“You’re looking for three things, generally, in a person,” says Warren Buffett. “Intelligence, energy, and integrity. And if they don’t have the last one, don’t even bother with the first two.”

 Ideally you want all three but people don’t always cooperate. These qualities tend to be difficult to judge in hiring someone.

So we end up with all sorts of combinations and permutations in organizations.

A lot of people feel that stupid people are the ‘worst’ problem. (I’d argue that intelligent people without integrity are even worse. They know the system, play politics well, and often end up in grey areas.) With or without integrity, it’s easier to get rid of an unintelligent person than an intelligent one.

Simplifying greatly (and removing integrity from the equation), we end up with four combinations: stupid and hard-working, stupid and lazy, intelligent and hard-working, and intelligent and lazy.

So what happens with smart lazy people? (more…)