I recently ran into a former colleague from 30 (!?) years ago. He was the CFO at a small ship cruise company, and I was barely out of high school – looking for my first job in Seattle, while enrolling at UW. He hired me as the receptionist, following the CEO’s guidance to hire the right personality for the role, as the skills could be taught. (He also went on to brag that he’d hired the great niece of Joan Crawford – but, I had to dash his delight, confessing that I was no relation to the actress so known for wire hangers!) I went on to become the President of the company’s first ever “Vision Committee,” and grew my technical, operational and organization skills over the 7 years I was with the company. I learned a lot of other things that subsequently benefited my career, but, DC’s belief in me demonstrated what would become the first tenet in my approach to building great teams over the years: “Fit First.”
“Fit First” — because no matter how smart or skilled or experienced a person is, if they don’t “fit” — it’s just harder. “Fit” should not be misconstrued as sameness – it does not mean building a team of individuals who all think or behave the same – homogeny is boring and has been shown to dull innovation and creativity. I think of it rather as a mosaic of a jigsaw puzzle of talent – an array of perspectives, views, styles, backgrounds, education, cultures, lifestyles, neuro-types, passions, strengths, etc. If you’ve put together a jigsaw puzzle, you’ll know the experience of thinking a piece looks like it should fit – it’s got the right background, and what seems like the right “tabs” or “blanks” configuration, but, when placed in the puzzle, it’s just not quite right. You could keep building out around the slightly misfit puzzle piece, and may even get more of the design completed, but, eventually, that one piece that didn’t fit properly will become evident and affect the rest of the puzzle. And, an individual in a role that isn’t quite the right fit — they also generally know so themselves — and it’s so much harder to be effective when our own sense of belonging impedes our success, our value, and our ability to contribute to the greater vision.
“Fit” can be hard thing to evaluate during an interview process. It requires the hiring manager have a high EQ, a strong vision for the team they are building, an awareness of the strengths and gaps that exist, and how a new addition to the team will meld into, merge with, and benefit the whole. It means making sure we’re not hiring just because we “like” someone, but, also being careful to not believe we’re hiring a “change-maker” just because they seem particularly contentious. It’s being able to anticipate how someone may rock the boat, and being prepared to right the ship as needed to keep the whole stable, or, having a life raft for them to safely land in. The strongest teams I’ve built and been a part of sometimes started off as what seemed a jumble of disparate players, but through sorting and discovering each persons’ strengths and abilities, became some of the highest performing collection of players ever. As a leader, there’s nothing quite as satisfying as bringing a challenge or opportunity to your team, and having them eagerly jump into problem solving mode, coming up with solutions that are far better than what you could have ever devised on your own.
To be fair, occasionally “fit” is not always evident at first. Sometimes it takes a few stumbles or bumps before they find their stride, or for the team to realize they bring just the element that may have been missing, or, that amplifies what was working. Solving problems together helps them learn how they fit together, and how to lean on and support each other. It’s even possible I’ve “manufactured problems” (?!?) for teams to solve together to expedite that melding, because an empowered team is a more powerful – and productive – team.
And, on occasion, I’ve gotten it wrong. I’ve wanted the piece to fit so badly, believed in the person so much I ignored what wasn’t working and hoped that the tabs or blanks would sort of mush in sufficiently to make it work. Ultimately, the individual starts to suffer, the team suffers, the work suffers, and the decision to part ways has to be made. But, honestly, I think this is totally okay. The other role of a leader is to recognize when someone is not thriving in the work they’re doing or as part of the team they’re in, and to help them move on, even if they may not recognize the necessity themselves in the moment. Sometimes, it’s the greatest gift a leader can give.
