When I do workshops for firms on how to accelerate strategic implementation, rarely does a session go by where the shortage of key talent does not come up.
This has always been an issue when a firm has a strategic challenge to rise to a new level. But I am finding that as we work our way out of the pandemic, it is particularly acute – and it shows no signs of turning around quickly.
Part of the challenge is that we are in an unprecedented time of talent migration. In fact, some articles are calling it “the great resignation.”
The first thing we know to be true is that great talent is generally attracted to great work. There is no better way to build great work than to have a worthy goal and a well-built team (for great work posts, see here, here and here).
The second thing we know is that great talent seeks out a great set of leadership, processes and resources to be able to apply their craft effectively and efficiently.
Sometimes, in the course of building teams, we overcomplicate the process of populating teams with just the right talent mix. It can be daunting, and many times this results in teams being made up of who’s available – versus a careful curation. Much like a jigsaw puzzle, picking the right team involves evaluating multiple qualities and setting the stage for the best interdependencies.
A Rating Scale for Identifying Top Talent
Today, I wanted to share a simple tool that I’ve used successfully with clients to get better results, while prompting them to not overuse key individuals.
First, when it’s time to staff a team, have the usual brainstorm of who might be able to contribute.
Second, once you’ve got that list, then create the “working list” and put these categories into adjacent columns.
- Technical or Subject Matter Expertise: How well does this person know the content area? How well do they know leaders in the adjacent lanes of the firm? How much time have they spent in the field?
- Thinking Style: When presented with the initially unsolvable, how does the person respond? Are they linear and persistent? Can they make great logical leaps? Do they prefer concrete realism? Do they collaborate with other subject matter experts?
- Emotional Intelligence: How are they to be around? Are they the kind of person that elevates those around them to be their best? Are they a spark or more passive? Can they help the group make hard decisions?
- Production: What’s their track record of completion? Do they break through walls? When they take on the task, does the team breathe a sigh of relief or assign them a team member to follow up?
Third, use a 1-5 rating scale for each of the above and look at the simple average of both the individual and the team. If you are like many firms, you’ll find that you’ve overweighted technical expertise over all the other categories. Keep in mind that if you don’t rebalance the team, it will not be able to make it for the long haul.
To keep this simple, start out by treating all the categories with equal weighting, then take a step back and apply weighting if needed. For example, if this work is going to involve challenging discussions and the hard work of conflict and consensus building, then you may want to increase the emphasis on emotional intelligence.
Do this for three cycles with trusted peers and the resulting list will be strong, and substantially better than the initial pass.
Using it for a “Stuck” Team
If you are working to accelerate a team, this simple diagnostic will also point to fresh solutions and thinking. To give you a headstart, most often, I see a mismatch between ideation and execution mindsets. The common symptom is that the group has great meetings and outlines what appear to be the right plans, but is not making progress.
Getting the team right is one third of the project, plan and team triad we use in our work to help leaders implement their strategic intent.
For more information on the accelerators for strategic innovation, please reach out to me at scott@scottpropp.com or use this link to set up an appointment.
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