Geoff Smart is the #1 thought leader on the #1 topic in business. He is the Chairman & Founder of ghSMART, a leadership consulting firm, and his purpose is to help leaders amplify their positive impact on the world.
Smarties! It is exciting to mark 26 years and going strong! And getting stronger!!
THE BEGINNING. It’s so weird, I remember how I felt at the beginning of our firm’s life. (Cue the top hit songs on June 16, 1995 which were “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?” by Bryan Adams, “Water Runs” by Boyz II Men, and “Total Eclipse of the Heart” By Nicki French in the U.S., and “Unchained Melody” by White Cliffs of Dover in the U.K.).
A little over 25 years ago, I founded ghSMART, a leadership advisory firm, for two reasons, the second of which may surprise you.
First, I wanted to use our expertise in human behavior to help CEOs and investors build valuable companies — and that scope has widened over the years to also include helping not-for-profit and government leaders achieve success. I believe leadership is the most important lever for positive change, and I wanted to build a world-class firm to help leaders amplify their positive impact on the world.
I’m proud and happy that my ghSMART colleagues and I today published a landmark study on “Hiring Government Leaders” at the request of a Washington D.C. think tank.
A new administration’s #1 priority is hiring a talented and diverse leadership team that will elevate the quality of life of its citizens. However, this is easier said than done. Approximately 50% of hiring decisions are considered mistakes.
We drew on a half-century of research and practice in the private sector and public sector, and propose a practical framework to improve the speed and accuracy of hiring cabinet and senior staff, and reduce the chance of costly mistakes. While this article was primarily written for “presidential hiring,” the actionable take-aways are relevant for elected and appointed government leaders to use at the federal, state, or local levels to improve the performance of their administration, department, or agency, for the good of us all.
Please click to read our new article here: https://www.aei.org/research-products/report/hiring-government-leaders-lessons-from-the-private-sector/
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Dr. Geoff Smart is Chairman & Founder of ghSMART, the leadership advisory firm. The firm exists to help leaders amplify their positive impact on the world. In 2020, Vault named ghSMART the #1 company to work for in its industry, in overall satisfaction.
ghSMART has published four bestselling leadership books: Who: The A Method for Hiring (by Smart and Street, #1 in the category of “hiring”), Leadocracy: Hiring More Great Leaders (Like You) into Government (by Smart), Power Score (by Smart, Street, and Foster), and The CEO Next Door (by Botelho and Powell).
Geoff can be reached at geoff.smart@ghsmart.com.
