This post also appeared in the Business section of The Huffington Post.

Progressive organizations and their HR people spend a lot of time trying to figure out how to attract "the best" employees.

Here's the secret: you can't.

I've been in HR circles long enough to know that perfect people don't exist. Despite anything you've heard about the algorithm for the optimal hire, such an employee is fiction. The not-so-secret reality is that there's no such thing as the "best" talent. There are only good people who have the potential to become great employees. It's your job to help them deliver.

So what are some of the other common misconceptions about assembling a great team?

Only hire people who can step effortlessly into the job: There are always stories about companies or industries that only want to hire the most renowned people who have lots of years in the field and who are 100 percent ready to effortlessly assume duties. Bad idea. That approach ignores a huge swath of up-and-comers. It also leads to artificially created employee shortages and puts considerable pressure on existing employees to fill in the gaps meaning everybody's unhappy. Find people with skills, smarts, and drive, and then enable and inspire them to rise to the top.estimated. At Bright Horizons, we've taken it a step further and included awards employees can nominate each other for. Winning then becomes something everyone is invested in, and that in turn generates something else you can't put a price on team spirit.

Read the full post here.