Driven by the notion that only exceptional people can build exceptional companies, employers are willing to pay top dollars to lure ‘superstars’, even sinking to poaching top-performers from their rivals.
Seduced by the Ivy League education and multi-million deals, employers reckon that all it takes is recruiting star-performers to catapult the organisation into incredible realms of success. They blissfully suppose that with the blue chip employees on board, business will function smoothly, productivity will increase and profits will grow and grow.
To the contrary, new research shows that so-called star performers rarely do well when they leave one company for another. Harvard Business School professors Boris Groysberg, Ashish Nanda, and Nitin Nohria studied the effects of hiring star employees and revealed that a superstars’ performance actually suffers after arriving at a new company.
In fact, the apparent conquest actually ends up leaving a bad taste in the mouth. The effects of hiring stars can range from:
Square pegs and round holes - A superstar’s achievements may not only emanate from his personal competencies and capabilities, but also hinge on the systems, processes and infrastructure of the organisation he had worked for. Bereft of the firm-specific resources, his performance may fall dramatically when implanted into a new setting.
Prima donnas - The star status can translate into an overbearing arrogance making the employee almost impossible to manage – becoming high-handed, displaying a puffed up attitude, refusing to take directions and even throwing tantrums to have his own way. The underlying condescension surfaces as he looks down on the rest of the staff to the extent of even lording over them. Or, accustomed to the privileges of a large organisation and top position, he may want people at his beck and call and palm off routine tasks as ‘too small for him’, which smaller companies cannot afford to digest.
Dragging down the rest – Hiring a star from outside can demotivate the current home-grown talent who may be feel dejected and unvalued at not being promoted to the plum position, not to mention resenting the rich compensation. So, even if the star employee turns out to superbly productive, his mere presence will damage group morale and productivity. As a management writer observes, “When you bring in a superstar, you tell your company that performance and merit doesn’t matter. Entitlement does.”
Loyalty, what’s that? – It has been observed that many star performers are only interested in them and have no emotional investment in the company interests. Loyalty is in short supply; they may have been lured by the high salary and will rise to the same bait again and again. They can leave soon, actually leveraging the position for bigger things.
Erring on the side of caution
Star candidates may not always turn out to be the best choice and employers have to cut their losses by letting them go prematurely. It pays to beware of sparkling resumes and not be dazzled by the seeming shine.
But companies do have to hire good people. So, instead of ruing the decision later, hiring managers should look at what lies beneath the alluring glitter. Seek the best talent by asking the right questions in the interview like what really makes them successful (is it on the crutches of their previous organisation), and what expectations they have when it comes to resources and support staff.
Also, assess their behaviour, attitude and goal orientation at the outset.
Try to determine whether they can really transfer their skills to your company and if their style and personality will mesh with your work environment.
Once the superstar’s profile is in place, compare it with the targeted job, other applicants, future supervisor and your own stellar employees. Go ahead with the hire only if you establish that he can contribute his talent to achieving company goals, fit in with the office culture as well as inspire others, but only after aligning his expectations with yours.
Also, make efforts to integrate him into the organisation and help him cope with the available resources even while addressing your staff’s concerns.
To sum up, the ‘best’ people are not always the most skilful or successful. Instead, hiring less experienced people and moulding, developing and training their raw talent can groom them into potential superstars.
As the Harvard professors, Nanda and Nohria conclude, “In business, the only viable strategy is to recruit good people, develop them, and retain as many of the stars as possible!”
Seduced by the Ivy League education and multi-million deals, employers reckon that all it takes is recruiting star-performers to catapult the organisation into incredible realms of success. They blissfully suppose that with the blue chip employees on board, business will function smoothly, productivity will increase and profits will grow and grow.
To the contrary, new research shows that so-called star performers rarely do well when they leave one company for another. Harvard Business School professors Boris Groysberg, Ashish Nanda, and Nitin Nohria studied the effects of hiring star employees and revealed that a superstars’ performance actually suffers after arriving at a new company.
In fact, the apparent conquest actually ends up leaving a bad taste in the mouth. The effects of hiring stars can range from:
Square pegs and round holes - A superstar’s achievements may not only emanate from his personal competencies and capabilities, but also hinge on the systems, processes and infrastructure of the organisation he had worked for. Bereft of the firm-specific resources, his performance may fall dramatically when implanted into a new setting.
Prima donnas - The star status can translate into an overbearing arrogance making the employee almost impossible to manage – becoming high-handed, displaying a puffed up attitude, refusing to take directions and even throwing tantrums to have his own way. The underlying condescension surfaces as he looks down on the rest of the staff to the extent of even lording over them. Or, accustomed to the privileges of a large organisation and top position, he may want people at his beck and call and palm off routine tasks as ‘too small for him’, which smaller companies cannot afford to digest.
Dragging down the rest – Hiring a star from outside can demotivate the current home-grown talent who may be feel dejected and unvalued at not being promoted to the plum position, not to mention resenting the rich compensation. So, even if the star employee turns out to superbly productive, his mere presence will damage group morale and productivity. As a management writer observes, “When you bring in a superstar, you tell your company that performance and merit doesn’t matter. Entitlement does.”
Loyalty, what’s that? – It has been observed that many star performers are only interested in them and have no emotional investment in the company interests. Loyalty is in short supply; they may have been lured by the high salary and will rise to the same bait again and again. They can leave soon, actually leveraging the position for bigger things.
Erring on the side of caution
Star candidates may not always turn out to be the best choice and employers have to cut their losses by letting them go prematurely. It pays to beware of sparkling resumes and not be dazzled by the seeming shine.
But companies do have to hire good people. So, instead of ruing the decision later, hiring managers should look at what lies beneath the alluring glitter. Seek the best talent by asking the right questions in the interview like what really makes them successful (is it on the crutches of their previous organisation), and what expectations they have when it comes to resources and support staff.
Also, assess their behaviour, attitude and goal orientation at the outset.
Try to determine whether they can really transfer their skills to your company and if their style and personality will mesh with your work environment.
Once the superstar’s profile is in place, compare it with the targeted job, other applicants, future supervisor and your own stellar employees. Go ahead with the hire only if you establish that he can contribute his talent to achieving company goals, fit in with the office culture as well as inspire others, but only after aligning his expectations with yours.
Also, make efforts to integrate him into the organisation and help him cope with the available resources even while addressing your staff’s concerns.
To sum up, the ‘best’ people are not always the most skilful or successful. Instead, hiring less experienced people and moulding, developing and training their raw talent can groom them into potential superstars.
As the Harvard professors, Nanda and Nohria conclude, “In business, the only viable strategy is to recruit good people, develop them, and retain as many of the stars as possible!”
PAYAL CHANANIA
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