Every company has them. Most CEOs don’t know who they are. In fact most companies miss the diamonds sitting right in front of them.
Instead of going outside your company and recruiting people, companies need to really get to know their own people first. Every company has diamonds in the rough.
The other day I met with an employee from a well known Vancouver company. The employee is fantastic. Yet due to some internal politics they are being kept in ‘their box’ and aren’t getting any visibility with the CEO and leadership. Shame. Because if the leaders don’t quickly see what this person has to offer a) they’ll leave and b) someone else will ‘hire a superstar’ from outside.
I coach CEOs that they should be spending time each week getting to know the talent they have 2-3 levels beneath them on the Org Chart. CEOs should be figuring out who they have on their bench that are not being challenged yet by their VPs & Directors.
Years ago I found numerous employees who were diamond in the rough but worked in completely different business areas than they do now. By spending time with them on the floor, going for coffee with them, getting to know their personal dreams, and as Tom Peters challenged us to do in his book In Search of Excellence
Who are your company’s diamonds? Who will find them first? You or the competition?
For more information on this topic, check out: Building a World Class Culture and Leadership at 100MPH.
