The Fallacy of the Superstar Hire

At board meetings and executive retreats, the same tempting idea often surfaces: “If only we could hire that one superstar, we'd finally break through.” It's a management fantasy as common as the NFL draft or trading for a marquee baseball player. CEOs chase it, especially Black Swan CEOs. Investors love the storyline. Even many management gurus play along.

Don’t get me wrong, hiring superstars is important. One of my mantras is to always hire Michael Jordan—i.e., the top person in the game—when they are available.

However, superstars are one component of an effective talent strategy. Focusing on hiring a single game-changing employee can distract leaders from the more challenging work of building a genuinely high-performing organization. Sustainable success comes from resilient systems that outlast any single individual and that maximize the performance of everyone, from your superstars to your merely reliable performers.

The Grass Isn’t Always Greener

Why isn’t hiring that superstar the be-all-end-all?

Well, first of all, a superstar in one company doesn’t always become a superstar at the next. We’ve all heard stories about high-profile hires that flopped, such as the star engineer who fails to perform at a new startup or the celebrated executive whose career stalls after a hyped-up move.

The data is telling. According to a 2022 Leadership IQ study, nearly half of new hires fail within 18 months, most commonly due to "lack of coachability" or "poor culture fit" rather than skill deficits.

Consider the tech industry's revolving door. Plenty of ex-Google or ex-Apple employees don't thrive outside their original ecosystem. At my own company, NetQoS, we hired impressive candidates whose stellar credentials didn't translate to startup success. That’s because context and culture often matter just as much as talent.

Tend Your Full Talent Ecosystem

The other dynamic at play here is that, as much value as your top A-players do bring, your B-players are indispensable too. The core precepts of a great talent management system are: