Why Type A talent isn’t a luxury – it’s the foundation of scalable business success.

By Kim Stewart-Smith, CEO & Founder of Stewart & Smith Advisory

Three conversations with clients this week. Three different industries. Same frustration.

“Kim, I can’t find people who actually want to take ownership.”

“Everyone wants the title and the salary, but nobody wants the responsibility.”

“I’m still the bottleneck in my own business because I can’t trust anyone to go the extra mile.”

If these sound familiar, you’re experiencing the Type A talent shortage, and it’s limiting your business growth.

The Expensive Reality of Hiring Mistakes

Here’s the scenario I see repeatedly: You hire someone with impressive technical credentials and strong interview responses. Three months into their probation, despite regular check-ins, they’re not lifting. They complete tasks but show no initiative.

You’ve made the classic mistake: hiring for expertise instead of character.

What you can teach:

Technical skills, processes, systems

What you can’t teach:

Initiative, ownership mindset, learning agility, accountability

The math is brutal:

• Month 1-3: Probation salary + management time = $15,000-$25,000
• Month 4-12: Full salary + team impact + opportunity cost = $80,000-$120,000
• Year 2+: Continued mediocrity + team morale damage = Incalculable

How to Select Type A from the Start

Interview for behaviour, not just credentials:

• “Tell me about a time you solved a problem that wasn’t your responsibility.”
• “Describe when you had to learn something new under pressure.”
• “Give me an example of going the extra mile when nobody was watching.”
• “Walk me through a situation where you had to challenge a colleague’s idea for the good of the project.”

Look for learning trajectory: Are they taking on increasing responsibility? Do they seek challenges beyond their comfort zone?

Test problem-solving in real-time: Present a realistic business challenge during the interview. Type A candidates engage and propose solutions. Type C candidates wait for direction.

Assess team orientation: Ask about times they’ve subordinated personal goals for team success, or held a colleague accountable to standards. Great individual performers who can’t work in teams become expensive problems.

The Type B vs. Type C Decision

When someone isn’t performing, quickly determine if they’re worth developing:

Type B indicators (worth investing in):

• Shows genuine concern when given feedback
• Asks specific questions about improvement
• Takes initiative on small things
• Learns from mistakes
• Shows frustration with their own performance gaps

Type C indicators (exit quickly):

• Defensive when given feedback
• Needs constant direction for basic decisions
• Never asks “what else can I do?”
• Comfortable with mediocre performance

The 90-day rule:

If someone hasn’t shown Type A behaviors in three months of clear expectations, they’re unlikely to develop them. Quick decisions save money and preserve team standards.

Why Type A Talent Drives Growth

Type A talent doesn’t just perform better, they multiply your capacity and create the foundation for what Patrick Lencioni calls high-performing teams:

Trust Builders: Type A talent demonstrates reliability and competence, creating the vulnerability-based trust that Lencioni identifies as the foundation of great teams. When team members trust each other’s intentions and capabilities, collaboration accelerates.

Healthy Conflict Champions: They engage in productive conflict around ideas, not personalities. Type A talent will challenge strategies and propose alternatives, the kind of healthy debate that leads to better decisions.

Commitment Drivers: Because they participate in decisions and voice their opinions, Type A talent creates genuine buy-in. As Lencioni notes, commitment doesn’t require consensus, it requires clarity and input. Type A talent provides both.

Accountability Partners: They hold themselves and others accountable to high standards without waiting for management intervention. This peer accountability is what separates great teams from average ones.

Results Focus: Type A talent subordinates their individual ego to collective results. They care more about team success than personal recognition, the hallmark of a results-oriented culture.

Force Multipliers: One Type A hire increases team productivity by 15-25% because they model these team behaviours and raise standards across the organization.

Your Strategic Decision

Every hire is a choice between building a business that scales or remaining the bottleneck in your own success.

Type A talent wants clear accountability, growth opportunities, results-based recognition, and strategic context. Most job descriptions ask for these qualities but offer micromanaged, task-based roles.

The companies winning the talent war aren’t necessarily paying more, they’re offering the opportunity to take ownership, drive results, and grow alongside a business that values excellence.

Further Reading:

– “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” by Patrick Lencioni – How Type A talent creates the foundation for high-performing teams

– “Good to Great” by Jim Collins

– “Topgrading” by Brad Smart

– “Who: The A Method for Hiring” by Geoff Smart and Randy Street

Stewart & Smith Advisory works with Australian businesses to build the strategic frameworks that attract and retain Type A talent.

Building a team that can scale without you? Let’s discuss what that looks like.