Great ideas are overrated: Hire bakers, not just breadmakers.

Picture this: You’ve got the next “big idea.” You’re convinced it’s the kind of brilliance that will change the world—like sliced bread, but better. Maybe it’s like sliced bread that texts you when you’re running low. You’re ready to pour everything into it and need a team. So, you hire people suited explicitly to that one great idea, excited to ride the wave of your success.

But what happens when that brilliant idea doesn’t exactly change the world as planned? You hit a roadblock, or maybe the market shifts (as markets love to do), and now you need to pivot to the next idea. The real question: Do you have the right people to do that?

Or let’s assume the dream scenario—your idea succeeds. It's not only doing well, it’s doing great. So great, in fact, that you get an even better idea, one that will expand the business and take it to new heights. But if you’ve only hired people who were perfect for that initial concept, you may find yourself stuck because they’re not flexible enough to grow with you.

In both cases, you’ve created a ticking time bomb, a team that’s only as good as the last version of the plan.

Hire for the long game, not the one-hit wonder

The problem with hiring people who fit perfectly with one business idea is that you’re betting everything on that one idea. That’s like getting a professional juggler to join your circus when the next thing you know, juggling is out, and people are all about fire-breathing. Your juggler might be spectacular, but now they’re standing there with three bowling pins while the rest of the industry is blowing flames.

The same applies to business. You need the kind of people who can juggle AND breathe fire, metaphorically speaking. You need people who are not just great at executing your current idea but who can adapt, evolve, and grow with the company. That’s where real success lies—in the flexibility and capability of your people, not in the idea.

Research agrees: People matter more than ideas

Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, hammered this point home. He said, “Great vision without great people is irrelevant.” He’s right. Collins’ research showed that companies that last, that thrive, are built on a foundation of talent and leadership, not on one great business idea. It’s not about having the best idea in the world; it’s about having the best people to execute, pivot, and keep moving forward when things inevitably change.

A study from the Harvard Business Review further supports this, finding that the single biggest predictor of business success is the quality of the people in your organization. Not the idea, not the product, but the people. As HBR puts it: “The right people will make the right decisions no matter the context.”

People outlast ideas

Think of Steve Jobs. He didn’t just hire folks who were great at selling Apple’s first computer. He hired people who believed in pushing boundaries, who were ready to innovate constantly, and adapt to new challenges. If he had filled Apple with people only good at selling the first Macintosh, we might still be buying computers with floppy disks.

Here’s the harsh truth: Ideas come and go. Sometimes faster than a meme on the internet. But people? The right people will build success across ideas, across markets, and across time.

The danger of idea-only teams

When you hire based solely on a specific idea, you’re creating a rigid structure. Your team might be fantastic at the thing they were hired for, but if the wind changes direction, they’re likely to be thrown off balance. It’s like building a team of Olympic sprinters for a marathon. Sure, they’re fast, but can they endure the long game?

That’s why hiring for adaptability, creativity, and resilience is more important than hiring for a specific idea or strategy. You want the people who can run the marathon, the sprint, and also do a quick tap dance in between if necessary. Flexibility wins.

But my idea is brilliant! Can’t I just hire for that?

Nope. Here’s a riddle for you: What’s worse than a bad idea? A good idea with the wrong people to execute it. Even the best ideas will crash and burn if you don’t have the team to make it work and adapt when things inevitably go sideways.

You need the Swiss Army knife of teams—people with multiple skills, experiences, and perspectives. When one part of the business needs to change, your team should be able to switch gears seamlessly.

In his book Principles, Ray Dalio, the founder of Bridgewater Associates, argues that the best companies hire people for their values and abilities, not just their technical skills. Why? Because when you build a team based on shared values, curiosity, and adaptability, you create a culture that can survive the ups and downs of business cycles. Dalio would agree: hire the right people and the ideas will follow.

What happens when you don’t?

When you don’t hire the right people, it’s like building a house with bricks made of jello. Sure, it looks like it’s coming together at first, but when the pressure hits, it’s a big wobbly mess. You’ll find yourself scrambling to hire, retrain, or replace, all while trying to keep the business afloat. And trust me, that’s not the kind of multitasking you want to be doing.

Building for the future

At the end of the day, business ideas are fluid. They will change. Markets will shift. Competitors will appear out of nowhere with a better, shinier version of your product. But if you have the right people—people who can think critically, adapt, and bring their A-game to every new challenge—you’ll not only survive but thrive.

So, next time you’re sitting in an interview, don’t just ask, “Can this person execute my idea?” Ask, “Can this person help me build the next great idea?”

Because when that brilliant, world-changing, bread-texting idea doesn’t work out, it won’t be the bread that saves you. It’ll be the bakers you hired along the way.