It's all about the people

My initial management training was conducted by a wise man who told me, "It's all about the people; you get the right people and there's very little you can't do, you get the wrong people and you can't do anything".

Time and time again this has been proved correct, both in my own team and in the wider business. Selecting the right people to join your team is an art, but one that can be learned and perfected over time; but what do you do about other people's people?

What can we do when our colleagues make poor hires that impact us and our teams?

1) Understand what a good hire is - This isn't just about who you like to work with or what is right for your function. Make sure you really understand what makes a successful team member for other functions before you start judging other people's decisions. Ask team leaders what they look for in a candidate and why; it may not be your ideal but that doesn't make it wrong for the organisation.

2) Say something - Too often we don't mention our fears to our colleagues about their questionable hiring decisions because we are scared of upsetting them or giving them the impression that we think they are bad at their jobs. Often when I've had a brave moment and said something, the person I am talking to has just looked relieved and been glad that someone else observed the same thing and therefore had the confidence to deal with the issue.

3) Restrict their involvement - Reach out to these poor hires only for the things no one else in the organisation is capable of doing. Leverage your own support network to cover the gaps and minimise the risks posed by that individual to the business as a whole.

It's ok to be grey

This morning we received the tragic news of a colleague's sudden passing away, so I wanted to post the most valuable lesson he taught me as a memorial and tribute to someone for whom I had great respect.

The gist of the lesson: data doesn't have to yield concrete conclusions to be useful

I used to live in a world where data proved things one way or the other. If the results were inconclusive there was inaction.

Since then I have been able to observe how the grey areas often reveal more subtle nuances of an issue, suggest contributions to situations or issues, may present opportunities or challenges that a person just looking for black and white might ignore.

So next time you are analysing something and there are no immediately obvious conclusions, don't get frustrated - look a little closer, you never know what you might see.

The ethics of the piece

Last night as I left the office I walked past 3 girls of maybe 7 years old. They were talking about one of their mothers' friends who they had never met but was at this girl's home where they were all headed. Quite naturally they were pondering what she might be like; "perhaps she will be pretty with nice clothes" said one, "or ugly and single" giggled another.

I found it pretty depressing that these carefree young spirits had already established a link, consciously or not, between beauty, material wealth and your chance of landing a partner.

More disconcerting was that I then realised we marketers were entirely to blame. Whether directly or indirectly our message to women that you can buy happiness and success had managed to put a filter on the world view of these children.

As someone whose messages are directed at businesses, did I need to worry? Where do we draw the line between effective copy and pushing people's buttons? Where does using people's motivators become taking unfair advantage of insecurities that are perhaps caused by market factors beyond their control? (How many of us tacitly implied that our products or services would help our customer survive the recession?)

There are no clear rules, probably no real answers that make both commercial and ethical sense in equal part, but an interesting thought to puzzle next time you need a break from writing a communication strategy.