HR Lessons from the 2012 Super Bowl

Happy Super Bowl 2012 from Indianapolis!

I am from the Midwest and currently live in Indianapolis, IN.  Here in Indy, the Colts are the center of a lot of conversation.  If you follow football, even remotely, you may know that the Colts had a difficult season this year and had the worst record among NFL teams.  This is particularly disappointing for Colts fans since the Colts have had a decent record for the past several years, even securing a couple invitations to the Super Bowl.

How is this related to HR?  I promise I have a point.

Peyton Manning has been central to the Colts’ success over the last decade.  This year, he suffered an injury, and left the Colts to succeed without his contributions.  In HR, there is always an emphasis on talent and recruiting rock star performers (hi-po’s or high potential employees).  Peyton is a hi-po, and yes, a rock star.  However, the Colts failed to surround Peyton with other rock star performers, and without his presence on the field, the team fell apart. 

The Colts can teach HR professionals an important lesson.  It’s simply not enough to attract one great leader.  You must surround great leaders with other rock star, high potential employees.  A team of one will rarely go as far as an entire team staffed with high potential employees.  Make your selections carefully.  Wrong hires not only cost money, but they could be the difference between growth, plateau, or even decline for your business (or sports team).