Page 147 - Executive Warfare

The Team You Assemble

I enjoy a good laugh. I never, ever hired someone who was mirthless. I
may have hired a few who were worthless, but never mirthless.
Hire for candor, too. We’ll talk more about this in the next chapter, but
one of the most difficult things about gaining power is that it becomes
increasingly hard to find out the truth about any situation because peo-
ple are increasingly eager to flatter you. Yes-men will allow you to light
your career on fire without ever mentioning that your hair is smoking.
Look instead for seasoned, confident
people, courageous people who will take
I NEVER, EVER
the personal hit of telling you the truth
HIRED SOMEONE
rather than feeding you pleasant lies. If
WHO WAS
you hire only yes-men, the people above
MIRTHLESS. I MAY
you will notice and think less of you.
HAVE HIRED A FEW
At some point as you rise, you will
WHO WERE
find that you are no longer in a position
WORTHLESS, BUT
to personally make every hire in your
NEVER MIRTHLESS.
area. The great benefit of hiring good
people for your direct reports is that
their abilities will radiate throughout your organization. At one point at
John Hancock, we were having some legal issues, so we went out and
found a top-notch general counsel. He liked working for Hancock and, as
a result, was a fantastic emissary for us, attracting some very good lawyers
who would never have considered working for us otherwise.
Having a reputation as somebody who not only can build a strong team
but also can bring in people who can build strong teams is extraordinar-
ily valuable.

HORSE-TRADE FOR TALENT
Once you’ve assembled a really great team, your rivals may well notice how
good it is and try to poach key players. On the other hand, you may want
to improve your team by poaching from them.

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