The Chicago Cubs Firesale

I am and always will be a fan of the Chicago Cubs (see some of my posts in the past involving the Cubs - "The World Has Changed (Fly the W)" and "Lovable Losers Once More" for just a few examples).  Last week, in about a 48 hour span, the Cubs went through what can only be described as a "Fire Sale".  Jed Hoyer, President of Baseball Operations, traded away 8 players in that timespan, not including a player (right fielder Joc Pederson) that he traded away a week or so before the Major League Baseball Trade Deadline on this past Friday afternoon.  Here is who go traded:

Kris Bryant - 3B (Bryant actually played every position this year, except 2B, Pitcher, and Catcher)

Javy Baez - SS

Trevor Williams - SP

Craig Kimbrel - Closer

Jake Marisnick - CF

Anthony Rizzo - 1B (who even occasionally came in to pitch)

Andrew Chafin - RP

Ryan Tepera - RP

Never mind that three of the players, Kris Bryant (see The next MLB MVP from the greatest team in America uses "stretch goals"), Anthony Rizzo, and Javy Baez represented the core group for the past several years that won the 2016 World Series title (which was the first title the Cubs won in 108 years), the 2016 National League Pennant (which was the first pennant the Cubs won in 71 years), and three National League Central Division titles (2016, 2017, and 2020).  Add two more Wild Card play-off appearances in 2015 and 2018, and you can see why Cubs fans hold a special place in their hearts for these three players.

I will make a confession.  When I heard about these trades (and they came in rapid succession last Thursday and Friday), I was disappointed.  I will even say that I was angry - to the point where I told my wife that I was turning in my Cubs jerseys and becoming a White Sox fan (she told me not to get too emotional!).  After I have had a chance to calm down though and let the initial shock wear off, I can see that these trades - as painful as they were - probably had to happen.  All three players were going to be free agents at the end of this season, so rather than risk not being able to sign any of them (Baez reportedly was asking for at least a $200 million contract) and get nothing, Hoyer made the decision to trade them now and get something.  Only time will tell if he made the right decision.  

The issue I have is that things should have never gotten to this point, where the core nucleus of the 2016 World Series Champions, all still fairly young (Rizzo is 31 years, Bryant is 29 years, and Baez is 28 years) and arguably with several good years still ahead, became free agents all at the same time.  Take a look at almost any perennially successful sports team (the University of Alabama football team, the New England Patriots, the Los Angeles Dodgers, or the New York Yankees) and you can hopefully appreciate that (1) while teams certainly have dynasties and (2) all good runs do must eventually end, (3) these teams continue to compete on a very high level, year after year after year.  Naturally, looking at these teams leads to the question, "How do they do it?"  The answer is fairly simple and straightforward.  More importantly, the answer also applies to organizations outside of sports.  In one word - succession planning.

High-performance teams are always investing in talent.  People are highly mobile, and gone are the days when professional athletes (and coaches too, for that matter) and individuals in the workforce stay with one team or company for their entire career.  One of the principal jobs for leadership in every organization is to make sure that there is always a pipeline of talent that continually replenishes itself.

Ask yourself this simple question.  How many minutes do you spend in a normal day on mentorship, succession planning, or talent development?  I don't know what the right answer is exactly, but if you are in a leadership role, the answer you give better not be zero!  If you are in a leadership role, you should already have a list of at least 1 or 2 individuals who can immediately take over for you in an emergency (say, if you win the lottery tomorrow and decide to retire early) or within the next year, 2 to 3 individuals who can take over within the two to three years, and 3-4 individuals who you are working with to develop to take over in four to five years from now.  

There is simply no excuse not to develop a steady pipeline of talent.  The cold, hard fact is that organizations should never find themselves in the situation that the Chicago Cubs faced this year - the potential loss of three talented individuals and leaders at the same time.  Succession planning, mentorship, and talent development can and should go hand in hand.  The ultimate success of the organization depends upon it.