Every business wants A-players. They’re the talent that powers your growth, solving big problems and pushing the company forward. But finding A-Players is only the start. To scale sustainably, you need a system that attracts, develops, and retains top performers.
Let me put this into perspective. Bradford D. Smart’s Topgrading process teaches that at least 75% of your team should be A-Players (with top companies striving for 90% or more). Anything less, and you risk mediocrity or underperformance creeping into your company. If you want to avoid the CEO Doom Loop – where CEOs find themselves repeatedly stepping in to fix problems their teams should handle – you need a team of A-Players.
The A-B-Cs of Who Stays, Who Goes
A-Players are the lifeblood of high-performance cultures. They live your core values, deliver results, and drive accountability. They push boundaries and tackle challenges head-on.
B-Players exhibit the company’s core values, but are not top performers. They need to be coached to A-level performance, or coached out of the company.
C-Players might be high core value fit, but low performers. A role change may be in order to get them to A-level performance. If this isn’t possible, they cannot be allowed to stay. The same for C-level employees, even if they are high performers. If they also live the core values, they are toxic to your company’s culture and cannot be tolerated. When you have a team full of A-Players, your company operates on a higher level.
The 1 = 3 Philosophy
One A-Player is worth the work of three average employees. Look at The Container Store, where their “one equals three” core value means hiring passionate, committed employees who produce three times the output of others. From my experience, I couldn’t agree with this more. When someone is truly aligned with the purpose and culture of your company, they’re unstoppable.
The Ripple Effect
A-Players attract more A-Players. When you fill your team with top talent, you create an environment where high standards are the norm. This means that your best people will stay, and more top talent will want to join. It’s a cycle of continuous improvement that keeps your company moving forward.
One of my clients proves this perfectly. Over the past four years of working together, they’ve reached their goal of 91% A-Players in their team. They completed projects faster, and improved quality – all without needing to hire more people. Their reputation for excellence has attracted top talent, and as a result, their revenue and profitability have doubled.
Avoiding the CEO Doom Loop
If we consider the opposite picture for a moment, the CEO Doom Loop is that vicious cycle where everything falls on your shoulders. You’re constantly putting out fires because your team can’t handle the business without you. If you’ve ever felt like your business wouldn’t survive a day without you stepping in, then you know what I’m talking about.
A-Players keep you out of that loop. They take ownership. They don’t wait for you to make decisions – they’ve already solved the problem. This level of accountability is what frees you up to focus on growth, strategy, and scaling the business. You’re able to work ON your business, instead of being stuck working IN it. If you’ve been in the Doom Loop before, you’ll know how important it is to have people who can carry the weight with you.
The companies I’ve worked with that embraced A-Players have freed their CEOs and built resilient organizations.
Building a System That Attracts and Keeps A-Players
Hiring A-Players is one thing; keeping them is another. This requires a few key things:
Clarity on Expectations: Job benchmarking and tracking the right metrics ensure you hire the right people. Know what success looks like in each role. Hire for culture, train for skills!
Accountability and Coaching: A-Players thrive on feedback and growth. Create a culture of accountability where performance is measured and coached. In Metronomics, we use scorecards to track performance – not only skills and results, but also alignment with core values.
Letting Go of Mediocrity: A-Players won’t stick around if surrounded by mediocrity. Set high standards and be ready to let go of those who don’t meet them. The bottom 20% of your team will generate 80% of your problems. Don’t let them drag your A-Players down.
Be an A-Player: A-Players look to their CEO for leadership. If you want a high-performing team, you’ve got to set the standard. Lead like an A-Player, and your team will follow suit.
If you want to scale your business and build a team of A-Players, start by making them the core of your strategy. One A-Player can move mountains, but a team of them will take your company to a whole new level.
If you’re serious about scaling your business and building an A-Player team, let’s schedule a time to talk. We’ll help you put the right systems in place to take your company to the next level.
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