Growing up, my father was an avid fisherman.

Occasionally, he'd get out all of his tackle boxes and takeinventory. Whether he was fishing for trout, grayling or salmon, hehad whatever we needed to catch fish once he'd completed a carefulassessment of his needs. He used to suggest some of those tackleboxes were my mom's, but he wasn't fooling anyone.

Recruitment & hiring

As leaders, when it comes to recruitment andhiring, we don't need tackle boxes with every variety of hook, baitand tackle, but we can't afford to be unclear about what we needwhen it comes to our people.

In Eric Herrenkohl's book, "How toHire A-Players," he defines an A-player as "an employee whocreates superior results compared to the vast majority in yourindustry." Herrenkohl suggests we should always be recruiting anddeveloping an A-player mindset.

As a way to recruit A-players, our company participates in aninternship program at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA),where we network with coaches and sponsor a booth at UAA's springjob fair.

Top talent

Last year, when looking to broaden the talent net for ourclients' needs, opportunity struck on a flight out of Alaska. I satnext to a coach from the University of Alaska men's basketball teamand we recognized common ground in efforts to recruit the toptalent for our teams.

We were looking for candidates who demonstrated leadership,initiative, determination and excellence. Fortuitously, the coachmentioned a talented junior who would be looking for a jobfollowing graduation.

Related: The new face of leadership

Just like fishing takes the right bait and a degree ofskill, landing the right A-player for an organization takes timeand patience. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Help wanted: Only A-players needapply

I told the coach we'd be on campus for the UAA job fair thisspring and invited him to send over the prospective candidate.Diante Mitchell, a graduating senior and captain of the men'sbasketball team, met us.

During my interactions with Mitchell, it didn't take long torecognize his A-player potential. He was a candidate who coulddrive value, so Mitchell progressed to an interview with ourleaders.

Mitchell willingly shared his perspective of the recruitment andinterview process, as well as what he was looking for inemployment.

"I believe two goals exist in any interview a candidate walksinto — getting to know the company and its employees, aswell as gaining experience," said Mitchell.

"Going into the interview, I was looking to see how I wouldinteract with the people. When I look for employment, I want toknow that when I come to work each day, the people I work with willmake it fun and enjoyable. I think in our world today, people takejobs because they have to and not because they want to."

Mitchell continued, "When I went to interview this prospectiveemployer, I evaluated them on: 1) the work they were going to askme to perform and whether it interested me, and 2) also on thegrowth opportunity in the company."

Growing great people is an investment

Having a great candidate to consider is a little like a good dayfishing. There's tension on the line when you recognize you've gota keeper, and you focus on what you need to do to land a greatcatch. If you're lucky enough to land a great one, there is still alot of work yet to be done in training, development and feedback.Growing great people is an investment in our future.

However, we don't always land the big ones. Mitchell was givenan opportunity to follow his dream to play professionalbasketball.

"The only thing that wasn't a good fit was the timing," saidMitchell. "That is sometimes hard to control and I wasn't quiteready to give up my career as a basketball player just yet."

Related: Leadership theories for insurers

Knowing your team members is key to effectively motivatingthem. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Make it personal

Mitchell shared the number one thing he does as a captain andteammate to make it fun for his teammates to show up. Hisperspective is useful to leaders who are trying to create a winningwork culture and drive value.

"I try to get to know the players and let them get to know me ona personal level so I can help them stay positive and keep themupbeat throughout the season," explained Mitchell. "At the collegelevel, the players on your team have a love for the game and thatwon't ever change. Sometimes you need to remind them the game ofbasketball is something they love and they should enjoy every stepof the way."

Mitchell says that playing and practicing can get hard and everyathlete needs to be reminded of his love of the game. "Each playeris going to need to hear it in a different way. The closer you areto your teammates, the easier it is to wake up each day and bewilling to work hard for them.

Have fun 'playing the game'

When you are doing it for your teammates, and not yourself, theteam goes further and you have fun playing the game. I think thiscan be translated over into the business world as well," addedMitchell. "If you enjoy the people you work with, it's easier to goto work and make the best of each day."

As we strive to create solutions and cultures that will drivevalue in our industry, our tackle boxes must be outfitted toattract and retain the best talent for the industry. It's importantto help the best candidates recognize the claimsindustry offers meaningful work, opportunities to engage and growas well as to give back to our communities. A career in thisindustry is a great opportunity for A-players.

Susan Daniels ([email protected]) is the presidentof the National Association of Independent Insurance Adjusters(NAIIA), and is the president and owner of Alaska-based NorthernAdjusters. Special thanks to Diante Mitchell for his contributionsto this article.

Related: Claims magazine recognizes insurance industryleaders for innovation