A reporter at a German magazine asked me this recently. Because I recently published the book Competing on Internet Time, she thought I should know something about managing time. Still, companies should at least hire the very best people they can find and not compromise high standards because of budgets or rapid growth.
Confidence is also an issue because many managers are afraid to hire people smarter than themselves.
Having also co-written a book about Microsoft, I recalled that this isn't how Bill Gates operates. He makes incredible efforts to recruit talented people, believing that collecting the smartest people is the best way to assure Microsoft's future. Not surprisingly, Gates feels comfortable delegating to truly talented managers like company president Steve Ballmer and the other two dozen or so members of Microsoft's informal brain trust. Gates' people enable him to manage time more efficiently. A third element I thought was important was the ability to prioritize.