B-players are sinking your company because they ‘block talent, slow innovation, and lower the ceiling for everyone around them,’ top recruiter says

When companies fail to grow, leaders are quick to point to lackluster performers. But according to Deepali Vyas, a recruiter who has interviewed more than 50,000 executives over her career, the real culprits aren’t always at the bottom of the corporate food chain (C-players), or those at the top (A-players). In her estimation, it’s the people who sit between them: the B-players.​

“Most people think they’re A-players until they hear what an A-player actually is,” Vyas said in a TikTok video published last week.​

Vyas, who has led executive search and talent strategy for major companies like ZRG and Korn Ferry, says she can spot a B-player in seconds, and an A-player even more quickly. She broke down the differences between the various worker types in her latest TikTok.

“A-players seek challenge, B-players seek credit, and C-players seek comfort,” she said. “A-players want pressure. They grow in it. B-players chase applause and hire C-players, who can hand them the credit. C-players just want to stay safe and unnoticed.”​

According to Vyas, A-players are confident, while B-players are calculated and C-players are “careful.” But while she said C-players try to “hide to avoid being wrong,” most problems at any organization quietly stem from B-players. “This is the part that no one tells you: C-players aren’t the real problem. B-players are,” she said.

“B-players are competent but insecure,” she continued. “They perform well enough to get recognition but avoid anything that exposes gaps. They block talent, slow innovation, and lower the ceiling for everyone around them.”

“B-players look competent while quietly damaging performance, blocking growth, and suffocating A-level talent.​ A-leaders avoid them, A-players outgrow them, and companies eventually push past them.”​

You can watch Vyas’ full TikTok below:

@elite.recruiter A/B/C Player Framework A Players Chase Pressure. B Players Chase Credit. C Players Chase Comfort. Most people think they’re A players… until they hear how A players actually operate. Here’s the truth no one in HR will tell you:

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