Welcome to the first issue.
Every week I am going to write about one thing: what happens when leaders start treating people decisions with the same rigor they already apply to everything else in the business.
A number I cannot let go of
In 2020, I shared a stat on our company page. Six hundred executives had been interviewed about talent. Only twelve percent of their companies aligned their people strategy to their business strategy.
I have been watching that number for six years. It has not improved.
Almost everyone has an operations plan. Detailed, specific, thought through. Almost nobody has a people plan. Not values on a wall. An actual plan. Which behaviors each role genuinely requires. Who on the team is naturally suited to which work. Where the friction will come from before it arrives.
Why it stays hidden
When a plan underperforms, the easiest explanation is that people did not execute. That explanation is almost always wrong, and it is comfortable precisely because it requires no change to the system.
Blame is easy. Leadership is not.
Where to start this week
Do I know what each role on my team actually demands behaviorally? Do I know how each of my people is naturally wired, or am I guessing? Am I coaching every person the same way, and if so, why?
If those questions are uncomfortable, good. That is where the work is.
Mike
Mike McCloskey
Founder and CEO of HumanLytics Team. Helping leaders turn people data into a people plan.
More about Mike →