What an employee wants matters more than what they can do

10 years on — rewritten for 2026

Ten years ago I wrote an article with exactly this title. It became the most read piece I have ever published. The message: organisations invest heavily in developing competencies, but forget the drivers of their people. And those drivers determine whether someone really performs or merely functions.

That message is more relevant in 2026 than ever. The gap between what organisations consider important and what actually makes the difference is still there.

The competency trap is still wide open
Employees do not leave because they cannot handle their work. They leave because the work no longer means anything to them. Organisations respond with even more training and competency profiles. But the problem does not lie in the ability. It lies in the willingness.

Competencies answer the question: what can I do? Drivers answer a far more fundamental question: what do I want? In most organisations that second question is still not asked systematically.

Drivers: from gut feeling to evidence
Drivers are not a vague gut feeling. They are stable patterns that determine how someone thinks, makes decisions and works with others. They explain why two people with the same education and experience achieve completely different results.

The mechanism is clear: when work matches someone's drivers, energy arises from within. When that match is missing, all motivation has to come from outside. Through bonuses, pressure or expectations. That works, but not for long.

Wanting compensates for being able
The core claim from 2016 still stands upright: someone with a strong will can compensate for a weaker competency. The reverse is never true, a strong competency can never compensate for a lack of motivation.

Think of the colleague who was not the strongest candidate on paper, but through sheer drive grew into the linchpin of the team. Or the top talent who left within a year because the role did not connect with what truly motivated them.

What has changed in ten years
The labour market has shifted: employees choose more deliberately for work that suits them. Technology makes it possible to measure drivers at scale. And the evidence has become overwhelming, we no longer have to argue that drivers matter. We can demonstrate it.

But one thing has not changed: self-insight remains the foundation. Concentrate on your strengths. Manage what suits you less well. And make sure your strengths connect with your drivers. That is when exceptional performance comes within reach.