Entrepreneur Rob Kelly blogs (sporadically) at RobDKelly.com and Tweets at RobKellySF. This is culled from deep within his archives:
I was inspired by the book “Moneyball” by Michael Lewis, which chronicles the Oakland A’s baseball team and its strategy of focusing on undervalued players. I’ve found some success in applying this to business. Specifically, I am always on the lookout for undervalued people. Here are two examples of undervalued people I look for and find:
Fallen Stars (or Fallen Angels)
Fallen Stars are workers who hit a certain apex in their career and then for some reason fell — often far — from that level. The reasons they are “fallen” may include personal problems such as divorce, substance abuse or alleged unethical or illegal activity. Such Fallen Stars are worth a close look to be given a second chance, especially if they proved themselves for a long period of time before their fall from grace.
Diamonds in the Rough
Diamonds in the Rough are valuable individuals who are simply not appreciated for their potential. Diamonds in the Rough usually exist because of poor managers or leaders surrounding the Rough Diamond. A good place to look for such Diamonds in the Rough are mismanaged companies as they sometimes forget to dig deep enough to find their diamonds.
A good sign of a mismanaged company is one ego-driven management; they typically take their Diamonds for granted.
A great time to hire Diamonds is when their employer is not doing so well in business…perhaps their sales have flattened or profits are down. The Diamond will have his or her antennae up a bit higher during those times…and you can swoop in and hire them!
