Troublesome Talent - the maverick in your businessAll companies can benefit if they can harness the maverick in their business. Troublesome Talent® are hugely talented, creative individuals. They are extremely passionate about their work, and are very comfortable challenging the established norms. They are fantastic at pointing out the wholes in the process or the flaws in the argument. Whilst there is often truth in some of the insights that they share, they can be blunt and aggressive in their articulation of it. This can have the effect of driving up staff turnover and depressing staff morale. Their colleagues often complain about the indifferent, or aggressive way that they are treated by these mavericks. The Troublesome Talent® are generally oblivious to the effect that they have on others, unless they are managed in a way which encourages them to cause disruption. These type of mavericks need to be lead in a different way to the rest of the workforce.
Troublesome Talent® is often misunderstood by the managers that manage them. This can lead their
passion to turn destructive.
If companies are finding it difficult to retain top talent, they are finding it almost impossible to maintain their relationship with their maverick or Troublesome Talent®. Troublesome Talent® Troublesome Talent® are often recruited because they are highly skilled, have real flair in their area of expertise and have the ability to think out of the box. They can provide real competitor advantage and first mover status. Often customers and clients love their flexibility and their ability to deliver to their requirements each and every time. When they first join a company the maverick enjoys the flexibility and autonomy that they are given and this is when they really shine and deliver outstanding results. However, eventually, the company will require them to fit into its corporate structure - and begin to follow rules. This is when things begin to deteriorate. The maverick cannot understand why they are suddenly being treated differently by the organisation and begin to react to the changed behaviour. Suddenly the organisation finds it hard to harness their maverick and keep them performing with minimal disruption to others. At this point the organisation needs to look at what drives the maverick's behaviour and how to align their needs and desires to the organisation's objectives. Flexibility in leadership style and understanding human nature, is the key. By ensuring that both parties' objectives are aligned and that the maverick is given a clear path to follow and compelling reason to change, performance will return to previous impressive levels. This is not always easy for the organisation to do as most large companies have complex rules that they need to follow and aren't always accepting of the challenges that Troublesome Talent® can bring.
Our specialism is helping senior executives manage their mavericks. We work with companies so that they can challenge their maverick and be challenged by their maverick in a way that is productive for both parties, with the added benefit of reducing costs and increasing staff morale.
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