This is why Tesla needs talent optimization.
Greg Barnett, Ph.D.
Chief People Scientist & Sr Director of Product @ Energage | Innovator | AI Whisperer | SaaS Advisor
A look at Tesla’s business challenges
Here are some facts:
- Consumer Reports stopped endorsing the Model 3 because of reliability concerns.
- Executives and senior leaders are jumping ship. (Check out the ridiculously long departures list here.)
- Tesla is expanding its presence in foreign markets
- Tesla has faced production problems, delivery problems, and workforce layoffs.
- And then there is CEO Elon Musk. Beloved for his innovation, and with a cult-like following of “fanboys,” Musk was removed as chairman of the board; had to apologize for bizarre statements on earnings calls; is under investigation by the Justice Department, and is known as having a combative and explosive leadership style.
- Glassdoor ratings for Tesla are faltering. While internal employees generally still like their CEO (Musk has a 77 percent approval rating), only 57 percent would recommend the company to others. (Disclaimer: this author would like a Tesla despite all of the problems listed above.)
What’s the root cause of Tesla’s woes? People problems.
Wow—what a mess. Business, employee, and leadership problems all wrapped into one challenging bundle. How can a company that’s so innovative and so revolutionary be so broken?
The answer is a common one. As my colleague Matt Poepsel, the godfather of talent optimization, put it “All business problems are essentially people problems.” For innovative companies to succeed beyond the early adopter phases, they must approach innovation from the talent side first. This is what real talent optimization is about—aligning talent with your business strategy.
Admittedly, like many companies that are experiencing significant pain—especially those with mercurial CEOs—the problem starts at the very top (in this case Elon Musk). But rather than fire this passionate visionary and create a great upheaval, Tesla would be smart to fan his flames for innovation in a different way: through talent optimization.
Tesla can right its ship with talent optimization.
To learn the six Talent Optimization steps Tesla can make right now continue reading on The Predictive Index