Navigator Newsletter #173

I am always amazed how one person can make a powerful difference to the bottom line and in the lives of others. Just the other week I was staying at a large conference hotel in the heart of San Francisco. If possible, I try to avoid hotel restaurants. Most hotel food is bland, boring and overpriced. Every hotel restaurant in the world looks basically the same. If you spend as much time in hotels as I do, you want to see something different, so I like to venture out and find quaint places to eat—something with personality.

On this trip I allowed myself some free time to explore this great city. I stumbled across this diner called Lori’s just a block from my hotel. It looked like a place where the locals ate, so I popped in and took a seat. I liked it so well I ate breakfast there twice during my stay. One server captured my attention. His name was Humberto Ortiz. You could tell he was one of those guys who took pride in what he did. He buzzed around the diner like a lightning bug. He had an energy about him you don’t often see. The other employees respected him and he had a compelling sense of authority about him. His friendly manner made you feel good and welcome. The food was good, but the reason I came back was Humberto. He was the primary factor that transformed the restaurant from being just average to exceptional.

How many Humberto’s do you have working for you? Have you identified your high performers? Whether you hire servers in the restaurant business or sales people for your pharmaceutical company it all begins by identifying and hiring the RIGHT people. Research shows high performing employees out perform their average coworkers by a huge margin. Humberto was one of those star employees. In this economy you cannot afford to hire just average people. It is laughable to me when I see organizations who still base their hiring decisions only on a resume/job application and an interview. You have to go the extra step. You must identify the personal skills, motivations and experience needed for success in each position.

It would be short-sighted of me to end here by saying the process stops once you hire them. You can’t just hire them and then forget them. You have to develop, reward and recognize them and provide them opportunities for growth and development. This is part of the talent management process.

Top performers have more options. If you don’t take care of them, they will be the first ones to quit. Hire good people and help them reach superstar status so they stay with your company as long as possible. As a result, your business will be rewarded with happier, more productive employees who in turn keep customers coming back to spend more money. The quickest way to destroy your business is to surround your good people with low performing managers and coworkers. It is not rocket science, but so few businesses apply the process.

Let us know if we can help you identify, hire and retain top talent for your organization. Make sure you don’t miss the How to Retain Your Top Talent webseminar coming up on December 16 detailed in the newsletter below.

To your success,

Greg
President and Lead Navigator