How To Bring Talented People Along With You

How To Bring Talented People Along With You
I love mentoring, coaching and motivating others. I’ve made it a cornerstone of who I am professionally. When I spot talent (potential or realized), I try to bring that person along with me. This philosophy is how I surround myself with smart, creative people who deliver exceptional client service and unique thinking.

What does it mean to bring someone along? It starts by treating them like a member of my team, regardless of who the person reports to (me or someone else), where they work (my office, another office or even at another company) or their level, role or department (within my own discipline of communications or a different department, like finance or operations). When I treat someone like a member of my team, I do the following:

1. Set them up for success
   
   • My goal is for that person to succeed. To help make that happen, I take time to assign projects clearly, offer examples of similar projects as inspiration, provide relevant background, establish clear deadlines, provide recommendations for existing resources, define budget parameters and invite questions. This investment at the start of a project pays off later in the process. I try to remember this when it’s busy and I get that “can’t they just figure it out on their own” feeling. I try hard to resist that temptation and I carve out time to set the person up the right way from the start.
2. Provide growth-focused feedback (not “positive or negative” feedback)

• Growth-focused feedback is descriptive, clear and illustrative to help a person grow. It is the most valuable investment you can make in a person’s career. Telling someone they did a “great job” might make them feel good for the moment, but it won’t help them replicate successful work. Growth-focused feedback is about explaining WHY the work was good or WHY it wasn’t, so they learn what happened (both good and bad) and can implement those insights in the future. It is rapid and shared in real-time, so the person can recognize the success or downfall while it is happening.

1. Hold them accountable
   
   • Holding people accountable is one of the hardest parts of business, but it’s critical for professional growth. When you make someone keep their promises – like meeting a deadline or doing what they said they would do – you show they are a person of value and someone you want to work with again. You also show that they play a critical role on your project or team, and that their promises matter and make a difference in the overall success of the project or campaign.
2. Celebrate earned successes
   
   • It’s important to celebrate a person’s success privately and publicly, if that meshes with their personality. Praise their good work when the work really is good. Inform their manager or boss so they get recognition formally from those helping their career. But…and this is a BIG BUT….never celebrate mediocrity. Although it makes someone feel good for the moment, it hurts them long-term as it rewards sub-par work and creates confusion around what is acceptable versus good or great.

How do you growth and groom talent in your life? Please comment and share.