How companies and divisions should take a lesson from Pitbull (the pop singer)

I was watching Pitbull perform on TV the other day, yes I am a big fan of his songs like “Give Me Everything,” “International Love,” and “Feel This Moment,” and I was struck with an a-ha moment. I noticed that while Pitbull is a good rapper and has good lyrics, it’s actually the special guest artists who perform in the song with him that really knock your socks off with their high-note choruses and strong vocal range. For example, without Ne-Yo’s lead vocals in “Give Me Everything” or Christina Aguilera hitting those amazing high notes in the chorus of “Feel This Moment” – the song just wouldn’t be that great, since Pitbull has more of a monotone, even-keeled voice. My a-ha was that even though the other artists truly added the power of the song to make it great, Pitbull actually gets all the credit for the song, and he’s now famous and very rich (not that the others aren’t either).

My thoughts then jumped to businesses, and even marketing divisions, and how perhaps the best way to truly win is to bring in outside experts who are really exceptional at their craft – whether it’s social media, product innovation, event marketing, strategic planning, etc. and have them contribute their power in order for your business/division/project to be a success. You still get all the credit, so it’s a win-win situation. Often I’ve seen companies and divisions struggle with mediocre results because they expect everyone to wear multiple hats, and be good at everything. The truth is NO ONE can be good at everything, and the more companies relax, and decide it’s ok to bring in outside expertise/help on many different initiatives, the more they will prosper. Think about how rich Pitbull has gotten by using other people’s vocal ranges. I know companies do bring in outside agencies/vendors to help with logos, branding, etc. but what about bringing someone in who specifically helps with social media insights, development of new product technologies, and data analytics. Many firms say ‘we do that in-house’ – but does that mean what’s done is actually GOOD? Or are you just checking the box and saying, yep – that’s done, someone on my team is covering off on it. The more experts you bring in, my guess is the better your results will be.

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