I love comparing emerging companies to sports teams, and when the Globe & Mail ran this great article explaining why the Maple Leafs can’t win a Stanley Cup, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to draw some parallels.

The article’s author, Alex Shprintsen, thinks there’s a good reason why the Leafs have been so mediocre for so long: They really don’t have an eye for talent.

He goes on to prove that in spite of having roughly the same number of first round picks over the last 20 NHL seasons, the Buds have drafted more under-performers than any other team.

His remedy is pure common sense:

In other words, change the people who choose the players.

BUILD TO WIN IN HOCKEY—AND IN TECH

Assembling the best team, whether for a hockey club or a software company, is a matter of recognizing intangibles and potential.

Many first-round NHL picks don’t become stars or even regular players, while some late-round or undrafted ‘projects’ become Hall-of-Famers.

Regardless of the product, winning organizations have the ability to ‘see’ people in a different light.

Take a moment to think about your company. How many people have enough hiring experience to know a winner when they see one? How is talent scouted and evaluated? Are you a slave to cost-per-hire?

Let me paraphrase Mr. Shprintsen’s argument.

“… [your company]’s simplest solution is to hire people who know how to spot talent“

DONT FOLLOW GOOD PICKS WITH BAD:

From where I sit, many tech CEOs hire like the Leafs: they recruit their big, executive guns based on ROI and evaluate the rest based on cost.

For example, they’ll pay a headhunter to find a VP (a free-agent signing) then ask that VP to make do with whoever the recruiting department digs up.

If you want to build a winner, don’t just say that people are your most important asset. Walk the talk. Revisit not only ‘who’ does your hiring, but ‘how’ and you’ll separate the winners from the rest of the pack.

Whether you’re talking about depth charts or org charts… the competitor with the most talented team usually wins.

Go Leafs!