One of the greatest moments that professionals share is that of hiring a new employee. For both the company and the new employee, there are dreams, hopes, aspirations, a sense of enthusiasm and possibility. The feeling manifests into growth when the hiring is based in a fair exchange of value and when the organization is indeed committed to growth. On reflecting over the past five years, I observe a growing recognition of organizations and their leaders who have stood for growth and acted consistent with that commitment. Organizations and leaders who are committed to growth simply "find a way." It is for them a pervasive thought, your hear it in the language of the company, you sense it in the strength of their relationships, the integrity in the way they listen, and an unwavering consistency in trust, compassion, and contribution.
One of the tell-tale indicators of growing organizations is that their leaders are committed to their personal growth and that of their employees. Personal growth requires humility and a strong intention to grow especially in the "tough times." The organizations today who are enjoying growth have, more often than not, continue that personal commitment. Not surprisingly, many of the organizations that have fallen on hard times, or are seemingly at a plateau, have in common a greater defense of "why they cannot grow," e.g., blaming the economy, blaming the lack of properly trained workforce, or justifying staying on hold until the economy turns around. Certainly, each company's circumstances are unique, however, the real issues often are not the issues that are first expressed. The late Walt Kelly (creator of the comic strip Pogo) coined the saying "I met the enemy and the enemy is us." The primary real enemy of growth is internal. Company's that are committed to growth, grow from a sense of purpose and passion, it is authentic, and inspired. Sometimes growth is unreasonable, it is not logical, and it happens in the presence of fear (e.g., fear of the future, uncertainty, etc.), however, there is a greater measure of courage to be in action, in taking risks and trusting more. People, like organizations as a whole, move toward their potential because they accepted the risk to grow. A consequence of not owning and being accountable for personal growth, is the manifestation of the greater risk in not growing.
Companies that are committed to growth do so by listening carefully for the "metrics" and measures of a prospective new employees that are strong predictors of future performance, more so than a perfect "resume match" or limited traditional hiring paradigms. Such employees may possess myriad personal work experience, personal demographics and even disabilities, they present authenticity, courage, trust, and are self aware of their transferable value.
Josephs' People salutes those leaders and organizations that are truly committed to growth, to the champion businesses that have pledged to hire and joined the "HireOne" campaign, the many many community leaders who support a business community for growth, and to the growing legion of courageous new employees who continue to "give back" and support others who continue to explore employment.
--- Tom Rhoads
