Unpopular Opinion: You don't need a unicorn. You need better systems.

I heard something on a podcast recently that completely validated my philosophy on growing talent within an organization.

It was about Cutco, the company that sells knives. They became known for their business model of hiring college students with almost no sales experience, no long resumes, no track record of closing deals. And yet… they thrived.

Why? Because Cutco had two things dialed in:

1. A rock-solid product.

2. A well-oiled process.

They had a process that was dialed in so tight and a product that was so good that if the new hire simply followed the program, the product would sell itself. If the student had the hustle to do well, they could thrive in Cutco.

In my opinion, many leaders waste time searching for the perfect hire - the unicorn who has all the experience, all the skills, has done the work for 7 years already and for some reason just wants to do the same thing in a new organization.

In reality, the best talent is looking for growth. They want to join a team where they can leverage their current skills for immediate impact while growing into the next version of themselves.

Top-notch organizations ensure their processes, systems, training, and management are well-refined and capable of producing results. In that case, the focus can be on hiring someone who has the foundational competencies and motivation to make an impact on the business.

Consistently looking for unicorns is a sign that your foundation is weak because a strong process can do a lot of the heavy lifting. Furthermore, a motivated new hire with potential, when developed appropriately, can grow into an all-star.