Any startup’s path to spectacular success begins with a winning team.
The people you work with can make or break your business.
The team will decide whether a startup will grow into a thriving and promising business or whether it will die in the early stages of its journey to victory.
“How do I choose the right team members for my startup?”
In this article, we will enumerate the importance of having the right people and some actionable strategies for building a team that will carry your startup all the way to the top.
Importance of Getting the Right People
- Saves time – Hiring the right people removes unnecessary performance distractions and allows you to focus on what is important.
- Maximizes productivity – Interviewing, providing feedback, and all of the meetings that come with hiring can take up valuable time that could be spent growing the core business. Good hires keep this activity to a minimum and return their employees to work.
- Fosters business growth – Bringing on the right employees ensures that they will grow with you, contributing to your overall business success and reducing the need to hire for each new leadership position you may develop down the road.
- Reduces turnover costs – How many times can you afford to hire the wrong person? What else could you have done with that money? Turnover costs may be the most aggravating of all the wasted dollars a company faces. Nothing beats investing time and money in an employee only to have them leave for one reason or another.
How to Find the Right Team for Your Start-Up
Here are five essential tips to find the right team for your startup:
1. Build your foundation first
A solid foundation is required for a successful startup.
- Be clear on your leadership positions before bringing in new hires.
- Create a decision-making process. Make a note of it and have everyone’s buy-in.
- A clear chain of command is necessary. Define everyone’s roles and responsibilities.
- Check your skill set. Assess what you need help with and what positions you need to fill.
2. Hire people who can take action
At every step and every turn, new challenges are thrown your way.
It is important to have team members who can deal with problems quickly and efficiently. With the competitive nature of business, you need people who are go-getters.
Consider the potential challenges your startup will encounter from the start, and put together a team that can handle whatever comes their way.
3. Personality is important
You want a diverse team, but you also need to know who they are. How will you accomplish this? Allow them to take personality assessments. These tests are widely used in the recruitment process.
4. Hire someone with a strong drive
Startup jobs are demanding. You want employees who genuinely believe in your company.
Make sure to hire someone who is passionate and has the potential to embrace the adapt-or-die nature of the startup scene.
5. Make sure to include someone with startup or industry experience
Having a team member who is well-versed in the process will make everything go more smoothly. They won’t require extensive training, are more capable of taking on leadership roles, and can steer the team in the right direction.
Conclusion
Take some time to think about who you’re bringing on board. Never settle for someone who is not a good fit for the team because they will not last and may harm the organizational culture.
The wrong people can drive your business into the ground. Take these strategies into consideration and apply them to your hiring/ team-building processes.
And if you want to know more about how to put together a strong, cohesive, collaborative team, listen to DevReady podcast episode 45 with Bob Sharon.
