Five tips for bringing in expertise
‘You just can’t mark your own homework.’ This was just one of the many great soundbites from my recent conversation with Andrew Southcott, Managing Director at creative agency group, Captivate.
Andrew and I have worked together since last year, when he appointed me to work with Captivate’s new business talent as part of a wider initiative to bring in external expertise for advice, support and training on a range of themes across the business. I was struck by Andrew’s leadership approach — a growth mindset that’s very clearly focused on consistent development and marginal gains performance improvement. I was interested to find out more about how a range of experts and outsourced resources are adding value across the Captivate business. If you suspect there may be skill gaps in your agency, you’ll be interested to read Andrew’s top tips.
1. Be clear about why you need to outsource
It helps to be clear about why you need the support of external resource. There are four common reasons:
1) Something needs to be done that you don’t want to do
2) Something needs to be done and you don’t have time to do it
3) Something needs to be done but you don’t have the skills required
4) You’re too close to the issue and need an external perspective
All of the above are relevant and credible reasons to outsource, but clarity here will enable you to make the right decision about the expert you appoint to help. For example, is this a short-term fix or is the need unlikely to change? Do you want someone to just get on with the job, or would you like to be involved so you can learn more about the process?
2. Blend bought-in expertise with team building and development
There are some instances where, as a leader, you might need to work 1–2–1 with an external expert (for example, leadership mentoring or HR consultancy). However, there’s usually an ancillary benefit to be gleaned when working with external people who are experts in their fields — and that’s the development of skills right across the team. Involving the wider team in expert-led training sessions, brainstorms and workshops develops new skills, builds culture through shared experience, and keeps everyone involved, informed and invested in the ambitions of the agency.
3. Identify the right expert
Andrew quoted Robin Bonn, from episode 41 of the Small Spark Theory podcast. If you know you have a specific back problem, you’ll want to find a doctor with expertise in treating that specific problem successfully. You’ll be less inclined to seek help from a general practitioner and you definitely won’t bother to consult a doctor who specialises in a different part of anatomy. When you’re searching for external support, look for an individual who understands agency business and has helped to solve similar problems you’re faced with.
4. Listen to episode 40 with Sally Henderson!
Sally Henderson, Executive Change Mentor, joined us in episode 40 to discuss leadership. As Andrew points out, Sally’s suggests you to write down what your job is. Not just the title of your role, but what you’re supposed to be spending your time doing. Next, write down what you’re actually spending your time doing. If there are discrepancies here, you’ll have identified areas that you need external support to tackle (whether that’s to take over something you’re not supposed to be doing, or to take on something that you should be doing but can’t or don’t want to do). This is a brilliantly simple exercise that will deliver crystal clarity.
5. Remember it’s about doing the basics well
Expertise is rarely about reinventing the wheel. However, recruiting external expertise often helps to pinpoint growth opportunities and problems that you’ve been unable to spot. It will support prioritisation in accordance with business needs and will often hold you accountable to your plans. Sometimes, external resourcing is about delegating a job to another pair of hands for the sake of efficiency. But just as often, it’s an opportunity to collaborate and learn from someone who’s ‘been there’ before — and this is a rare and precious opportunity for any agency leader.
It was a real pleasure to speak with Andrew (and an added bonus to hear him reference so much of the advice that’s been offered by previous guests on this podcast!).
We can’t always see the wood from the trees from within our own organisations, and we can never see what we don’t know. So, if there’s a problem you just can’t work out how to solve, or an issue being caused by something that you can’t quite put your finger on, investing in an external, expert perspective may just prove invaluable.
To listen to my conversation with Andrew in full, tune into the Small Spark Theory Podcast, EP52: Bringing in Expertise.
