The Curse of Experience

I have a gripe about experience in business that I’d like to get off my chest. Now don’t get me wrong – we need experienced people. If I’m flying on a commercial jet I want the guy up front to have a few years experience behind him. But have a look at job adverts on Seek or a similar sites, management jobs requiring x number of years experience in a particular industry - business is business, isn’t it?

Worse yet are middle management jobs requiring extensive periods of experience in similar roles. If I was to hire a middle manager, should I go for the applicant with 10 years experience in the same role at another business or should I go for the guy with the skills and drive looking for a move ‘up the ladder’? I would ask the question – if this guy with all the experience is so good why is he still doing the same crap he’s been doing for the last ten years? Is he going to be motivated? Maybe. Is he going to be innovative, creative? Probably not. Flexible? No. Is he going to achieve brilliant results? Definitely not.

Now what about the guy with little experience but the skills and drive to kick ass? Yes.

Business operates within an ever changing and ever more demanding environment. As more and more products and services become commoditised, creativity and innovation are what results in profit. These qualities come from individuals who are on the move, passionate and committed to learning, growing and advancing.

So why is experience in demand? Because it’s safe. Risk adversity is the key to the problem. It is also the reason why growth rates reduce over the lifetime of a business. For any organisation to move forward it must take risks. Sure they need to be calculated and measured, and contingency plans need to be in place but a business will not grow without accepting a certain level of risk.

So if you’re in the business of success, just remember that experience isn’t everything.