Sydney Finkelstein, professor of management and director of the Tuck Center for Leadership at Dartmouth College, and author of the book entitled Superbosses, has been analyzing successful bosses of the world's leading companies from 18 sectors for ten years. He found that they achieved excellent results largely because they didn't hold onto the traditional way of thinking about how essential it is to retain the best talent. Successful managers, he says, not only let their best people leave, but even actively encourage them to leave.
In an article for the Wall Street Journal, in which Finkelstein describes the findings of his research, he explains that the "superbosses" didn't become billionaires by hoarding the best talent in their companies, but by their ability to manage the flow of talent in their organizations. Their stories clearly show that it's better to have great people in their ranks for a short time than average people forever.
Talent must turn
The most successful bosses take an uncompromising attitude to recruiting. They don't want average, but talent. However, once they acquire talent, they count on the fact that some of the best will leave soon. It's only natural that these capable and ambitious people will want to go their own way. Having the opportunity to use their talents, even for a short time, is worth it. A high turnover of talent doesn't hurt companies, because it brings more and more new talent. Companies taking this approach create a reputation of being ideal places to start a great career, which makes the new supply of talent guaranteed.
When a company stops accumulating talent and begins to constantly renew it, an interesting paradox occurs. Even though many talented workers stop working for them, they will always bring certain advantages. A big advantage of such a high turnover of talent in companies able to offer interesting job opportunities is the creation of networks of former employees who keep on bringing new commercial offers, information, and tips for other talents, just to name a few.
Book
Finkelstein, Sydney: Superbosses: How Exceptional Leaders Master the Flow of Talent. Portfolio 2016. 272 p.
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