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Smart Leaders Get More Out of the Employees They Have
by Liz Wiseman | 10:00 AM August 20, 2012
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Wheredo you turn for the resources you need to fuel growth? Do you hire new talent, or ask for more from your existing employees?
In growing companies, the temptation to fuel growth by hiring new talentis almost irresistible. The hiring path is especially compelling for hot growth companies; they are inherently attractive employers and can afford new resources. But before calling the recruiter,perhaps you should consider how completely you are using the resources already inside of your organization. You probably know how productively your company is using your physical assets, but do you knowhow deeply you are using the intelligence and capability of your people?
Let's look at example from the heart of high-growth Silicon Valley. At Salesforce.com, Rajani Ramanathan is the chiefoperating officer across the products and technology division. As might be expected of a savvy engineering leader, Rajani began measuring how deeply her managers were tapping into the intelligence andcapability of their teams. She then challenged her management team to raise this metric by 10%, with hopes to grow the business while also growing the people on her team. One year later, they re-measured anddiscovered that the subset of her management team that participated in the study collectively raised their score from 70% to 78%. Their eight-point gain is the rough equivalent of a headcountincrease of 25 people.
Most companies are adept at bringing in smart, talented people but few companies put as much discipline into understanding how fully they are using the talent they've acquired. Manymanagers are so focused on their own ideas and capability that they shut down intelligence around them. I call these leaders "diminishers." Yet other leaders seem to amplify the intelligence around...