The Courage to Hire Differently


Why is it that, even when we know that a particular habit isn’t serving us well and may even be harming us, we still resist doing what we know makes logical sense to avert the inevitable?

What is it about the human condition that allows us to rationalize the patently illogical, and even the irresponsible? This dysfunction shows up in our own little ‘vices’, in the way we treat the world around us, and in the organizations we lead.

For more than a decade, Gallup and a host of other global consulting firms have been reporting on levels of engagement. We’ve all seen them – and they are dismal: less than 30% of the population is fully engaged in their work; another 20% are fully disengaged, and in excess of 50% are in some stage of disengagement.

These statistics haven’t improved over the last decade and a half; if anything they have worsened. And they are reinforced by other measures that point to something fundamental in organizations being critically broken:

  • Only 14% of employees are in a role that draws from their strengths most of the time
  • 23% of payroll dollars are unproductive because of poor job fit
  • Conflict, especially with the manager, is the cause of the vast majority of departures
  • Lack of organizational depth is at critical levels – fully one third of workers under 35 are in their first year with their current employer, and another third expect to be employed elsewhere before the year is out
  • 94% of 250 senior HR execs globally assert that their workforce is unprepared to help their organization meet its strategic objectives

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