“Buy vs Build” is a decision made all throughout an enterprise. We vigorously debate either position when it comes to our technology and tools. But what about our people?

Conventional wisdom holds that, if an enterprise seeks a transformation, it must go into “buy” mode and acquire as much talent as possible from the outside. However, in reality this is an expensive strategy with a low success rate. Putting aside the obvious problem of there being a very limited number of “the best” to spread across an entire industry, the “buy” strategy is still largely based on hope.

You hope that the new people will bring the right ideas that will automatically spread. You hope that the new people will have experience that can be translated to your business. But, more often than not, the hope of the income new is undermined and overwhelmed by the same systemic issues that caused your current problems.

This talk is about a tactical set of actions that leaders can take to find and fix their company’s systemic issues. If you fix the system, you’ll be able to de-risk the new. If you fix the system, you’ll find a truth that just isn’t discussed: the talent you need to succeed is already inside your company.