I am currently helping a few people with their career development. Most of them are employed in attractive positions, where they are looking to either increase their mobility within their current organization or else to compete for external employment opportunities. Some of them are interested in enhancing their performance skills in order to be more effective and to gain more recognition in their current role. And a few others are unemployed, due to the economic circumstances but, rather than just trying to find a ‘job’, they remain interested in obtaining a real career opportunity as the next logical step in their career progression.

I often hear people mention the phrase “the war for talent”, which of course implies that various organizations are competing to attract the best and brightest managers and employees to their ranks. The supporting logic is that, by employing the most talented people, these organizations will reap the subsequent positive economic benefits, such as enhanced performance, positive growth, increased revenues and greater profitability. Few people could argue against the benefits of attracting and retaining the most capable people, but an argument can be made that most organizations are actually losing this “war”, with many of them not even realizing that they are losing or the reasons why. Despite all good intentions, the real war for talent is being lost by most organizations because they improperly define talent, they look for talent in the wrong ways, and they fail to effectively attract and retain it.

Just imagine what you could accomplish if you created a corporate culture based on superior performance and sustained by an embedded continuous improvement mentality. A culture where everyone involved would congruently strive for superior performance on a personal level, a managerial level, a team level and an organization-wide level. Where the “status quo” is a bench mark to be left behind and only utilized as a starting point from which future performance will be measured. It can be done.

Innovative organizations are staffed by innovative people.

As we experience economic evolution, and the emergence of the “new economy”, we need to understand that our business attitudes and approaches must evolve accordingly. Many of us already accept that achieving profitability and organizational growth will be a challenge in this increasingly competitive global economy. But the all-important question remains; “what are you going to do about it”? Those organizations that ignore the new realities of the evolution, and who return to past “old economy” thinking, will fall behind. Those who adapt to the changes, reluctantly or otherwise, will keep pace. But those organizations that embrace and facilitate change will take the lead in the new economy.

Whether hiring external managers and staff, promoting internal people or deciding on who is best to receive developmental funds, it is important to have sufficient, appropriate, and accurate, information to help you to make the right decisions. Too often the wrong people are hired, promoted, or developed for the wrong reasons. The subsequent productivity and financial implications of making these wrong decisions can be quite profound. To compete and grow on an organizational level, it is essential to have the right people in place. On a personal level, “you are only as good as the people who surround you”, so having and keeping compatible managers / staff who perform well will directly impact your own career.

Your career success is primarily dependent on performance. If the people around you are not performing at suitable levels there will certainly be a negative impact. When your organization or department is not headed in the direction that you had envisioned, your career will either stall or decline. Considering the challenging and persistent new economic realities that we all face, and the fact that most of us will have to do more with fewer resources, you may want to re-evaluate the performance capability of your team. Surrounding yourself with the right people is becoming increasingly important to people who want to keep their careers moving forward.

Perhaps you have heard the phrase “The best apples remain high in the trees?"

The theory being, the best apple-pickers know that they will have the greatest reward by putting out effort (climbing that ladder and finding the best apples to pick) rather than easily collecting those apples that have already fallen to the ground. Recruiting is the same. The best recruiters know that they will have to put out the effort to proactively find and recruit the best “apples” rather than hope that these best candidates will find them.

Minimal effort will get you minimal results.

Everything of real value will come through your effort.

I recently began some career development work with a new client, a 15 year business owner who asked for my help in transitioning into a new role. At one point, when we were discussing performance motivation, I asked “what irritates you most about employees”? Without blinking an eye she responded …” minimal effort. It drives me crazy when people don’t see the substantial results that could be achieved if they simply did a little more than the minimum”.

After over 20 years in the “career business” I suppose that I have seen a few things along the way. In my role with CAES, I have been active in career-related performance enhancement, leadership and management development, skill development, succession planning, executive search, recruitment, selection, hiring, career counselling and coaching – offering these services to both individuals and organizations.

What you do matters much more than what you know or who you know.  

Actual performance, whether at the organizational, leadership, managerial, team or individual levels, is the real key to success. If you want to experience greater profitability, higher productivity, greater personal recognition, internal promotions, or even a progressive career change, the solution is simple – focus on achieving actual performance results. And surround yourself with people who do the same.