Another season of American Idol is gone. I like the way I view Idol these days, which is to say my wife runs through an episode of the thing on our DVR in about 10-15 minutes, watching the performers she wants to watch and all of the reviews. Perfect. Just don't make me watch the whole thing...
Without question, managers and HR pros alike have much to learn from Idol. Here's my rundown of 10
things every manager should remember in the workplace as a result of watching Idol.
1. The negative manager in the group (Simon, or your Simon) has a talent for cutting to the chase. As long as he/she isn't a liability in other ways, you need them.
2. The soft-hearted manager (Paula) can't be relied on to lay it on the line. If they are talented in other ways, keep them.
3. Lots of people get confused because it rarely seems like the critic and the soft-hearted teammate are on the same page.
4. The moderate manager in the group (Randy) is usually the tie-breaker and holds the greatest power. The moderate is like the swing vote at the Supreme Court, often analyzed and looked upon to validate the polar opposites present in the critic and the soft-hearted teammate.
5. Every breakout session needs a good facilitator (Seacrest). They don't have to be good at anything else, they just need to keep things moving. Dance, monkey, dance...
6. Professional Coaching is tough to get your arms around and measure. Dolly Parton working with all the candidates is the equivalent of a professional coach. She said all the candidates had great potential. If they all are great, how do you know who is expendable in a forced choice situation? PS, I saw Dolly driving through a Nashville Jack-in-the-Box about a year and a half ago. Weird sighting...
7. Some employees don't take feedback well, some do, and some are going to react the same way no matter what you do - I love it when contestants start shaking their head "no" when Simon gives negative feedback. I've had that happen to me, and it's obvious it's not going to go well.
8. Programs have a shelf life, then they start to die. You can almost feel like the inevitable slide is going to escalate very soon watching Idol. Just like in your company, got to keep it fresh. Can a prison-based Idol be far behind?
9. You get 10 candidates together for anything, and some of them are going to look like they are L.A.M.E. Just the way it works once you see the best talent. Doesn't mean the others aren't servicable, you just don't want to settle once you've had time to compare...
Hit me in the comments with your lesson for corporate America gleaned from Idol. I think this one has about jumped the shark....
