Look in the Mirror
A Leadership Wake-Up Call on Hiring Accountability
- For this article, Log In to:
-
Download PDF
Herb Lipsman
Be honest. We have all heard the complaints: "This employee is a nightmare. They are dragging the team down. They cannot get the job done. They have a bad attitude. They keep making the same mistakes..." And, yet, here's the uncomfortable truth:
- Weren't you the one who recruited this person?
- Weren't you the one who hired them?
- Weren't you the one who onboarded and trained them?
- Weren't you the one who provided them the tools to successfully achieve their goals and objectives?
- Weren't you the one responsible for coaching them and making corrections?
So, who exactly is accountable here?
After more than 40 years leading thousands of employees in the club and hospitality space, I am still amazed how often managers distance themselves from responsibility when a hire goes south. Even more surprising? Many of them once enthusiastically pushed for that same person to join the team.
Bad hires happen, but recurring hiring failures often point to one common problem, a lack of leadership ownership. If you are serious about building a high-performing team, it is time to stop blaming and start leading. Here is a practical recipe for dramatically improving your hiring batting average:
- Adopt an Ownership Mindset: Assume full accountability for every person hired under your watch, whether directly or through your direct reports. No exceptions. Culture flows from the top.
- Clarify What Matters Most: Define the critical success factors for the role, skills, goals, values and culture fit. Create a job description that communicates not just tasks, but expectations, behaviors and boundaries for success.
- Build a Multi-Step Selection Process: Do not rush. Use structured methods to assess technical skills and cultural alignment. Include multiple interviews, diverse perspectives, and where possible, trial work or assessments. Surround yourself with people who will challenge your perspective, not echo it.
- Ask Better Questions: Ditch the check-the-box interviews. Use open-ended questions that reveal how a candidate sees the world. Pay close attention to how they communicate, their authenticity and what motivates them.
- Deliver a World-Class Onboarding Experience: Onboarding sets the tone. Don't dump a new hire into chaos and expect greatness. Set them up for success from day one with clarity, support and cultural immersion.
- Create a Win-Win Agreement: Collaboratively establish clear, achievable objectives. Ask the new hire to summarize these in a one-page agreement, including the tools and support they'll need. This builds ownership, alignment and early accountability.
- Maintain Regular, Intentional Check-Ins: Set a cadence for brief but meaningful progress reviews. Be available. Early course corrections are far more effective than emergency interventions.
- Lead with Radical Candor: Create a culture where honest, respectful dialogue is encouraged. Address issues early, directly and with care. The goal is growth, not blame.
- Manage By Wandering Around (MBWA): Get out of your office. Observe your team in action. Ask questions. Offer encouragement publicly. Provide coaching privately. Understand what is really going on before you are blindsided.
- Be Present and Approachable: Make time daily for informal conversations with your team and their teams. These touchpoints foster trust, reveal obstacles and invite feedback on how your leadership is truly landing.
- And here is the final, most difficult step: If someone is not working out, even after your best efforts, it's time to act. Find them a better seat if one exists. If not, help them exit with dignity and respect. Keeping a poor performer too long hurts everyone.
• • •
Leaders don't get to shrug off bad hires. Our job is to attract, develop and support great people, as well as to intervene decisively when that is not happening. So, the next time you are tempted to complain about someone on your team, do yourself a favor. Start by looking in the mirror.
For more recommendations like this, order Caring (The Sequel): Valuable Insights into Effective Club and Hospitality Management. Send orders to herbnlipsman@gmail.com.
