Building a Powerful Team: How to Find Good People

Last week, we told you what superhero syndrome means: how many business owners feel that they’re the only one who can do things well and, so, they do everything.  This week, we are going to tell you how to fix that!

Determine What Your Business Is Missing

Here are some quick and simple ways to know when it’s time to expand:

*You’re not able to do big tasks because you’re spending all your time on rote work or focusing on small details.

*Your customers are not getting the attention they need.

*You have steady, consistent work - not just a week or two of intense work.

*You or your current staff are consistently overworked and frustrated.

*Hiring new people will increase revenue.

*You’re turning down work because you can’t keep up.

*You need someone to do a specialized task.

*You’re making enough money to hire employees.

Having a few busy weeks doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s time to hire additional employees. Taking on a full-time employee would be a mistake if you can’t provide them with ongoing work. You don’t want to pay a salary to someone who is often sitting around with nothing to do.

If you need occasional help finishing something, you may want to look into freelance workers or contractors. You can also hire consultants to help with specialized skills.

But if you have enough money in the budget and a new employee will help increase revenue, it’s probably a good time to bring on a new hire.

You may only need part-time help at first, but as your business continues to grow, those positions will turn into full-time work.

How to Find Applicants That Can Benefit Your Company

Many experienced entrepreneurs have been burned by bad employees. This can cause some businesspeople to want to avoid hiring anyone. Instead of starting the cycle of hiring again, they buckle down - determined to do the work themselves.

An incompetent or unethical employee is difficult to forget, but it shouldn’t cause you to be filled with fear. There are good workers out there who are ready to support your business -- you just have to find them.

Here are five important things to consider when bringing on a new employee.

Define Your Business Culture

Have you ever heard the term “workplace culture”? It may sound strange or even kitschy, but the idea behind it is extremely important.

The culture of your company is a combination of:

• Values
• Traditions
• Behaviors
• Attitudes
• Beliefs

The culture can be positive or negative, and you have the power to guide it. The people you hire will also have a lot to do with your business’ culture.

In order to maintain the type of culture that you want, it’s important to hire people that will enhance it instead of diminishing it.

Look for people who share your values and understand the vision and branding that you have for your company.

For example, imagine that you started a business selling outdoor camping gear. You decided to focus heavily on going green and your company’s eco-impact.

When you hire employees for your business, you would want to hire people who are knowledgeable about outdoor gear and also care about the environment. That’s the culture that you would be cultivating.

A person with zero experience in camping or a person who doesn’t care about green living wouldn’t fit into your culture.

Hire People of Strong Integrity and Character

Your employees should be knowledgeable about your products, but they should also be ethical people who can work well with others. More than anything, you want to avoid hiring toxic people who will cause division or harm fellow employees.

Billionaire and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett, once said:

"We look for three things when we hire people. We look for intelligence, we look for initiative or energy, and we look for integrity. And if they don't have the latter, the first two will kill you, because if you're going to get someone without integrity, you want them lazy and dumb."

Buffett was making the point that integrity is more important than simply having a smart or energized employee.

Hiring trustworthy employees means you can unburden some of your responsibilities without fear.

It also means that you’re providing other employees with a safe work environment. Your workplace should be sensitive to your employees’ unique needs and have a low risk for things like sexual harassment, bullying, or discrimination.

Consider these questions to help determine if your new hire has the kind of integrity you need for your business:

*Do they have a positive attitude at work, or are they always complaining and bringing down the morale?

*Are they able to communicate openly?

*Do they follow through with commitments?

*If they tell you they will do something, do they try their best to do it?

*Are they able to hold themselves accountable? In other words, do they continue to do work well even when you’re not present?

*Are they willing to take responsibility for their actions?

*Do they always blame others when something goes wrong?

*Do they spend their time building up others or do they tear others down?

*Are they more concerned with their ego or the good of the company and the team?

No employee is going to be perfect, but a team member that works with integrity will produce ongoing rewards.

Almost everyone recognizes a person of character and this attribute will go well beyond your workforce. Your customer base will also respect a company that hires trustworthy people.

Create a Diverse Team of Workers (Welcome to 2021)

Today’s business world is recognizing the need for diversity in the workplace. The business landscape has been changing over the past sixty years and many companies are learning that diversity is a strength rather than a weakness.

A diverse work team has many benefits, including:

• Increased productivity
• More creativity and out-of-the-box thinking
• Greater innovation
• Faster problem solving
• Reduced employee turnover
• Marketing that is more inclusive and sensitive to various demographics
• Enhanced company reputation

Diversifying your business is not necessarily an easy task, however. People who are similar tend to spend time with others like themselves. That makes it harder to find new or different types of people.

If you want to bring in people from many demographics, there are a few things you can do:

1. Make diversity a part of your business culture. Before you begin hiring new employees, resolve to make your business culture vibrant. You want people who have common goals but avoid confusing that with hiring people who are all the same.

2. Determine your criteria before the interview. To prevent a subconscious bias when interviewing and hiring, choose your criteria before you begin interviewing. That will help you treat all applicants in an unbiased way.

3. Have a diverse group of people interviewing. When you interview, have others on the panel besides yourself. Invite people from different demographics to help you choose employees.

4. Post job opportunities in diverse localities. In addition to where you would normally post a job opening, pick non-traditional places to post your job openings too, even if they don’t seem like an obvious choice for your business.

   
   
   

5. Attend job fairs in different communities. Go to job fairs in communities and at colleges that have a more diverse population. You can also go to non-profit organizations that advocate for those who are ordinarily underrepresented. 

Use a Variety of Avenues to Find Good People

You may know exactly what kind of people you want, but how do you actually find them?

The best way to recruit new people is to use a variety of avenues, such as:

1. Personal network. Chances are you’ve built up relationships with customers, clients, and business partners. Use those relationships to ask for referrals and recommendations. They may know the perfect person for your business.

2. Social networks. LinkedIn is a well-known resource for finding good help, but you can also use a social media platform like Facebook.

3. Online job boards. Popular job boards you can try are Flexjobs, Indeed, and CareerBuilder.

*If you work in a niche industry, it’s probably better to find a more specific job board. For example, if you work in tech, you may want to try Dice.com. If you’re looking for a writer, you can try ProBlogger’s job board. Efinancial Careers is good if you’re looking for people that work in finance.

4. Carry a business card with you. Whether you’re traveling the world for business or just stopping in at your local coffee shop, you never know when there might be an opportunity to reach out to a potential hire.

Use Your Branding in Your Recruiting Ads

When posting an ad for your job opening, such as online, in newspapers, or on a physical job board, remember that branding is important. You may not be selling a product, but you are selling your company.

If you want to attract amazing applicants, give them a reason to want to apply. Try to think of creative ads that will get them interested in your business, as well as give them a clear idea of your company’s ideals. That will also help lower the number of applicants that are a poor fit.

Next week (August 20), we are going to tell you how to treat your employees so that they feel valued, making them loyal and trustworthy members of your team.  Read "The Importance of Making Your Employees Feel Valued" here.

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