Afraid to hire a team for your business?
If you are going to grow your business or reduce the hours you are working there is no way around it, you simply have to grow your team.
Afraid to hire a team for your business? Don’t be. This short article will provide you with the knowledge you need to be brave, face your fears and start recruiting a fantastic team to drive your business forward.
As business coaches, we come across the fear of recruiting A LOT! Some business owners have said, they want to expand their team, but felt it was either too much hassle or they worried because they found it hard “get good staff.” One of the most common reasons we come across is “It’s quicker and easier to do it myself”
Another big issue we hear about is new employees not fitting in with the rest of the company, which is not only a problem for you the business owner, it will feel like a miserable place for the new employee to be too.
The first point I would raise is to think about Skill v Will, by which I mean;
• Skill is their technical ability to do the work, such as being a carpenter, accountant, or a digital marketing specialist.
• Will is their attitude and drive to do the best job they can, learn new skills, and be a great colleague. They want to fit in well with the rest of your team. As a leader, you need to be able to verbalise what these mean to a prospective staff member (which is a whole other topic!).
Hire slow and fire fast
When recruiting most people hire on technical ability, not how will they fit into the business, and then they wonder why the new hire does not last long!
A bad employee can do a lot of damage very quickly, directly damaging your reputation in the market and damage to your team morale.
Take your time making sure you hire the right person; define in detail the role you want them to do, and think about the sort of person you want from your business culture and attitude perspective.
Structure the employee contract so you are easily able to let them go if they are not a good fit. Having a probation period written in with defined performance targets documented is most commonly used. BUT my advice is, make the effort to HIRE RIGHT FIRST TIME!
Think very carefully about whether you really do need to hire someone, or whether you could you change the way you run the business. Ask “do I need a full-time marketing manager or simply someone to work for us part-time” in which case outsource as it’s more cost-effective.
Should you hire someone better than you?
It’s natural to feel a little threatened by someone who has better skills than you. Unfortunately, it is one of the largest barriers for business owners because they fear the following:
FEAR: They might take your job
Well isn’t that the idea,? You want to free yourself up to do something else, don’t you?
FEAR: They will be expensive
Instead of thinking that way, consider instead how much will it cost you if you get someone who isn’t good enough?!
You need people who are great at what they do, from the people who look after the customers up to the senior positions.
FEAR: They won’t do it as well as I do
Maybe not when you first hire them, but you can develop them to be as good as you, or even better!
So the question was ‘Should you hire someone better at the job than you?” Maybe the question should instead be “Why wouldn’t you hire someone better than you?”
When running a business you wear multiple hats. You are unlikely to be a master of all the roles you do (e.g. marketing, sales, operations, finance, HR, product design, etc.) Even if you are a master of a role you can always learn from someone else and they can learn from you. If you are growing your business, you need great people in key roles, so you want the best people you can get.
Should you hire someone overqualified?
If you have not invested the time to put the systems, processes, and tools in place to run your business efficiently you will probably need to hire someone who can do the role on day one. This means they will be a more expensive employee and could give you challenges around how they develop and grow in the role.
If you have the systems, processes, and tools in place you can hire someone who is mostly technically competent and can follow the process. Over time they will grow into the role, which is more likely to mean they will stay motivated. This way you can focus on getting someone who will be a great fit for your business.
Stop and think before you advertise a position
Before you hire a new staff member think very carefully about the role and write a detailed Job Description, so everyone involved has the same understanding of the position.
Have a Vision (what you are developing the business to become), Mission (how you will achieve the Vision) and the Culture (how people behave in the business) defined so potential employees can see if they want to work for your business.
Have an agreed way of working so everyone knows what is expected of them, from making the tea, and answering the phones to etiquette in meetings.
Remember, you are hiring to fill a specific role in the business! A lot of businesses like to recruit family members but don’t lose sight of everything discussed above. Just because your niece once worked in an accounting department won’t necessarily make her a great Finance Director.
Finally, understand how your team works effectively together, and invest in a Team Alignment including a personality analysis for each member. This helps everyone understands how best to interact with everyone else!
Still afraid to hire staff for your business?
If you would like my support to grow your business and thus your team, book a complimentary discovery session
