Build a Strong Organization and Invest in Your Top Performing Employees

As Go the Leaders, So Go Their Teams

Jeff Berstein was the CEO of ImageFIRST when we discussed the importance of developing more A-Players in his company. ImageFIRST is one of the largest and fastest-growing companies providing laundry services to the healthcare industry. Inspired, Jeff set the goal of having A-Players comprise 70 percent of his workforce. His HR team defined the boxes with clear criteria for all the different jobs and assessed his associates, letting each associate flow naturally into one of the four. He then asked each manager to provide a plan that would help their people move into the A-box within one or two quarters.

On the first assessment, only 30 percent of ImageFIRST’s employees qualified as A-Players. After a couple of quarters, this had risen to 42 percent, which was encouraging, but the number didn’t continue to trend upward. I looked at his exercise and saw that around 40 percent of his managers occupied the A-box. “Let’s take a different route,” I suggested. “What if we focused on developing your managers into great managers? What if we were able to raise the bar for managers and get 70 percent of them to develop into A-player managers? Then these good managers will do their jobs and might solve the problem of developing associates who are A-Players as well.”

We redirected our efforts toward transforming managers into top performers, which yielded impressive outcomes. Within two quarters, Jeff saw 70 percent of his managers reach A-Player performance. Remarkably, these managers also actively coached their team members, leading to a ripple effect. Consequently, in the same time frame, Jeff accomplished his objective of elevating 70 percent of all associates to A-Player status!

Focusing on developing managers into A-players had a multiplier effect. Many of the managers rose to the challenge and leveled up their leadership abilities. In turn, these talented managers led their people well, helped them to grow, and inspired them to deliver strong results and embody ImageFIRST’s core values. Jeff put it succinctly: “As go the leaders, so go their teams.”

Invest In Your A-Players First

Years ago, I recall walking unannounced into one of my programmers’ cubicles. This surprised him, and he immediately freaked out. “Why are you here? What did I screw up? If you’re here, I must have screwed up royally!”

“You’re a high performer,” I told him. “I’m interested in what you’re doing. I want to spend time with the best people.” I went on to have a wonderful working session and learned a lot from him.

“Patrick, that was pretty fun,” he said. “I hope you come by again.” That working session encouraged a very talented team member and changed his expectations about how I spend my time. I then asked myself, “What am I doing wrong so that my employees automatically believed that only mistakes and poor performance deserved my attention?” I realized that I had to change my own behavior and how I related to my team members. I had to let them know through my daily actions that I wanted to devote more time and energy to high-performing team members.

In numerous organizations, sales team leaders concentrate on underperforming members, aiming to enhance their performance. However, this approach can be flawed, as typically, 80 percent of a company’s business is generated by its top performers. Therefore, leaders should primarily focus their efforts on these individuals. This isn’t to say that leaders shouldn’t support their struggling team members—they certainly should. However, a larger share of their attention should be dedicated to their best performers and coaching them to further excel. The most significant portion of a leader’s time should be invested in further developing their A-Players.

In today's fiercely competitive marketplace, assembling a high-performing team is paramount for gaining a sustainable edge. As companies evolve, roles and responsibilities transform. An employee excelling currently may not be the ideal fit for that same position after significant expansion. Our compassion and empathy for the leader in question may blind us to the cascading negative effects down the line. This underscores the importance of proactively planning for transitions and fostering an environment where individuals can grow alongside the organization.

The key to attracting and retaining industry-leading talent lies in recognizing that people are not automatically assets. Deliberate focus and dedication are necessary to attract and develop A-Players – individuals who not only achieve outstanding outcomes but also embody the values of the company and contribute to a vibrant, positive culture to gain a competitive edge. By prioritizing top talent development, organizations fuel innovation, customer satisfaction, and accelerated growth.

Crafting Your Future Team Vision

To prepare your team for the challenges of tomorrow, it's essential to create a crystal-clear vision of where your company is headed in the next one to two years. By taking a proactive approach to envisioning the future, you can pinpoint the essential skills, competencies, and desired outcomes necessary for each role within your evolving organizational framework. Here are the critical factors to keep in mind as you craft your future vision:

1. Customer Growth: Envision which current customers will have evolved alongside your company's expansion, and consider potential new customer segments or markets to penetrate.
2. Product and Service Portfolio: Determine if your offerings will become more diverse or focused. Outline any new products or services planned, including their unique value propositions, target markets, pricing strategies, and go-to-market plans.
3. Financial Targets: Project your desired financial profile, including revenue, profits, cash flow, and other key metrics. Set ambitious yet achievable targets aligned with your growth aspirations.
4. Operational Capabilities: Assess the operational capabilities required to support your future state, such as manufacturing capacity, supply chain, technology infrastructure, and process improvements. Envision the optimal organizational structure and resource allocation.

Creating a clear vision of where you want your company to be in the next one to two years helps align your team and resources toward achieving your growth goals. This strategic exercise sets the stage for the crucial next step: matching your current talent to future roles and pinpointing areas for growth.