The Rock Star and the Team

We have a tendency in recruiting to try to bring in the best individual we can find. Sometimes, though, the best individual is not the best team player. If you have an organization where people tend to work solo, and that rock star offers their best value when working on their own, then you are all set. But if you are looking for collaboration, knowledge sharing, and a team effort that stretches across multiple markets, that rock star may have trouble fitting in with everyone else. It’s not that high-performing individuals cannot be part of a bigger team, it’s just that it often requires some effort and planning to get the most value out of them.

Dr Hui Liao of the University of Maryland in the US offers some ideas in a recent article in the Washington Post. She points out many of the problems that can arise when you invite a high performer to join your team. Dr Liao does not try to discourage you from hiring these folks, she just wants to help you get the full value from them.

Probably the most important thing for you to consider is not the skills or connections this person brings, but how this skills or connections fit into your business model in a way that adds value. We tend to be impressed by a really good-looking CV without always considering how the pieces of that CV fit our way of doing business. Before hiring that individual, make sure you know how (or if) their particular abilities actually fit your needs. Just because they won awards working for other companies doe not mean they would win awards working for you.

Once you decide to bring them on board, you need to prepare both them and the people with whom they will work. Make sure the rest of the team knows what this individual brings and how you see them fitting in and contributing. Also ensure that your new rock star knows where they fit, and be sure they understand how important teamwork is you. Set specific expectations for teamwork and collaboration in their performance management program, and hold them to those. This can be especially challenging here in Asia, where many people have grown up with a focus on individual success rather than group achievements. It can be hard for someone who has had a lot of success on their own to see themselves as a contributor to a team, rather than as someone who is simply being supported by a team.

High-performing employees are great, but what really matters is results, not resumes. Make the effort to make the best use of these folks, or you are just wasting your money.