If it were up to me to decide between a worker like Jamie and a worker like Avery without knowing the type work, I will choose Avery. I believe that going with the higher ceiling gives my company a better chance of higher performance. I believe it is worth the risk to try and change behavior of the higher performer than settle with someone who is consistent but not a high performer. Again, without knowing the job I’d rather try and teach consistency than how to be good at something.
A job where you would want to take someone like Avery would be a sales position or one that has a competitive background. Work like that can inspire those that aren’t always pushing themselves like Avery. Sports is also another area of expertise that I believe it worth taking the higher ceiling than the consistent pick. As a manager ideally you can train athletes or employees to be in a position to perform.
Jobs where consistency would be valued and one where I would select Jamie for would be retail clerks, fast food jobs, and other low performing jobs. When the job is simple and does not have much room for varying performance than it is definitely more valuable to have a consistent worker than one that only performs well some of the time. These jobs can also be more technically important such as flying airplanes where both constancy and performance is valued. This is why it is important to know the job that is being applied for.
