Building a Bench
One of the most important characteristics in a leader is building a bench. Talent is the lifeblood of your company, it makes all the other…
One of the most important characteristics in a leader is building a bench. Talent is the lifeblood of your company, it makes all the other important things happen. So how do you get the right talent and put them in a place where they can make a difference and grow into increasing responsibility?
Identifying Talent
Building a bench starts with getting great talent and retaining that talent. Everyone has different qualities they look for when building their teams (although I’m a big believer in grit as a universal trait to look for) and of course it depends a bit on the role you want them in. But you have to get the right people and as a leader it’s your job to make this happen. You need to set the tone with your teams that you want amazing people not just for the job of today, but the jobs of tomorrow. You want people who can grow with your business, take on new challenges, and who can be versatile. Beyond grit there are tons of things you can assess, but spend time on knowing what you want in your talent.
Too many leaders pass off the job of finding talent to lower level managers or recruiters, but you have to be intimately involved as a leader. That means you should be sourcing talent through your network, people you trust, maybe even LinkedIn. I try to spend at least several hours per week networking, writing candidates, or looking at profiles on LinkedIn in the evenings. This also means taking the time to meet with potential candidates, no matter the level. I also always try to make time to talk to a candidate even before a recruiter or a hiring manager talks to them. It sets the tone, tells them they’re important, and creates a great experience. Great talent is going to make your business successful, it’s worth your time.
It also means you and your managers should take the time to outline a process for finding great talent by setting rules for interviewing, divvying up responsibility of interviewers, making your recruiter’s life easier by telling them about your business + role, and most of all listening to your panel. Interviewing should not be a check the box function, you need to make sure you choose a panel of different perspectives and people whose opinion you trust. When you take these steps with a great panel, you need to trust them as well so please listen to their concerns and opinions!
Engaging Talent
Once you have hired the right talent you have to keep them engaged. Think about how much time as leaders we spend trying to drive engagement and retention in our customer base; shouldn’t we spend the same amount of effort and time on our team who we worked hard to get in the door and who will help our company achieve its mission? As a leader this means getting to know the team as people and as workers. It means understanding what drives them by really listening and then finding ways to let them meet their goals with your support. I do this by trying to have as many skip levels as I can. It means asking my team how their team is doing and it means modeling caring about the team every chance I can. You will of course want to treat everyone as the unique individual they are, hear their story, understand their motivations and do what you can to help them get there. It takes time, effort, and focus, but again talent is your lifeblood, and to me one of the best parts of the job is engaging with my team.
Providing Opportunity
Beyond getting to know the team, engagement also means providing opportunity. Start small, find low risk opportunities for people to take on more, address their development areas, and take on stretch roles. If your team isn’t certain they can do it, cheer them on! Make it low risk, praise their effort, and share stories of when you took a chance and succeeded. Finding the right place to challenge your team is a big part of this. Find a place where they feel vulnerable, but let them know you have their back. They should believe it’s a place they could fail, but through their abilities and coaching they’re going to grow into it. It’s cliché, but give feedback. Most people crave it, but understand how people like to receive it and be willing to customize your style so the feedback lands. I have found that taking just a bit of time to stretch people leads to great results. I usually joke with my team that I’m going to throw them into the deep-end on Day 1. Putting them in an uncomfortable spot by really stretching them causes growth and I have also found my top performers are almost always glad I put them in this position even though it can be a bit painful at first. I also let them know that I believe in them and will be there to support them. Looking back on the amazing people I have worked with, I think this has paid off for my team and the companies I have worked for.
Take a Chance on Talent
The last part of building a bench is taking a chance. If you’ve done all the above your level of risk is low, but don’t be afraid to put your rising stars or high performers into new roles with more responsibility, especially increased scope or opportunities to develop new skills. When there, they will feel overwhelmed at first, but back them and get them comfortable. As a leader you can also ask for feedback on yourself, demonstrate humility, and invite pushback on your strategic direction. This shows your people that you respect their opinion and hear their point of view. Show yourself acting on that feedback to not only get better as a leader, but to show your teams that leaders should never stop growing. Soon you’ll have high performers that will be taking your team and company to new heights.