Competence is not enough to take you to the top. There are interests, intrigues and influences at play. Only those who fit into these considerations make it to the top. Please read and share.
Competence is a highly desirable trait. Every organization requires that its employees be highly competent. Being competent implies having the skills to deliver on assigned tasks. It also means being capable and willing to apply your skills appropriately towards achieving desired results. Competence provides the leverage to understand your organization and its business activities. So, being competent is highly desirable for everyone who seeks to get to the top. But ironically, in many organizations, competence is not enough to take you to the top. This article explains four reasons for this contradiction.
REASONS WHY COMPETENCE IS NOT ENOUGH TO TAKE YOU TO THE TOP
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There are misconceptions about the character traits of highly competent people.
Character is the total of all attributes that an individual possesses. Character traits include the physical, emotional, mental or moral qualities that the individual exhibits. These qualities determine how an individual is perceived.
There is a fundamental misconception about the character traits of highly competent people. Highly Competent people are usually very reserved, so they are misunderstood and judged wrongly. Accordingly, many people see them as arrogant, overconfident, inflexible, and self-centred. The misconception leads to unwarranted profiling and malice towards competent people in the workplace.
Indeed, some highly competent people exhibit some level of independence. They may also be rule-based and inflexible. But these traits do not entirely define their persons and so cannot be a yardstick to qualify all competent persons. Unfortunately, these character traits are unacceptable for top-notch business executives.
Promotion to executive positions is not always about competence; it also involves an assessment of the employee’s character traits. When searching for employees to promote to executive positions, organizations look out for those with character traits that align with organizational goals and executive management ideals.
Organizational goals align with financial targets and observance of rules for corporate engagement, but management ideals are undefined and often shrouded in secrecy. So the criteria for promotion to executive positions are not always open to the understanding of many employees. Thus, competent employees rely on their skills and capabilities to see them through. Unfortunately, this may lead to such employees losing out in the contest to reach the top.
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Highly Competent employees are victims of organizational politics.
Every organization has its share of bureaucracy, conflicts and influences. These are parts of the politics of the organization. Executive management often dismisses the existence of this culture. Yet, the destructive effect of corporate politics on organizational life is never in doubt.
Organizations usually have an overriding common goal which they aim to achieve. But the stakeholders always have divergent views about the means to achieve the desired goal. In selecting employees for executive positions, organizations prefer candidates that can manage the diverse interests of their stakeholders. To succeed, candidates who eventually assume executive positions must understand how to survive the politics of their organizations.
There are two primary shortcomings of highly competent people. First, they show less interest in the politics of their organizations. Second, they rely a lot on their competence; they easily forget that competence is not enough. Competent people are more concerned with completing assigned tasks and being recognized and rewarded for their performance. They are less likely to seek unmerited favours, interact or engage in jostling for positions. These are usually part of the character traits of less competent people.
To assert themselves, competent people like to query causes, disagree or argue over issues and deviate from established protocols. Regrettably, these actions make them vulnerable because it creates the erroneous impression that they are proud, aloof and disloyal. Hence they often become victims of organizational politics.
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There is a traditional bias for extroverts in leadership positions.
The misconception about the behaviour of competent people is consistent with the practice in some corporate organizations. Many organizations reserve executive positions for versatile, extroverted and politically minded employees. This practice is not surprising because successive management practices have established strong links between extroversion and successful leadership behaviours.
Research has shown that the preference for extroverted individuals at the top is an age-long convention. One research result published in the Harvard Business Review suggests that versatile and extroverted individuals make the best leaders. According to Professors Adam Grant, Francesca Gino and David Hofmann, authors of the research, extroverts are “dominant and outgoing” and thus “favoured in hiring and promotion decisions, and they are perceived to be more effective by supervisors and subordinates alike.”
The above research concludes that extroverted individuals show more interest in networking and building bridges. Their networking skill helps to establish new business links, manage relationships and enhance business development.
Because of their reserved lifestyle, highly competent employees appear incapable of fitting into other aspects of organizational life. Hence, they may also seem incapable of leading at the top.
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Competent employees are subjects of envy.
Organizations rely on their competent employees to provide solutions to sundry business issues. Competence elevates their positions within the organization. It gives them the rare privilege of being consulted at difficult times. But such attention, visibility and recognition may also lead to envy among other employees less endowed.
Because competent people thrive on recognition and attention, they seek to remain relevant always. So, they may discountenance ideas that run counter to their knowledge base. Some competent people refuse to delegate because they believe they know better.
The above behaviours drive many to conclude that competent people are selfish and dominating. The perception makes it difficult to elicit cooperation from other employees. Thus, it undermines their efforts to reach the top.
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Competent employees often become threats to their bosses.
Competent people like to assert their authority in solving sundry business issues. In doing so, they may become more visible than their bosses. In some situations, they take credit for being the brain behind the success of their units or departments. Inadvertently, this may take the shine off their bosses, thus, leaving them bruised or wounded.
Although the above actions may not be intentional, it leaves competent employees in a delicate situation. Their bosses may see this as a threat to their positions. Thus, competence is not enough. It is helpful to develop the skill to manage their bosses; otherwise, they may become vulnerable despite their competence.
Conclusion: Competence is not enough to take you to the top
The drive to the top is thorny. Competence is not enough to get you there. Being competent is crucial, but you ought to have the ability to manage both your boss and subordinates. It requires an understanding of the politics of your organization and how to play or avoid it. Of course, getting to the top requires being disciplined and humble but firm.
