“A” players…..

A discussion on the topic of career progression with friends is an experience in discovery. Just last night Sandeep shared how his boss gave him a pass “you are not an A Player and unless you become one, it is career limiting forever!” One has often heard such hazy subjective explanations that have been responsible for plateauing the career graphs of many a committed and proven performer.

In matters of people, being objective, transparent and clear in communication is such a virtue. If employees begin to believe that decisions are largely subjective or perception based, it causes immense damage to morale and performance which has the potential of destroying the very fabric of the organisation over time. That is a great leadership failure and the situation has been accentuated in recent times because of the short term contractual and outcome based recruitments at the top.  

I have always held the view that there is nothing more important – and tougher – than finding talent. When smart leaders surround themselves with the right players, something magical happens. Throw together the wrong people and you are sure to get an obnoxious gas. You can call it talent chemistry, just that in these rapidly changing times finding magic ingredients has become harder than ever. Mistakes can be extremely expensive and take forever to correct. And despite what the claims may be, there is no single screen that can snare the right A-player every time.

Every individual is unique and gifted in some way – numbers, sales, creativity – something. Just that talent or brilliance alone does not get you too far, it is what you do with that brilliance that differentiates people. Let me take a shot at listing a few characteristics of “A” Players as people who are : 

– always willing to stretch themselves and go beyond the narrow definition of their roles, do more than expected and simply hate to lose     

– self critical and take personal responsibility and accountability for their actions

– thorough team players – put the team and company objective before self.

– champions of the organisation and their people 

– of generally positive outlook. Their can-do attitude helps them do well in a variety of roles 

– able to develop a much larger circle of influence than a circle of control

– of very high integrity and are never afraid to speak up when things are not going right. Demand excellence and do not compromise

You may not be naturally blessed with everything. As a leader, I would watch for intensity, a certain spark in people and that really helps to groom them for bigger tasks ahead.

Next time your boss gives a feedback, you can guide them towards specificity in discussion!

best wishes for being an “A” player!

rs