The Critical Importance of Teamwork in Leadership

Teamwork is key to hiring and developing leaders

Hiring the right leaders is crucial for organizational success, yet companies often fail to choose the right candidates. Gallup (2024) reports that 82% of management hires lack the necessary talent for their roles. This high failure rate persists despite research suggesting that 10% of people possess natural management talent and an additional 20% are capable of high performance with the right development.

If true, 30% of people have the natural talent or potential to be highly effective leaders but companies still only get it right 18% of the time. This discrepancy highlights a significant gap in hiring and development practices. There are likely a few factors that contribute to poor leadership hiring decisions:

1. Misguided promotions based on technical proficiency vs. leadership ability or potential.

2. Failing to identify the critical qualities/skills/experience needed for leadership success.

3. Using unreliable or invalid selection tools and processes.

4. Overlooking leadership potential within the existing workforce.

One possible solution to these challenges may be more straightforward than we think: Prioritize teamwork in leadership selection, development, and reward systems. Many organizations still view leadership as an individual endeavor, focusing too narrowly on personal skills and traits. However, one of the most critical success factors for great leadership is the ability to create and sustain highly effective teams.

To dramatically improve leadership hiring and development, companies should consider:

1. Looking for candidates with the ability to build highly effective teams.

2. Implementing selection processes that evaluate teamwork abilities.

3. Implementing development programs that help leaders create highly effective teams.

4. Rewarding leaders who excel at fostering high-performing teams (e.g., promotion).

By shifting the focus to teamwork and teambuilding, organizations can tap into the potential often hidden within their own workforce and significantly improve their leadership selection outcomes.