As a young entrepreneur, I totally bombed out at hiring and managing people. It took me a long time to figure out that employees had a very different mindset, outlook and set of expectations than I did. And perhaps most of all I didn’t appreciate the huge upside that I could have gotten if I had given a lot more effort to the whole hiring/managing people process.
As a new entrepreneur, you tend to be much more focused on what may seem like more pressing matters, such as creating products or delivering services, getting sales, controlling costs, managing cash flow and trying to stay in business.
But the leverage you can add to your company as you add employees can be incredible. It takes time to do what you need to do to hire and manage employees well. But it is an effort that you will be repaid for many times over.
- The first key element to a great workforce is carefully thinking through your hiring needs before you advertise a job opening. Is there someone internally who might like to do the job? Perhaps you should totally reconsider who is doing what work before you bring someone on board. Finally, you to have a fairly specific idea of what tasks the new hire would perform. Sure, you are an entrepreneurial startup and the job will likely change over time, but try to define what are likely to be the initial key responsibilities as clearly as possible.
- You want to seek out great candidates. To do this you need a bunch of candidates to choose from. Too often small companies just settle at interviewing a very small number of applicants while larger companies might interview many. You want to do what you have to do to have a number of qualified applicants to choose from, so that you can find the best of the best.
- OK so you have narrowed down your search to a few great candidates, who seem like they have the qualifications to be able to do the job. But the question always to be asked is “Will they do the job?” “Will they do it day after day?” You need to gauge if the seemingly all enthusiastic candidate will be happy and motivated and give the job their all 3 months, 6 months and 2 years after they are hired. Will they fit in at a tiny company? Will they be able to work for an entrepreneurial boss like yourself?
- Is your compensation appropriate for the position? Perhaps more importantly does the job candidate feel good or at least decent about the compensation. I almost never hire a candidate who says they are willing to take a pay cut because even if they are “willing” to do so, then I am concerned they will consider that they are doing me a favor to work at all.
- You need people to feel that they are part of a cohesive team and that the business is going to a big success! In other words, you want them to feel that they are part of something big, and that they are on the winning team. Building the winning team means more than just hiring highly talented individuals. It means you need to get people feeling good about the company, feeling good that they are working at your company, and feeling good that they are working with the other team members. I used to take this stuff for granted but that’s a big mistake. Especially in a startup environment, employees need to be reminded that they are on the “winning team.” They need to know that despite the trials, tribulations, struggles and challenges that they see every day, that the firm is progressing and that they will have a bright future there. They also need to hear that you respect and appreciate their work. You shouldn’t wait until they do something truly exceptional or until the annual review, people want to hear that they are appreciated regularly. And this is especially true at a startup. Finally, you’ve got to do what you can to get employees developing positive relationships with one another. If issues emerge don’t ignore them, get to the root of the issue. Have some events and activities to let people get to know one another in a more relaxed setting. And give your employees a chance to be “heard.” Let them know that their voice matters. As an entrepreneur, we tend to think we know the answer to everything, but if you don’t listen to and follow the ideas of your employees, you are going to find yourself missing out on some good opportunities, and you are going to find yourself working all alone.
Guest post contributed by Bob Adams, serial entrepreneur and founder of BusinessTown.com
