At the height of the Great Recession, the CEO was focusing the company on production efficiencies to reduce costs.  One regional president, by contrast, was driving forward to grow sales.  This president’s region outperformed all the other regions.  But the regional president had not focused on production efficiencies and all the other initiatives of the CEO.  At yearend, this regional president was rightly fired.

I was this Regional President.  I was convinced that my approach was the right approach to navigate through the Great Recession.  I may have been right about that.  I may have been wrong about that.  But I was not in line with the direction the company was taking.   Embarrassingly, it took me several years to understand why I was let go.  With over 10 more years of experience and a bit more humility, it is now obvious to me why I had to be fired:

The Team is More Important Than the Individual

To have a successful team, everyone needs to be rowing in the same direction and focused on the same goals.  One maverick, no matter how talented or successful, disrupts the progress of the team.  In fact, the more successful the maverick, the more they need to either be re-aligned or let go so that they do not become examples to others on the team.

As leaders, we need to constantly assess our people to ensure that they align with the mission, the values, and the direction of the company.  This is especially important with our senior leaders.  If they are not aligned, it is a near certainty that the teams working for them are not aligned.  Dysfunction and under-achievement will follow.

Three weeks ago, we had a talented superintendent on a project whose team was performing well in terms of safety, quality, and efficiency.  But he did not follow our company values and do what was asked of him, even after being spoken to on several occasions. It was an easy decision to fire that superintendent and promote someone into that position who aligned with our mission and values.

I guess I have learned something after all these years.