I don't think anyone is arguing against "Excellent colleagues trump everything else." As someone else mentioned, statements like these are simplistic truisms. H

I don't think anyone is arguing against "Excellent colleagues trump everything else." As someone else mentioned, statements like these are simplistic truisms. However, I think that treating employees like adults is also recognizing that there is more nuance to people than simply defining them in static terms such as "A players" and assuming they will always remain in neat little categories. Given how quickly things in tech change (or life for that matter), one day you may be an "A player" and the next you may be a B or C. People are dynamic, events happen; how you treat your existing employees when things change matters.