The universal disappointment at Gordon Brown’s performance in his first (only?) year as PM raises a point that’s been overlooked - that maybe many hiring decisions go wrong.
The thing is, Brown’s track record and personal characteristics were a matter of public record for 25 years before he became PM. He was, or should have been, a known quantity. And yet, although he was appointed unopposed to widespread acclaim he is now obviously, pitifully, not up to the job. Which raises the possibility: if someone could prove to have been a disastrous appointment even when he was well known, how much more likely are hiring decisions to go wrong in the more normal cases, where hirers know less about the candidate?
In many cases, of course, the problem is avoided simply by the job requiring technical skills. If you can write code well, or build a wall or cure patients, it doesn’t much matter if your employer misjudged your character.
And in those managerialist jobs where soft skills do matter, a new employee can use a number of ruses to hide his incompetence:
1. Just act. As Machiavelli said:
2. Exploit the endowment effect. The day you start a job, you are in credit. Your boss thinks you’re the right person for the job - that's why he hired you. He wants to persuade others that he’s a good judge, so he’ll big you up to his colleagues. And the endowment effect means people value things highly simply because they’ve just got them. If you do nothing obviously wrong, therefore, folks will have a good opinion of you.
3. Do little, but promise big. Years ago, a colleague of mine did almost nothing in his first six months, except promise fancy things and cuss the IT systems for his inability to get them started. Having arrived with a high reputation, this ruse kept him going for some time.
4. Pick the low-hanging fruit first. Even if you’re a duffer, there’ll be some things you can do that’ll impress your colleagues. Combined with point 2, this can get you a long way. A former boss of mine was convinced I was a genius, merely because my first call was a good one.
5. Delegate. There’s a well-regarded Chief Exec of a FTSE 100 company who is an expert in project finance. So, he takes a keen interest in those aspects of the business where this expertise is needed, whilst giving managers of other departments a free hand.
Even at lower levels, such delegation is often possible. If your technical skills are a bit iffy, you can spend more time with clients. Or if you’re not so good with clients, you can stick more to the technical stuff.
6. Learn. If you can ask the right questions in the right way - which is a vastly under-rated skill - you can pull off the hat-trick: you can motivate your colleagues and underlings by appearing interested in them; gain a reputation for collegiality and openness; and plug the gaps in your ignorance.
7. Exploit sheepskin effects. If folks treat you as a genius - and thanks to point 2 they will initially - it’s easy to pass yourself off as one; your silences will be read as thoughtfulness rather than stupidity; your silly remarks as devil’s advocacy.
8. Leave before you get caught out. All management consultants know this.
Anyone with a bit of self-control and nous can, therefore, cover up the fact that they are the wrong man for the job - and, after a while, maybe even turn into the right man. Brown’s tragedy is that - either out of personal failings or bad luck - he was unable to do this.
The thing is, Brown’s track record and personal characteristics were a matter of public record for 25 years before he became PM. He was, or should have been, a known quantity. And yet, although he was appointed unopposed to widespread acclaim he is now obviously, pitifully, not up to the job. Which raises the possibility: if someone could prove to have been a disastrous appointment even when he was well known, how much more likely are hiring decisions to go wrong in the more normal cases, where hirers know less about the candidate?
In many cases, of course, the problem is avoided simply by the job requiring technical skills. If you can write code well, or build a wall or cure patients, it doesn’t much matter if your employer misjudged your character.
And in those managerialist jobs where soft skills do matter, a new employee can use a number of ruses to hide his incompetence:
1. Just act. As Machiavelli said:
And if you can pretend to be good for long enough, you might become good - as in that famous story in Colditz, where a man who feigned madness in order to escape actually went mad.A prince doesn't need to have all the [good] qualities…but it is necessary that he appear to have them. I'll even add to this: having good qualities and always practicing them is harmful, while appearing to practice them is useful. It's good to appear to be pious, faithful, humane, honest, and religious…A prince must take great care never to let anything come from his mouth that is not full of the above-mentioned five qualities, and he must appear to all who see and hear him to be completely pious, completely faithful, completely honest, completely humane, and completely religious.
2. Exploit the endowment effect. The day you start a job, you are in credit. Your boss thinks you’re the right person for the job - that's why he hired you. He wants to persuade others that he’s a good judge, so he’ll big you up to his colleagues. And the endowment effect means people value things highly simply because they’ve just got them. If you do nothing obviously wrong, therefore, folks will have a good opinion of you.
3. Do little, but promise big. Years ago, a colleague of mine did almost nothing in his first six months, except promise fancy things and cuss the IT systems for his inability to get them started. Having arrived with a high reputation, this ruse kept him going for some time.
4. Pick the low-hanging fruit first. Even if you’re a duffer, there’ll be some things you can do that’ll impress your colleagues. Combined with point 2, this can get you a long way. A former boss of mine was convinced I was a genius, merely because my first call was a good one.
5. Delegate. There’s a well-regarded Chief Exec of a FTSE 100 company who is an expert in project finance. So, he takes a keen interest in those aspects of the business where this expertise is needed, whilst giving managers of other departments a free hand.
Even at lower levels, such delegation is often possible. If your technical skills are a bit iffy, you can spend more time with clients. Or if you’re not so good with clients, you can stick more to the technical stuff.
6. Learn. If you can ask the right questions in the right way - which is a vastly under-rated skill - you can pull off the hat-trick: you can motivate your colleagues and underlings by appearing interested in them; gain a reputation for collegiality and openness; and plug the gaps in your ignorance.
7. Exploit sheepskin effects. If folks treat you as a genius - and thanks to point 2 they will initially - it’s easy to pass yourself off as one; your silences will be read as thoughtfulness rather than stupidity; your silly remarks as devil’s advocacy.
8. Leave before you get caught out. All management consultants know this.
Anyone with a bit of self-control and nous can, therefore, cover up the fact that they are the wrong man for the job - and, after a while, maybe even turn into the right man. Brown’s tragedy is that - either out of personal failings or bad luck - he was unable to do this.
The greatest asset is listening. Unfortunately, Brown is pathologically unable to do this, even though he spouts on about it. All those " consultations" have been no more than packed talking shops, tasked with giving the answers he wants.
Posted by: kinglear | June 28, 2008 at 04:05 PM
Maybe, the thing is that hiring has nothing to do with politics nomination.
As P. J. O'Rourke said 'politics is the business of getting power and privilege without possessing merit'.
Posted by: ortega | June 28, 2008 at 05:30 PM
We shouldn't overlook the evidence that the rot in the credibility of New Labour set in with Tony Blair.
Between the elections of 1997 and 2005, Blair lost 4 million votes and half the membership of the Labour Party.
Posted by: Bob B | June 28, 2008 at 08:46 PM