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likeable people make the team more productive?
Submitted by Jane Prusakova on Tue, 11/24/2009 - 5:45pm.
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A great quote from Penelope Trunk, an out-and-in-your-face blogger talking about work, life, and life at work:
"Often, people who are really likable don’t have to be good at what they do. People just love being around them. And it’s fair, because someone who everyone likes actually does make the team more productive."
I am not sure that it is always true, but it is certainly perceived as true more often than not.
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Those people might think they are likeable but I already don't like them. Whoever they are.
Isn't it true that part of what makes someone likeable is their productivity? Otherwise wouldn't it be possible for hilarious people to get jobs doing nothing but amusing everyone else?
Intelligence and the applicability of that intelligence to the job is also likeable.
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Bummer. How can you say you do not like somebody prior to meeting them?
Being amusing is not a job description. But it does help to have a project or team manager who radiates excitement, positive energy, and a can-do attitude. In addition to being an excellent people-person and a manager, that is.
It is probably less true about individual contributors.
Jane Prusakova
Senior Consultant at Improving Enterprises
Door64 blog
What is really important is the cohesiveness of the team. Anyone who creates havoc or discontinuity in the team's effort needs to be eliminated (no, not what you think!!).
Having worked with folks who were technically very good and really difficult to get along with, I prefer working with folks who are merely competent and are very easy to deal with.
It is a rare individual who possessed both technical prowess and native people skills, but the DO exist!
I think there is a big difference between someone who is easy to deal with - as in a normal, well-adjusted, reasonably social person, and those distinctly likable folks with good looks and charming personalities, who are impossible not to like from the moment you meet. At least until you have worked with them for awhile and things happened.
It is an easy choice between someone less-than-social and works-well-with-the-team candidates; not so easy between normal-and-social and distinctly-likable candidates - and the logic sometimes gives way to emotions.
Jane Prusakova
Senior Consultant at Improving Enterprises
Door64 blog
I totally agree with your Jane! It is a real eye opener when the crazy green-eyed monster comes out from candidate B!
Likable matters, totally! But likability doesn't equate to productivity. These are separate, totally! President GW Bush was likable. But was he effective?
Is what we mean when we label someone as "likable". In other words, how would you define character attributes of a person you "like"? I'd imagine there are as many variations to this as there are adjectives in the English dictionary.
Team work effectively when 1. There is a clear vision that all can rally around, 2. There is a shared belief that the goal is obtainable and 3. if there is an accountable leader who shepherds the way.
Of course it also helps if there aren't any self-loathing boneheads on the team. But that can be solved. Just tell them the the team meeting is 2 hours later than the team meeting. They'll show up late and get the point.
Unfortunately, I have seen too many people get hired just because they are likable, but they end up being a total drain on the team. It is a perfect day when you get a likable, competent person to join your team.
True, some people get in just because they are likable, and then turn out to be a drain. But the opposite also happens - someone seems just a bit too charming, raises the alarm, and never gets an offer. I have seen people almost rejected because they looked and sounded too good - who were nevertheless hired and turned out to be absolutely great for the job and for the team.
Jane Prusakova
Senior Consultant at Improving Enterprises
Door64 blog
I've also worked with folks who had good technical skills and were really obnoxious. They also hurt the overall productivity and, in one case, cost their employer over $100K in SLA penalties because they were not team players by making a bunch of changes without working with the rest of the team.
Maybe some folks are equating likable with the "Dale Carnegie" graduates. There's a middle ground where folks are just fairly easy to get along with. I've been in situations where I've been the one to help smooth friction between team members, even though I wasn't the team lead. Sometimes a few kind words can significantly reduce the dislike between folks.
Different jobs have different needs. As a sysadmin, I strive to support my users, including developers and DBAs, in getting their jobs done while minimizing risk to the enterprise. Besides the technical skills, I often have to work out compromises between folks. So, being likable and building relationships is key to my chosen career path.