Principle: First Who, Then What

“First Who, Then What” is one of the business principles taught by Dr Jim Collins in his book Good to Great. I learnt a great deal about this principle as it happens to me in my business too.

“First Who, Then What” advocates on getting the right people in your team, company or organization. It seem insensible as the first thing that comes to our mind when we want to set up a business is not the WHO but rather the WHAT. Conventionally, we would think of WHAT we want to do, instead of WHO we want to get into our team.

It is definitely a paradigm change that is a challenge to me. Every time i remind myself of getting the right people in the team, my mind will shift back to the WHAT. I do have first hand experience in not finding the right person in the bus (in the team) and i had to start all over again finding someone new.

However, every time i set forth to hiring or getting the “right” person, i end up screwing it up all over again. My advice to myself is to be self discipline and get the RIGHT people in the bus.

Below are the 6 attributes of getting the RIGHT people in the bus.

1. Share the CORE values of the organization
2. The right person understands the difference between responsibility and a job.
3. 100% Commitment. The right people will always deliver what they promise.
4. The right people do not need to be manage. The moment you need to manage someone, you’ve made a hiring mistake.
5. They are driven by true passion for the organization.
6. The right people always display a window and mirror maturity.

To understand further about this, you may find more information in Jim Collin‘s site or at Big Think website. For more great insights on Leadership and Management by Jim Collins, do visit http://bigthink.com/jimcollins/ideas and http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/toc/09_21/B4132jim_collins.htm.

Share your ideas and comments below.