22 SEPTEMBER 2018 • FOGHORN BUSINESSMATTERS I haven’t spent a lot of time looking in the rear-view mirror of life. But, if I could go back four decades and get one wish, I’d have that all-knowing genie give me a nudge and say, “be world class in hiring.” The Marine Corps did a massive study on what made a battalion effective in combat. Everything was examined, and they came to the over- whelming conclusion that every factor was just noise, save one: the commander. They could have saved much time and money by remember- ing Napoleon’s quote “there are no bad regiments; there are only bad colonels.” Colonel John Boyd, the leader in the 1980s revolution in military affairs said, ““People, first. Ideas, second. Things, third” People make leaders, and leaders matter. We all have industry success stories One Wish By Bob Shaw, Industry Consultant about people who started at entry levels and achieved amazing success. Michael Higgins debuted as a bartender on the Spirit of Chicago, founded the Odyssey company, and recently capped 25 years there as CEO of Entertainment Cruises. Leigh-Ellen Louie started at Spirit’s Norfolk HQ, was a general manager in Chicago and NYC, and left the industry to eventually be the COO of a $1.2B publicly traded company. And one of my favorite stories is about Oscar Fittipaldi, an Argentine sailor hired by former PVA president Coe Sherrard for $6/hour at the Spirit of Norfolk. Oscar eventually led Marine Operations at Entertainment Cruises before becoming a Chick-fil-A franchisee owner. Only a few dozen franchisees are selected annually from over 10,000 applica- tions. When Oscar was hired, Coe told Chick-fil-Athat within two years Oscar would be the “face of the company.” That prophecy came true when Captain Oscar was selected to open the much- anticipated New York City location and achieved astounding success. Leaders matter. Derek Price was a British scientist who noticed a handful of people dominated the publications about any given topic. He further observed this phenomenon in other professions and created what is now called Price’s Law: 50 percent of the work is done by the square root of the people doing the work. We have all seen five sales people doing half the work of 25 people or can imagine an organization of 100 people, of which 10 are creating half the output. As I think back over my long profes- sional career, this formula works. Imagine that genie seeing my blank stare in reaction to such wisdom. If the genie tacked on another sentence to describe Price’s Law, my internal light bulb would have blinked on with this illustration about why it is critical to have the very best people in your orga- nization. This must be your daily focus and key competency. Some organizations and institu- tions, including the military, believe in promoting 100 percent internally. Others like Disney find that 66 percent internal promotions is the perfect balance. This number is probably right for most companies, as getting some outside hires – and consequently new ideas – will keep you current. So, con- centrate on getting the best when you do so. Here are a few insights that would have been welcome elaborations on the genie’s claim: • Always be recruiting. Terry MacRae hired his VP of Development, Cameron Clark, by meeting Cameron’s mother who was a flight attendant on a plane. Cameron has been behind all the big Hornblower proposals of Alcatraz, Statue, Niagara and recently the NYC Ferry. And Terry has hired other people who have sat next to him on Partners in design This award-winning electric air-cushioned ferry is turning a lot of heads as it cruises at speeds up to 30 knots across Stockholm’s inland waterways. The battery-powered electric motors are connected to twin Volvo Penta IPS drives to deliver a smooth, silent, and enjoyable experience for the crew and passengers. www.volvopenta.us/marinecommercial GOING GREEN 2018-07 Foghorn.indd 1 6/19/2018 10:55:56 AM