Bet on Your People, Before Someone Else Does

Many years ago, I had met a very promising candidate. After our rounds of conversation, I shared with him that I would like him to come on board as the company's head for talent acquisition. He was shocked, and immediately alerted me that he had never done any significant hiring in his career; this would be a big risk for him. I recall telling him that the individual never takes the risk; it is always the manager or organisation.

Many years later, he not only came on board but did a stellar job in it, having mastered something he never knew before building a fast-track career in that company.

The story is unfortunately not commonplace. I have seen very few organisational leaders take the kind of bets with talent that they could, nay, should have. This is irrespective of whether the talent is internal or external, though more often than not, it is worse with internal talent. Most look for a 100% ready guy. The reality is there is none. It is tragic.

Organisations then create prima donnas who do not build their people, rarely hire challengers and make their teams a still pond, not a flowing river. Cultures get created around personalities and organisations become fundamentally vulnerable. What causes us to be so risk averse? Is there indeed a safety net one could create? In today's turbulent world, talent spotting is a winning strength. How can we nurture it?

SPOT TALENT EARLY

The first five years throw up enough evidence of which people look to be marking themselves out. We choose often to ignore the signs -persuasive influencing, conspicuous curiosity, consummate energy, inspiring collaboration and sustained big impact. Either performance systems lose them in the socialism of the practice or talent systems are not geared for such names to bubble up to the executive leadership.

DO NOT HIRE FOR WHAT THEY HAVE DONE, HIRE FOR WHAT THEY CAN DO

It is typical of managers to look for an exact specimen while hiring into their teams. While the need may not be always misplaced, the unwillingness is overly stretched. Besides, if there is nothing new in the assignment, why would that prospect even be interested?

Cross-industry learnings are very useful and often fungible. It brings in huge benefits of new perspectives. The excitement of learning a new area keeps hires on their toes, and that is good for everyone. My experience with hiring doctors, salesmen and technology experts into my team has been unequivocally successful.

DON'T ALLOW MANAGERS TO HOARD TALENT

Some very bright people are almost chained to be with the same manager. They fear exposing them will rob them of someone who ensures their appraisal targets are met.

This is inherently prohibitive of risk taking. Talent is always owned by the corporation, and loaned to an individual manager. Rotating such talent across a spectrum of assignments and managers builds perspective, exposure and confidence. It shows who the promising leaders of tomorrow are.

Advertising internal opportunities al lows individuals to own their careers and build them as they like -an expert or a generalist. But mobility is mandatory. Some risk is unavoidable but is more like the insurance premium for your future. The opportunity missed is a costly and strategic blunder that may hurt decades later.

INVEST IN ENABLING CAREERS, YOU WILL REAP A FORTUNE

Organisations which move their talent around, sometimes quicker than others, are likely to be preferred employer options. No one is ever ready. It is through moves, support and trust that one builds a new crop of leaders. Only through a series of experiences and opportunities does one become a seasoned campaigner. No one was born that way.

And through such risk taking with careers of people, you insure the organisation with talent depth. Even if you lose some, there will always be someone to step up.

DRAW PEOPLE OUT OF THEIR COMFORT ZONE

Very often, even very competent people prefer to play in their comfort zone. As a leader, we must spot the need to draw them out and get them to see possibilities. It needs interest and patience, both not always adequately rewarded in many organisations. Leaders who indeed build talent, invest in them, coach them to newer experiences are what legends and folklore are made of.

No investment is safe. Not investing is foolhardy too. Internal or external, organisations must get comfortable with disruptive talent moves. In an era of disruptive business models, one must take bolder risks with talent. Conventional thinking has outlived its utility. The time for doing more, quicker, better and yet wiser has indeed come.

Remember, if we do not take our bets with people, someone else surely will.

(The writer is President & Group CHRO, Reliance Industries. He writes and tweets extensively on leadership, careers, organisational culture & transformation. His Twitter handle is @prabirjha)

This article was published in The Economic Times on April 7, 2015

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