It’s Not the How or the What but the Who: Succeed by Surrounding Yourself With the Best

Succeed by mastering the art of the who

Why surround yourself with the best? Because it matters--in all aspects of life.

In fact, in professional environments, getting people right--what global leadership authority Claudio Fernáaacute;ndez-Aráoz calls ＂the art of great ’who’ decisions＂--marks the difference between success and failure. To thrive, you need to identify those with the highest potential, get them in your corner and on your team, and help them grow. Yet surprisingly very few of us are able to meet that challenge.

This series of short and engaging essays outlines the obstacles to great ＂who＂ decisions and offers solutions to address them in a systematic way. Drawing from several decades of experience in global executive search and talent development, as well as the latest management and psychology research, Fernández-Aráoz offers wisdom and practical advice to improve the choices we make about employees and mentors, business partners and friends, top corporate leaders and even elected officials.

The personal stories and cutting-edge studies described in the book will help you understand both your own failings and the external forces commonly at play in staffing decisions. The author shares concrete recommendations on how to select the best people, bring out their strengths, foster collective greatness in the groups you’ve assembled, and create not only better organizations but also a better society.

Starting with the cases of Amazon pioneer Jeff Bezos and Brazilian tycoon Roger Agnelli and continuing with individual and corporate examples from around the world, Fernández-Aráoz paints a vivid picture of what great ＂who＂ decisions look like and presents a fresh and commanding argument about why they matter more than ever today.

Claudio Fernández-Aráoz is a senior adviser at leading executive search firm Egon Zehnder and a former member of its global executive committee. He holds an MBA from Stanford and has previously worked for McKinsey & Company. He is a global expert on hiring and promotion decisions and leadership development, and a frequent speaker at major business gatherings. His advice has been sought by the CEOs of several of the world’s largest companies and many governments. Fernández-Aráoz is a regular lecturer at Harvard Business School, a frequent contributor to HBR.org, and the author of Great People Decisions: Why They Matter So Much, Why They Are So Hard, and How You Can Master Them (2007).