Our family started watching the Disney+ documentary special Get Back over the holiday break. The three-part series covers the making of the Beatles' 1970 album Let It Be, whose working title was apparently Get Back. Director Peter Jackson (of LOTR fame) and his team condensed over 60 hours of film footage and 150 hours from the original Let It Be film project for the documentary, which premiered this past November 25, 26, and 27 on the Disney+ network (if you prefer to read about the documentary, check out this fantastic article by David Remnick and review by Adam Gopnik in The New Yorker). We only made it through the first episode due to time constraints. I am a huge Beatles fan, so I really enjoyed the episode, which ends when George Harrison tells everyone that he is quitting the band and walks out of the studio. I will have to wait for the second episode to see how things turn out, but admittedly I do know what happens - Harrison returns and the band finishes recording their album. They end up playing a 42-minute live show on the rooftop of the Apple Corps headquarters in London. Incidentally, this was to be their final live performance as a band (but that is a topic for another day).
After watching the first episode, I started to think about what it means to leave an organization. Harrison was clearly frustrated with the rest of the band members in the documentary - perhaps he felt marginalized by both Paul McCartney and John Lennon. He quit, like many superstar employees do, due to his ongoing frustration with how things worked in his organization, which in this case happened to be one of the most famous rock-n-roll bands in history. In other words, he was pushed to leave. There is a subtle, but important difference between being pushed out and leaving an organization versus being pulled into and joining a new one. It should be intuitive that the grass is not always greener on the other side, so if you are leaving an organization out of frustration, you will likely be disappointed in your new one (and less likely to be successful in the new one).
In my last two posts, I talked about Harvard Business School professor Boris Groysberg's research on what has come to be called the "Portability Paradox" (covered at length in his book Chasing Stars: The Myth of Talent and the Portability of Performance). I discussed some of the reasons for why superstar employees aren't always as successful in a new and different organization in my first post ("You can't take it with you...or can you?"). I discussed ways that organizations can mitigate some of these factors to increase a superstar employee's performance in my second post ("Superstars"). In today's third and final post on this topic, I wanted to discuss ways that an individual (i.e. the superstar employee) can increase her/his chances of success at a new organization. Groysberg identified the following common mistakes that superstar employees often make:
1. Doing inadequate research
Recall from Groysberg's research that the relative quality of the two firms is an important factor in the "Portability Paradox." If the superstar employee is moving to a new organization whose level of performance falls below that of the old one, she or he is not likely to be as successful at the new organization. There is no way that one person alone can save an organization, so know what you are getting into when you leave for a new organization. It's better to move up than to move down. Just as important, according to Groysberg's research are the kinds of support resources that you will be provided at the new organization. Onboarding and orientation to the new culture is just as important - it's better to look into this before making a final decision to leave your old organization. Finally, understand what role you are being asked to fill at the new organization - is it a similar role to your old one, or will the level of responsibilities, role, and scope be completely different?
2. Leaving for money
Changing organizations solely for financial reasons isn't always the best move. Superstar employees should be wary of organizations that overpay. As Groysberg found, these organizations inadvertently create a culture of "us versus them" (i.e. the old employees who may be getting paid less than the new superstar employee). In addition, organizations expect a return on their investment - overpaying for a superstar employee may be an act of desperation to try to bring in a "savior" for the organization.
3. Moving "from" rather than "to"
As I stated above, moving "from" an organization (being pushed) versus moving "to" a new one (being pulled) rarely, if ever, works out in the end. Superstar employees should plan their career moves carefully rather than moving from one crisis to the next. Those individuals who move "from" an organization generally fail to do their due diligence when researching the new organization. It's as though they are so desperate to leave their old organization, they ignore warning signs or red flags during the recruitment and hiring process at their new one. Again, as I stated above, the grass is never greener on the other side.
4. Overestimating your worth
Again, as I have stated, there is absolutely no way that a single employee can be the organization's savior. Recall that Groysberg's research showed that superstar employees who left for a new organization as part of a team usually maintained their same level of performance, while those who left their teams and moved to a new organization by themselves almost always did not. There are many reasons why you have been successful at one organization - hard work, commitment, and expertise are all important reasons. However, as Groysberg shows, the old organization's culture, resources, and team are just as important.
5. Not taking a long-term perspective
Groysberg's research shows that it takes time for superstar employees to learn their new organization's culture, systems, and political landscape (in terms of finding the necessary resources in the organization). All of this takes time - do not expect to match your same level of performance quickly. There are a number of well-known management books that speak to the importance of establishing yourself in your first 90 days or 100 days - however, the evidence suggests that it often takes much longer for new employees to find their groove (generally on the order of 6 months).
Leaving for a new organization is never without risk. However, if done carefully, it can be an extremely rewarding experience. Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg said, "Feeling confident - or pretending that you feel confident - is necessary to reach for opportunities. It's a cliché, but opportunities are rarely offered; they're seized." Carpe diem - seize the day! But do your research and have a plan!
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