Does Your Leadership Team Pass the Airport Test?

Seeking in strangers' faces. Teammates?

When hiring, we often focus on skills and experience. But for leadership teams, fit matters just as much. Will these individuals' strengths and styles mesh or clash? Try this: imagine being stranded overnight in an airport with each one. If the thought makes you cringe, they may not be the right team member, however stellar their resume.

Kaleidoscope leaders bring diverse perspectives. But they must also share fundamental values, communicate openly, challenge respectfully, compromise willingly. Like band members' complementary skills that create musical synergy, the right mix of leaders combines to achieve more together.

Before adding a seat at the leadership table, envision long hours in cramped quarters. Will this person's empathy, integrity, and humor enrich the team experience? Or do they lacerate with criticism, dominate with ego, drain with negativity? Vet beyond skills to temperament.

Character can't be taught, only revealed. But a leadership team's dynamics can evolve, with care and intention. Tend to relationships. Address friction transparently, directly. Bond over shared purpose, not just tasks and metrics.