Hiring the Right Leaders (HBR Article Collection)

Between 30% and 50% of all executive hires end in firing or resignation. The cost to organizations? Morale and productivity plummet. Market value erodes as investors redirect dollars to more stable firms. Why the revolving door? Many companies make serious mistakes when evaluating and selecting new leaders. For example, while interviewing top-quality executives from outside firms, search committees fail to consider whether these stars' skills will transfer easily to their own firms. Cognitive bias can also mar the search process. For instance, many search committee members feel drawn to candidates who possess qualities similar to their own--preventing an objective assessment of potential new hires' strengths. Simple negligence further worsens the situation: Many search committees swallow references' input unquestioningly or fail to get the full story of a candidate's background. How to avoid such errors? This Harvard Business Review Article Collection offers potent strategies--including growing your stars rather than buying them and developing rigorous evaluation processes to eradicate bias, deactivate the halo effect, and prevent sloppiness.