Alignment, not Failure

Let’s talk about hiring and promotions and how we’ve been getting both sides of the equation wrong for way too long. 

With the layoffs announced this week at Microsoft and LinkedIn, let's face the hard truths.

On the individual side, there's this belief that once you pick a career path, a role, or a vertical, you're locked in. Changing direction feels like failure, like admitting you got it wrong. I know people who have felt stuck in the same role for decades and are afraid to make a move.

Staying in something that no longer aligns with who you are, just to avoid being seen as a quitter? That's the real failure.

Success isn't about sticking with something just because you started it. It's about finding alignment.

When your career reflects who you are, your strengths, your values, the way you're wired, that's where fulfillment happens. That's where you get momentum. That's where you stop just doing the work, and start being made for the work.

And then there's the company side.

We're still hiring based on resumes and degrees, as if that's the best predictor of performance. Spoiler: it’s not. That info tells you where someone's been, not who they are or how they'll thrive.

We promote people because they've been around the longest or crushed it in their IC role, and then wonder why they're struggling as leaders. However, the truth is that not all high performers are naturally suited to lead. And when we force them into roles they didn't ask for, don't enjoy, and aren't equipped for, we don't just risk underperformance; we damage their confidence.

They think they failed. When, really, the system failed them.

If we want stronger teams, better leaders, and healthier companies, we've got to rethink what success looks like and how we develop talent from the inside out.

At Vetta Sales Consulting, we help companies get this right. Through our partnership with Aptive Index, we utilize AI-powered, data-driven assessments to uncover what truly drives performance and how to align people with roles they're best suited for.

The result? Lower attrition, higher revenue, and cultures that don't just look good on paper, they feel good to be part of.