The one-sentence summary:

A handful of clever star performers create disproportionate amounts of value for organisations, but they must be managed particularly astutely.

WHAT THE BOOK SAYS

• You need a particularly astute approach to leading smart, creative people
• Research shows that a handful of star performers create disproportionate amounts of value for their organisations. They aren’t free agents who do this on their own – they need their organisation’s commercial and financial resources to fulfil their potential.
• These invaluable individuals are called ‘clevers’ – they can be brilliant, difficult and sometimes even dangerous.
• Their main characteristics are: their cleverness is central to their identity; their skills are not easily replicated; they know their worth; they ask difficult questions; they are organisationally savvy; they are not impressed by hierarchy; they expect instant success; they want to be connected to other clever people; they won’t thank you
• Their bad characteristics are: they take pleasure in breaking the rules; they trivialisie the importance of non-technical people; they are oversensitive about their projects; they suffer from knowledge-is-power syndrome; they are never happy about the review process
• Getting the approach right works for individuals, teams, and even whole companies – clevers attract more clevers

ELEMENTS OF THE BOOK I PARTICULARLY LIKE

• Success may well depend on how well you lead ‘clevers’, which is a nightmare in itself.
• Traditional leadership approaches won’t be effective. Instead, bosses need to:
  • Tell them what to do – not how to do it
  • Earn their respect with expertise – not a job title
  • Provide ‘organised space’ for their creativity
  • Sense their needs and keep them motivated
  • Shelter them from administrative and political distractions (‘organisational rain’)
  • Connect them with clever peers
  • Convince them the company can help them succeed