Management – Who you Are
Who are we and how can we grow?
Saw another story on how a young author is traveling the country talking to people and telling them to pursue their strengths; and that corporate America is looking at this as “WOW, this is something new!!!.
It amazes me, and I have to write this, that this is something new to the corporate markets out there. Truly amazing.
Maybe it was because I was trained with the Japanese mentality (my first few companies were Japanese owned) - or I had incredible mentors out there.
I don’t know, but, it amazes me that you, a manager, aren’t surrounding yourself with people who can “shore” up your weaknesses – or, in a positive spin, “compliment your strengths”.
I know my weaknesses. That accounting is not something I am great at – so, have an outstanding bookkeeper that knows more then me around. That I am creative, but, not the greatest in the world – so, have other creative people around me to “fine tune” my creative side.
I am discovering, and maybe this is why the other gentleman is so successful, that companies don’t want to hear about your weaknesses (like, right!!! I tell everyone my weaknesses – but, I DO hire to shore them up), that they only want to hear that you can “do the job and get it done”. Their job descriptions are above and beyond any individual in the world.
For example, looking through the want ads at a web site the other day, the position was for a VP of Marketing – and the description wanted someone that had 10 years in advertising (agency), 10 years in advertising (corporate), five years in sales, 10 years in web design, 10 years in traditional advertising, 10 years in web advertising, click thru knowledge and expertise, AND, in conclusion, will only accept resumes from people who are currently working (or worked) at Yahoo or Google – starting salary $120K.
I bet that they are getting 100′s of qualified candidates on that one. Not.
I have always been realistic, as well as been realistic with the companies and clients that I worked with/for. If they ask me to do something that I am not the best at, I tell them that I will bring on another person, at no additional charge, that can help us with that. If they want someone that knows the ins and outs of data-mining, then, I can’t help them, but, I do know people who can and can provide that info to me for our general marketing strategy.
The point is – as a consultant or working in a company – KNOW your strengths, hire people who can fill the weaknesses you have, and for g*ds sake, don’t play politics with this (meaning that if you hire someone who has a strength that you don’t have, they aren’t out to get your job), accept it. Because, you know what? You will do a better job for the company and will get promoted that much sooner. See my earlier posts about training someone to take over you job.
