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Skills Development: |
The Developing New-Hire part 1 of 2 |
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Surround yourself with good people
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by Brit Boone, president of GHP A stout competitor for Intel Corporation in the micro-chip industry, AMD has become a significant player that is second in market share globally. One of the keys to AMD’s growing success has been management’s view of the people in their company. The CEO of AMD, Hector Ruiz, shares that it is important to “surround yourself with good people and get out of the way.” He continues to say that “the right people will feel far more pressure to perform well when they are trusted.”* What does it mean to be one of the good people? Am I one of the right people? Can I become one of them? In my experience both as a trainer and as a manager working with a large number of people that were making the transition from the university to the workplace, I have found several keys that are important for success in this area. For new-hires that are looking to develop to become one of these good or right people, there are four things they need to be aware of so they can apply themselves in these areas. Being aware of these four areas combined with clear steps to take action will be helpful in the development of the professional employee, especially the new-hire. One key factor the new-hire needs to remember is that life-long learners experience varying paces of learning. When entering a new environment, the amount of information a person must assimilate is enormous. The new-hire is seeking to learn his office culture, lingo, business styles, etc. while tackling the logistics of his environment, such as learning computer systems, communication protocols, and procedural systems, while also learning the names of colleagues, their organizational position, team structure, working styles, etc. All of this does not even account for the “work” that the new-hire is responsible to perform. Still further, the new-hire must learn how to balance work expectations with life requirements including the need to socialize and be with friends and family, etc. The prudent new-hire would do well to realize that his learning curve will be steep and that he must be highly proactive in facilitating his learning in this entry phase. A second important factor to consider is the need to avoid the syllabus syndrome. In many western academic settings, the professor will present the students with a document on the first day of class. This document, the syllabus, tells the students the topic of every lecture; requirements for any special projects such as papers, presentations, etc. and the dates due; when tests will be given; expectations of the professor in regard to attendance, class participation, etc. Whether or not an individual has actually received a syllabus throughout their university education, a pattern has normally been set where the professor tells the students what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, and the way in which to do it. By and large, this is a foreign idea in the work environment. A new-hire should not expect to have their hourly or daily agenda handed to them by a manager that has many other direct reports. Third, a successful new-hire will be more than a problem-solver. The idea of a person waiting for a problem to be presented to her so she can work on it or solve it is reasonable in the university environment, but an uncommon event in most professional working environments. Developing new-hires, however, will seek to begin to identify problems so they can then take action for the betterment of the employer. In training, GHP stresses the importance of differentiating yourself while seeking to be a team player. In this vein, the fourth aspect to be aware of is the on-the-field coach. In soccer, there are athletes that make great plays like Wayne Rooney. Mr. Rooney is respected primarily because of his athleticism. He is not looked to for leadership or guidance from the other players. Perhaps in time he may be able to develop into this role. On the other hand, some players like Steven Gerrard are looked to not just for their ability to make a great play themselves, but to help those around them be successful. Investing their time and experience in other players, these playmakers function as an extra coach or an on-the-field coach that is able to give immediate input and feedback. The on-the-field coach concerns himself with a team victory, not just personal success. This is a distinction between great players and champions. ------------------------------------- * Fortune, March 21, 2005 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ page 1 2 © Copyright – Brit Boone – 2006
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