I’ve talked until I’m blue in the face about hiring and cultivating good people. For that reason, I’ll bypass the owners today. Instead, I’ll ask the people in sales, production, operations, accounting, marketing, and logistics: “Are you being recruited by competing companies?”

If you’re like many employees I’ve talked to recently, the answer is yes. Pay attention. I’ve got some tips for you.

Getting the call

Imagine you’re a top ice hockey coach lured away from the home arena to helm the next hot NHL team. What do you do first? You talk to your people. First, you talk to your family, who will be making a huge sacrifice and experiencing personal upheaval.

Next, you talk to your coaching staff, many of whom will consider relocating to continue working with you. You’ll talk to your administrative people, who keep things running like a well-oiled machine. Those are your inside people.

Once it’s official, you’ll reach out to star recruits whom you’ve watched and wooed for years; your network of solid players who can step in and fill a gap; and the free agents who might jump at the chance to make a name for themselves in a new market.

This is how you attract others to come with you. They’re the people you know and trust. They’ll help you be successful. Why wouldn’t you bring them? The owners out there are saying to themselves, “Wait a minute, Rock, I thought you were our friend. Why are you encouraging people to leave us – and take our best people?”

You’re missing the point. Your employees are already thinking about leaving you. They’re already talking to their friends about who’s offering what and who’s going where. If you think you’re immune from your people being poached by your competitors, stop reading. If you’ve been seeing this in the industry over the past 24 months, keep reading.

Hunting for talent

Buyers of all types call me and say, “Rock, we need talented individuals to manage and work in our companies.”

They’re adding locations, right-sizing, growing and aligning. They’re not looking for warm bodies – they’re looking for leaders. They’re in it to win it. Meanwhile, your people who you thought were yours for life are calling me.

“Rock, we’re looking for a new opportunity.”

And I reply, “Who can you bring with you?” It’s as simple as that. Think about it. Why would top players be blindly loyal to the owner when the arena is wide open?

Assembling the team

Now let’s talk about how winning coaches assemble teams and how you can, too. Whether you’re an owner, manager or player, you should always be building your team. In business, your team is your group of co-workers. It’s also those who surround you from other departments, other divisions, and even other companies.

One charismatic college hockey coach known for assembling the best teams was Red Berenson. Red was the head coach for the University of Michigan Wolverines men’s hockey team from 1984 to 2017. Everyone wanted to play under Red’s leadership, and he pulled top talent to Ann Arbor from other teams – players and coaching personnel – for 33 years. Red was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame during his career at Michigan and into the US Hockey Hall of Fame a year after his retirement. 

Here are tips from Red and other great hockey coaches on how to build a team. Owners, are you listening?

Being a leader that people will follow anywhere

Develop your own brand of charisma: You don’t have to have movie-star good looks or be an extrovert to have personal appeal. Start with the basics. I recommend Cues: Master the Secret Language of Charismatic Communication by Vanessa Van Edwards (copyright March 2022) to learn how to be more comfortable in your own skin.

Use appropriate eye contact and body language. Develop your executive presence. Listen respectfully, and communicate clearly. Learn to be cordial in a professional way without being overly friendly.

Be interesting. I spend a lot of time connecting with colleagues and meeting new people. If someone asks you how your weekend was and you have nothing new or noteworthy to mention, it’s time to develop a hobby or watch better sports teams. If you think you are boring, heaven help the rest of us.

Have integrity. There are no shortcuts here. Having integrity is not always easy, but it’s always worth it.

Work on emotional intelligence. A key area of EI is to take responsibility for yourself. You don’t have to have a high IQ to have emotional intelligence. It’s something that can be developed through coaching, goal setting and honest introspection.

Be fair. Have you ever worked for an unfair boss? I can put up with a certain amount of, say, irritability, impatience or disorganization in a co-worker or manager. Someone who is unfair – and knows it – destroys teams and individual morale. Become known for treating people right.

Be trustworthy. Would you follow someone you couldn’t trust?

Be humble. Keep things in perspective. Admit and learn from your mistakes. Ego freaks have never been in fashion, and today’s workplaces don’t want them and don’t need them. Cultivate humility. There’s nothing like attending church regularly to remind a person of their place in the universe, and trust me, it’s not at the top.

Have and show compassion. We are all God’s children. Take your foot off the throat of your fellow man and extend a hand.

Transforming a winning team

No matter where you rest on the organizational chart, you have an opportunity to assemble a team that will follow you anywhere.

As an owner, you need to understand that you can’t put a fence around your employees. I’ve seen owners try by using non-compete contracts, threats, and emotional blackmail. The only way to keep your team together as an owner is to make your business the kind that people are proud to represent.

People want to work for the best. The best owners and managers. The best organizations. The best leaders who can recognize potential and make the most of it. People are – and always have been – a leader’s greatest asset.

Be the type of leader who others will follow anywhere. It’s a game-changer.


Rock LaManna is The Deal Flow Guy. He helps qualified buyers and investors find businesses that are ready for acquisition or transition. On the sell side, he helps owners improve their businesses, increase value, and position strategically in anticipation of sale, exit or succession. Sign up for his newsletter at TheDealFlowGuy.com and start the process.