Managing to Make a Difference

Chapter 32Ensure the Right Fit

As we discussed in the previous chapter, to build an extraordinary team you should make sure that new hires have the talent to perform with excellence. Along with talent, however, you must also evaluate the issue of fit. As you know, organizational cultures differ, management styles differ, and business challenges differ. Remember the GIFT Formula discussion from Chapter 14:

If your goal is to build extraordinary teams, and if you want to get the greatest return on your investments in your team members, you must pay attention to both talent and fit.

Chris and the Caribbean Hotel

A recruiter called me to check a reference on my friend Chris, who was being considered for a general manager role for a Caribbean hotel. I asked the recruiter to tell me more about the specific expectations and challenges of the job. He relayed that the hotel was the most prominent business on the island, and therefore the hotel's general manager would be involved with the governor and would have to be heavily involved in community affairs. As I listened, it became evident that the job involved a lot of politics. Chris was a great guy and a talented general manager, but he was a very blunt and straightforward individual. He was not a good diplomat and he was not at all good at politics.

I told the recruiter that I did not recommend Chris for the job. He was dumbfounded. ...