Skills or potential: what to bet on when looking for an employee?
This is the question every HR manager asks himself when two completely different resumes land on his desk. On the one hand, we have experts with a solid trade, and on the other, talents with a huge potential for growth.
In a world where technologies change faster than the seasons, this choice becomes a strategic decision: do we buy ready-made solutions to today’s problems, or do we invest in the ability to adapt to challenges we can’t even name yet?
What to bet on?
The truth is that hard skills today have a shorter and shorter shelf life. What was standard 3 years ago could be outdated today. On the other hand, they are the very foundation of a company’s stability – they provide predictability, guarantee high quality from day one and minimize the margin for error where pure expertise counts.
Potential, on the other hand, is the engine that allows you to survive any market change. It is the ease of absorbing new knowledge and, above all, the unique ability to adapt to situations for which there are no ready-made procedures or manuals yet.
Pros and cons
Skills
Pros:
➕ Quality guarantee: high standard of work from the first day of employment.
➕ Predictability: the company knows what result to expect.
➕ Minimization of errors: Professionalism reduces the risk of mistakes.
➕ Results: No need for lengthy implementation.
Cons:
➖ Technical knowledge changes quickly.
➖ Lack of flexibility: Rarely stepping outside the scheme and procedures.
➖ Less adaptability in situations outside the scheme.
Potential
Pros:
➕ Change engine: Ability to be a driving force and innovate within the company.
➕ Adaptability: Unique ability to deal with new situations without ready-made procedures.
➕ Market resilience: Ease of absorption of new knowledge allows the company to survive changes in the market.
Minuses:
➖ Risks: Investing in potential always involves uncertainty about the end result.
➖ Longer implementation: Such an employee requires time, attention and mentoring before he or she can start delivering results.
➖ Lack of immediate result: At the beginning of the cooperation, efficiency may be lower than with an expert.
What to choose?
Choose skills if you need stability, predictable results and someone who will start working right away based on proven procedures.
But if your industry is changing rapidly, you’re looking for innovation, and you have time for mentoring – choose someone with potential.
The most important thing is to match the team to the company’s needs. The strongest teams are those in which the experience of experts provides a solid foundation and the energy of talent acts as a driving engine. The trick is not to choose one, but to keep the right balance between a proven workshop and a hunger for development.
Info
If you want to improve your skills as a manager check out our training course , “Leadership in organizations”.
The training provides synthetic knowledge and skills for those in leadership positions in organizations.
We also invite you to visit our Facebook and LinkedIn where we also post valuable content and more interesting facts about the human mind!