Most of us expect to learn and grow and our managers and peers are part of this positive process that we all cherish.
Most of us expect to be treated fairly. This includes getting the same reward for the same investment, effort and value we create. (Yes value creation is important!).
Most of us want to work in a company that grows, can invest and innovate. A company (and a team) we can be proud of.
So what happens when you have colleagues that are laid back, very slow to get the job done, propagate negative energy, make mistakes and do not care about it… and still they end up being treated the same way as you?
And what happens when you know that everyone, including your manager, is aware of their shortcomings, when colleagues, teams are complaining about this person…. and nothing gets done and this person stays in her job and in the organization?
Let me tell you what happens: if you are talented, hard working and want to grow and learn then it’s simple, you just quit! You say good bye to your boss and your organization! Because you expect to be part of a team that has the same values, same goals, same DNA and that of course recognizes the value you can bring…
But of course the ones who enjoy mediocrity will stay around. If you look for a place where not performing, being slow and making mistakes is ok… then the last thing you want to do is to change job if all this is accepted, tolerated.
So as a manager, when you decide to keep low performers because you are afraid to make tough decisions, you simply destroy your team, you make all the top performers leave, and you destroy your own career because you will go nowhere without your team, or we could say that you can go as far as your team can take you. I specifically wrote “you decide” because it’s too easy to say that you have no choice because of whatever excuse you might find not to make a tough decision.
Being a manager is not easy, it means taking tough decisions. It requires courage.
And to finish this post, here is how this same idea was explained by Sebastian Gebski in his blog post: Bozo Effect – from greatness to mediocrity
The problem with bozo effect is not only that it may be hard to spot (from within), but also that it’s very hard to reverse: once you lower these standards, they tend to continue dropping dramatically, because:
- A players want to play with other A players, …
- … but B players tend to favor (consciously or not) C players (so they feel more secure, more in control, etc.)
Ferrandou 