and let someone else make the hiring decisions.
I love this old Proverb: "He who hires a fool or any passer-by is like an archer who randomly shoots arrows into a crowd". Read that again, and apply it to your own organization. Most good leaders can spot a fool a mile away (hopefully), but oh, so many leaders get zinged by hiring the passer-by!
Sure, every leader has an occasional, well-intentioned hiring "miss". When it happens - and it will - don't get lazy and try to fix it on the rebound by hiring a passer-by. Instead, double your due diligence and get the right person. Unless you hire the right people and put them in the right places, you are simply setting them up for frustration and failure. Plus, you are wasting your valuable time because you now have to fix what they broke, along with beginning the process of replacing them. That's not a happy place for any leader.
What about the "hire the attitude, teach the skill" philosophy? I think there is some wisdom there, but only if the person has at least some foundational skills upon which to build - AND you are willing to invest a significant amount of energy developing them. If you choose to go this route, ask yourself if you are ready to make the kind of commitment it will take to do it right. You can't leave it to chance, or the person will soon feel devalued. This is where setting expectations comes in - something we'll discuss in a later article.
I'll close with one of my very favorite analogies: Shame on NASA if they hire me to be an astronaut just because I can point to the Big Dipper, or because I happen to be strolling past the launch site during a time of need. It's all fun and games until someone gets strapped to a rocket.
J.
