i-TFTD #138

#138-1. People are not your most important asset. The RIGHT people are.
-Jim Collins, author of "Built to Last" and "Good to Great"

#138-2. When organizations say, "Our people are our greatest asset" what they actually mean is, "Our people's STRENGTHS are our greatest asset."
-Marcus Buckingham, author of "Go Put Your Strengths to Work" and other books

#138-3. The task of leadership is to create an alignment of strengths in ways that make a system's weaknesses irrelevant.
-Peter Drucker, pioneer management guru, prolific author of management books

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The Strengths-based Approach, which I have been evangelizing in my organization for almost two years, is really gaining ground around the world with companies like Microsoft, Accenture and Toyota aligning their corporate people practices with this approach. Managers in these companies are trained to identify their own strengths and the strengths of their subordinates.

The first quote could sound a bit negative to some. They might ask, "So there are some WRONG people and they are unimportant, is it?" Actually there is a positive way to look at it (as usual). The people most likely to contribute to the success of any organization and thereby achieve personal career success are those whose values and attitudes are aligned with the culture of the organization. Maybe some people are more likely to achieve success by being the RIGHT people in some other culture? No recruitment process can perfectly assess this aspect of "fit".