First, Break All the Rules. Which Rules?
Copyright Jack Mixner. 714 449 1040. www.mixnerstrategy.com
The Gallop organization has been surveying senior managers for many years. They are interested in what makes a great manager great.
When it's all said and done, one thing came out in their analysis. Great managers accept their employees as they are and try to leverage their strengths. The quote:
"People don't change that much.
Don't waste time trying to put in what was left out.
Try to draw out what was left in.
That is hard enough (Buckingham, 57)."
That doesn't say, however, that you have to accept everybody into your organization. The rest of the book talks about how to select the right folks the first time around. Key point: focus on talents, not as much on experience or skills (Buckingham, 83).
Ultimately, it is your attitude as a manager that effects folk's performance at work the most, not company values, vision, or all the rest (Buckingham, 63).
If you were going to change one thing in your search for the right people to work with you, what would it be? Focus on interviewing for talents, not experience or skills. Hiring accountants? Look for precision (Buckingham, 84). Make sure when you hire, that you are getting what you want, as many things we assume are changeable, aren't. You can train for skills. You can't train for talents. Hire for talents.
Reference
Buckingham, Marcus and Curt Coffman. First, Break All the Rules. What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently. Simon & Schuster. 1999.
Wagner, Rodd and James K. Harter, Ph.D. The 12 Elements of Great Managing. Gallup Press. 2006.