Operating a business is no piece of cake. When you begin adding people into the mix, business operations become even more complex. In short, as a business grows, so does business complexity. In any given recipe for success, any business owner, consultant, or human resources executive will always have people as an ingredient. Here is the sticky part, people are not only part of the problem, but they are also part of the solution. How can that be?

Get your ducks in a row! Get your stuff together! Shape up! Get organized! These phrases might be ringing in your ears from your parents, your boss, or significant other. But when you think about it, or maybe you don’t have to, these phrases are vague. First, you probably don’t even own any ducks. What stuff and what is stuff anyway? Shape up what? Organize what and where do I begin? In business we use the word alignment. A consultant may come in and say, “Mr. or Ms. CEO, you need to get this organization in alignment.” Again, we’re listening to vague direction. What is alignment, why do we need it, and how do you do it?

Most days you simply need to look at our politicians, no matter what party you support, to see what a team is not. A group of ego centric, I am the expert, opinionated, we want everything our way, it is us vs them people is not a team. It is a group of people who create chaos, are non-productive, are in a constant state of conflict, and reside in the state of stalemate. Where is the accountability?

All too often managers rush the hiring process just to get a warm body in a seat to reduce the workload on current talent. Then the fun begins. All too often when rushing the hiring process, the new hire turns out to be a poor fit for the position, a mismatch for your culture, or they have a bad attitude. Oh, and since one time saving trick was neglecting checking backgrounds you find the individual has a gift for exaggeration in the interview and on their resume and does not have the skills required to do the job. Failing to take time to administer an assessment, you now discover that that this person is missing some important attributes and they come in late, leave early, need to take time off right away for some “personal” events that need their attention more than the job. Wait, what do you mean you do not think this is fun? No fun indeed. What is the cure for this hiring dilemma?