Monday night I delighted in another decisive victory by the Packers over the Lions. (Don’t worry Vikings fans; I won’t irritate you too much with my fandom.) It seems no matter what the season or year, you can count on the Lions to deliver a losing season. I don’t have anything against the Lions; it’s just that I cannot remember them winning a Thanksgiving game in recent history. (it was November 23, 2003 by the way and they beat the Packers 22-14 – thank you Google.)
Toward the end of the game, the announcers compared the recruiting strategies of both teams.
Going into the 2012 season 30 of the 53-person Packer roster was drafted by the Packers – nearly 60%
Roughly 1/3 of the current Lions roster were original draft picks
Changing out players for the latest star performer or free agent is like chasing returns in the stock market; it rarely works.
Why does it matter?
No matter how good the quarterback, defensive end, or special teams player, he is part of a team. Think about Randy Moss. He has played for 5 teams (twice for the Vikings) since being drafted in 2007. It was all about him – he wasn’t focused on overall team performance
Team cohesion. If your team members are turning over regularly, it is challenging to develop trust, team cohesion, and deliver results. They are individual performers trying to make themselves into a team that is continually reinventing itself.
Recruitment and replacement costs are astronomical. You are constantly posting jobs, interviewing candidates, and retraining – these all involve hard and soft costs. Additionally, there are vacancy costs – work not getting done, people stretched too thin to do good work while a position remains open.
How has each team performed?
The Packers have had 8 winning seasons in the past 10 years
The Lions have had 1 winning season (2011) in the last 10 years
When does it make sense to hire the superstar from the outside?
This may make sense when:
You are entering a new market or geography and have no expertise
When you are a business experiencing “growing pains” from start up to professionally-managed business
The hire fits the culture and brings a valuable skill set you do not have the time or the in-house talent to develop
When you hire externally, what is the impact on your current staff?
What motivated Aaron Rogers to sit on the bench all those years, watching Brett Favre get all the glory (despite some inconsistent performance!). Team culture, an opportunity to be part of a winning team, and a huge investment in his development most likely played a role. When making external hires, it is important to remember to care for staff morale and sense of worth to the organization.
When is it appropriate to groom the talent in-house?
Whenever you have the potential in-house and the time and dollars to invest in development
When you have the foresight and the time to know what skills will be critical for the business’ future success (a/k/a take time for workforce planning)
When a seasoned, strong performed is ready for a new challenge
When a less experienced staff member shows promise, and is ready to take it to the next level of contribution (with your nurturing and investment)
The Packers are experts in this. They have an entire function related to player and family development off and on the field: http://www.packers.com/team/player-development.html
For more on recruiting strategies visit Roo’s complimentary download center: http://www.roosolutions.net/donwloadspage.html
What’s your strategy?
Going into the 2012 season 30 of the 53-person Packer roster was drafted by the Packers – nearly 60%
Roughly 1/3 of the current Lions roster were original draft picks
Changing out players for the latest star performer or free agent is like chasing returns in the stock market; it rarely works.
Why does it matter?
No matter how good the quarterback, defensive end, or special teams player, he is part of a team. Think about Randy Moss. He has played for 5 teams (twice for the Vikings) since being drafted in 2007. It was all about him – he wasn’t focused on overall team performance
Team cohesion. If your team members are turning over regularly, it is challenging to develop trust, team cohesion, and deliver results. They are individual performers trying to make themselves into a team that is continually reinventing itself.
Recruitment and replacement costs are astronomical. You are constantly posting jobs, interviewing candidates, and retraining – these all involve hard and soft costs. Additionally, there are vacancy costs – work not getting done, people stretched too thin to do good work while a position remains open.
How has each team performed?
The Packers have had 8 winning seasons in the past 10 years
The Lions have had 1 winning season (2011) in the last 10 years
When does it make sense to hire the superstar from the outside?
This may make sense when:
You are entering a new market or geography and have no expertise
When you are a business experiencing “growing pains” from start up to professionally-managed business
The hire fits the culture and brings a valuable skill set you do not have the time or the in-house talent to develop
When you hire externally, what is the impact on your current staff?
What motivated Aaron Rogers to sit on the bench all those years, watching Brett Favre get all the glory (despite some inconsistent performance!). Team culture, an opportunity to be part of a winning team, and a huge investment in his development most likely played a role. When making external hires, it is important to remember to care for staff morale and sense of worth to the organization.
When is it appropriate to groom the talent in-house?
Whenever you have the potential in-house and the time and dollars to invest in development
When you have the foresight and the time to know what skills will be critical for the business’ future success (a/k/a take time for workforce planning)
When a seasoned, strong performed is ready for a new challenge
When a less experienced staff member shows promise, and is ready to take it to the next level of contribution (with your nurturing and investment)
The Packers are experts in this. They have an entire function related to player and family development off and on the field: http://www.packers.com/team/player-development.html
For more on recruiting strategies visit Roo’s complimentary download center: http://www.roosolutions.net/donwloadspage.html
What’s your strategy?