Lessons from Bradford D. Smart

Bradford D. Smart is the author of the seminal book Topgrading: How Leading Companies Win by Hiring, Coaching, and Keeping the Best People.

These insights are categorized into Direct Quotes, The "A Player" Philosophy, The Cost of Mis-Hiring, and The Topgrading Process.

I. Famous Quotes by Bradford D. Smart

"The ability to make good decisions regarding people represents one of the last reliable sources of competitive advantage, since very few organizations are very good at it."
"Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes talent." (Smart often cites this Sir Arthur Conan Doyle quote as a foundational truth of Topgrading).
"A Players hire A Players; B Players hire C Players." (The "Steve Jobs" corollary often cited by Smart: B players hire C players to feel superior, leading to a "Bozo Explosion").
"You cannot achieve your potential as a manager if you are consumed with 'fixing' underperformers."
"The single most important driver of organizational performance and individual managerial success is human capital or talent."
"Mis-hiring is the biggest hidden cost in business today."
"The best predictor of future performance is past performance in a similar situation."
"Talent is addictive."
"Vague job descriptions are the enemy of high performance."
"You can’t manage a secret." (Referring to candidates hiding their true history, which Topgrading exposes).

II. Learnings: The "A Player" Philosophy

Definition of an A Player: An A Player is defined as someone who qualifies among the top 10% of talent available for a specific position and salary level.[1][2][3]
The 90% Standard: The goal of Topgrading is to fill 90% of positions with A Players (high performers), whereas the typical company average is only 25%.
B Players are dangerous: B Players (adequate performers) are often retained because they aren't "bad enough" to fire, but they block A Players from entering the organization and dragging down overall productivity.
C Players must go: C Players (chronic low performers) should be redeployed or exited immediately. Keeping them signals that mediocrity is acceptable.
A Players are "Talent Magnets": High performers want to work with other high performers. Hiring one A Player makes it easier to hire the next one.
Resourcefulness is Key: The most critical competency for A Players in almost any role is resourcefulness—the ability to find ways over, under, around, or through barriers.
Integrity is Non-Negotiable: A Players possess unshakeable integrity; they admit mistakes and own their failures.
A Potential: "A Potential" candidates are those who may not be A Players yet due to lack of experience but exhibit the raw intelligence and drive to become one quickly.

III. Learnings: The Cost of Mis-Hiring

The 15x Rule: The cost of a mis-hire is often 15 times the employee's base salary when you factor in hiring costs, wasted training, lost opportunity, and disruption.
Damage to Morale: A bad hire doesn't just cost money; they actively disengage the A Players around them, who are forced to pick up the slack.[4]
Opportunity Cost: The biggest cost of a mis-hire is not the salary paid, but the lost business opportunities and innovation that an A Player would have generated in the same time.[5]
The "Sunk Cost" Trap: Managers often keep bad hires too long to justify their initial hiring decision, compounding the financial loss.
Mis-hires are Preventable: Smart teaches that most mis-hires are not bad luck; they are the result of a flawed, superficial hiring process.

IV. Learnings: The Topgrading Process (12 Steps)

Job Scorecard > Job Description: Do not use vague job descriptions. Create a Job Scorecard that lists clear, measurable outcomes (accountabilities) the person must achieve to be considered an A Player.
Recruit from Networks: The best candidates often come from the networks of your existing A Players.
The "Virtual Bench": Always be recruiting. Maintain a "virtual bench" of A Players you've met and liked, even if you don't have a spot for them yet.
Screen with a Work History Form: Use a detailed career history form (not just a resume) that asks for compensation history and manager ratings to weed out B and C players early.
The Telephone Screen: Conduct a structured phone interview to screen for "deal-breakers" before investing time in face-to-face meetings.
Competency Interviews: Use specific interviews to assess behavioral traits (like energy, passion, and analytical skills) distinct from the chronological history.
The Tandem Interview: The centerpiece of the method is the Topgrading Interview—a chronological deep dive into a candidate's life, conducted by two interviewers (Tandem) to catch details and maintain objectivity.
TORC (Threat of Reference Check): Tell candidates early: "At the end of this process, YOU will be asked to arrange calls with your former bosses." This scares away dishonest candidates (C Players) and encourages honesty in A Players.[6]
Chronological Walkthrough: In the interview, start from high school/college and move forward chronologically. Patterns of behavior (success vs. failure) repeat over time.[3]
The "Push/Pull" Question: For every job change, ask: "Who initiated the change?" (Was it a push/firing or a pull/better opportunity?). A Players are almost always "pulled."
Boss Ratings: Ask candidates to speculate: "If I asked your former boss to rate your performance on a scale of 1-10, what would they say?" With TORC in play, candidates will give you the real number.
The Comprehensive Summary: After the interview, write a detailed summary (often 10+ pages) analyzing patterns, strengths, and risks before making a decision.

V. Learnings: Interviewing & Management Best Practices

Fact-Based Hiring: Move away from "gut feel" hiring. Use data points from the candidate's entire career to predict future behavior.[3]
Verify Everything: Resumes are marketing documents often filled with lies. The Topgrading interview is a "truth serum."
Candidate-Arranged References: Don't chase references. If a candidate is an A Player, they will have maintained good relationships with former bosses and can get them on the phone for you.
No "Backdoor" References Only: While informal checks are okay, you must speak to direct supervisors to get the true picture of performance.
Coach the "Bs": If you have a B Player with A Potential, create a development plan. If they don't improve in 6 months, they must be replaced.
Annual Measurement: Measure your hiring success rate annually. If you aren't hitting 75%+ A Players hired, your process needs tuning.
Culture Fit is measurable: Include cultural values in the Job Scorecard. An A Player who destroys culture is not an A Player.
Topgrade the Top: Topgrading must start at the executive level. You cannot build a team of A Players if the leadership consists of B and C Players.[2]
The "Three P's": Evaluate candidates on Performance (results), Potential (growth), and Personality (culture fit).
Dealing with Weaknesses: Every candidate has weaknesses. The goal is to find if the candidate is aware of them and if those weaknesses are relevant to the specific scorecard.
Onboarding is Step 12: The process doesn't end at the offer. Structuring the first 90 days (coaching) is critical to ensuring the A Player lands successfully.
Hiring is Sales: You must "sell" the A Player on your company just as hard as they are selling themselves to you.
Avoid "Biased" References: HR departments often only give dates of employment. Speaking to former bosses is the only way to get performance data.
Patience Pays: It is better to leave a position open for a month longer than to hire a C Player who will take years to clean up after.
Topgrading is a System, not a silver bullet: It requires discipline, training, and commitment from the entire organization to work effectively.

Sources and Further Reading

Book: Topgrading (3rd Edition): The Proven Hiring and Promoting Method That Turbocharges Company Performance by Bradford D. Smart.[7] Amazon Link
Official Website: Topgrading.com - Offers articles, case studies, and white papers.
Concept Summary: The 12 Steps of Topgrading via Betterteam.
Methodology Review: Topgrading Interview Guide via Greenhouse.
Interview/Article: Bradford Smart on the Cost of Mis-Hires via Inc. Magazine.

Sources