It’s not the best talent that leads to business success, but how you align work and people to the organisation’s strategy, says Rupert Morrison of Orgvue
The business world today is buzzing about AI and its potential to reshape the workforce, particularly when it comes to tackling skills shortages. But in our rush to embrace technological change and hire the best talent, we risk neglecting an important question: what work actually needs to be done?
Too often, leaders concern themselves with filling empty boxes on the organisation chart rather than assessing what the organisation really needs. Our focus should instead be on designing roles that are clearly aligned with business goals. Ultimately, strategy must dictate structure, not the other way around.
Each business strategy is unique
A business strategy must answer some basic questions: what value do we deliver, to which customers and in what unique way, so we can win in the marketplace? Strategy needs to come from the very top, from the CEO, with the board’s backing and it must translate all the way down through the organisation.
The right people are important, of course, but it’s not necessarily a matter of finding the very ‘best’ people. It’s about figuring out what work needs to be done and who has the aptitude and attitude to do it.
Some companies are very good at coming up with a business strategy and executing it. A classic case many years ago was the early days of Southwest Airlines. Instead of the hub-and-spoke model that the major airlines were using, Southwest devised an efficient, low-cost model of point-to-point routes using only one type of aeroplane.
But strategy must be unique to the organisation that adopts it. Copycatting seldom succeeds.
When major airlines like Continental tried to mimic Southwest’s model, trying something called ‘Continental Lite’, they couldn’t make it work. The organisation wasn’t aligned with the strategy best suited to its unique needs and aspirations.
The point I’m trying to make is that strategy is not a one-step process. You start with pen and paper, or with a whiteboard. You try different ideas. You iterate, just as architects do in playing with different designs until they and the client are aligned on what they’re trying to achieve.
But only after the CEO and top management have the strategy in place should they be thinking about the organisational structure and the work required to implement the strategy.
The perfect candidate doesn’t exist
Once the organisational design has been mapped out and aligned with the business strategy, there needs to be a process for finding the right people to fill roles and positions. True success lies in aligning talent and skills with strategic objectives, not simply in finding the best individuals available.
For one thing, not every organisation can afford top-tier talent or attract them even if they could. Besides, do you only want people who are interested in money and might jump ship for a bigger paycheck?
Business is, in many ways, like sport. It’s not individual stars who win championships. It’s teams of people with complementary skills, and the right motivational attitude, that win championships. You’ll never find the perfect person for a job, so you aim to find the best person for the position in question.
There’s something that management consultants refer to as the “flow channel”; in other words, the balancing of competency and motivation. An overqualified person will get bored and disgruntled. So, there must be room for someone who’s motivated to grow in the role.
If you hire for aptitude and attitude, you can train for skill. Often, that means first looking inside the organisation. Who has already shown their competency, loyalty and trustworthiness?
Interviews alone can’t test competency
If you do need to search externally, those who do the screening and hiring must be clear and have agreement on what’s required for the job. Somebody can probably come up with a list of 20 attributes of the ideal candidate. But which three or four really matter? And even with those, which are you willing to compromise on if necessary?
Next, design a screening and selection process that mirrors what you want from the person’s work. Interviews alone are an ineffective way to test competencies.
Before organisations even think about filling roles, they must pinpoint precisely what work is strategically essential. Successful organisations will be those that realise hiring is about strategically matching talent and skills to the critical work that drives their business forward.
About the author
Rupert Morrison is Founder and Deputy Chair at Orgvue.