What To Think About When Hiring at Your Startup

When hiring at your startup, there are a few things to remember. 

As an entrepreneur with a new business, you’re probably thinking about how to hire the right people. The right employees can mean the difference between your company’s success and failure. 

Hiring might be the most important thing you can do to grow your startup. Good hires can make or break a company, so it’s worth getting hiring right. 

The wrong person can be costly. They may not fit into your business culture, leave after only a few months, or even cause damage to customer or employee relationships.

Here are some things to consider when hiring at your startup:

Knowing the Right Time for Hiring at Your Startup

One of the most important decisions you can make as a business owner is who you bring on board. When you’re small, every hire significantly impacts your company’s productivity and culture (and expenses!).

But when is the right time to hire?

Hire When You Need Tasks Completed That Will Generate Income

The best time to hire is when you need to get something done. If you’re looking for someone to help with a specific task, hire that person. 

If it won’t save or make money, don’t hire. For marketing, sales, or customer support, consider hiring someone immediately.

But hold off if you merely want to add an extra hand on deck or move forward with a new project with no immediate financial benefits. Instead, look into a more temporary solution, like outsourcing or subcontracting. 

Hire When You Need a Specific Skill Set Filled

If you need an expert, make the hire. An expert will be more efficient at it than anyone else could be.

If you need help with marketing, sales, design, engineering, or any other aspect of your business, hire someone who knows what they’re doing in that area. Don’t wait until your business is so large that you can afford multiple people with those specific skillsets — start hiring to begin growing your company.

Consider Contracting First; If That’s Not Enough, Then Hire

Contracting is often a smart alternative to hiring. While it might not be the right fit for every startup, it can be an excellent way to mitigate risk and get the right resources on board.

It’s especially great for startups when you want to hire someone without committing to a full-time position. It can be helpful if you don’t have enough work to justify hiring someone full-time or are unsure how long the staffing gap will last.

Where Does Your Recruitment Strategy Stand

A good recruitment strategy is essential for attracting suitable candidates and increases your chances of building a solid team. Before starting the hiring process, you must assess your current recruitment strategy.

Do you have an employer brand? An effective employer brand helps develop a positive image of your business in the minds of potential employees — before they even apply for a job with your company. 

Can you adequately demonstrate your company culture? A strong employer brand will give people an accurate picture of what it’s like working at your company.

Who is your ideal candidate? Knowing your perfect candidate makes it much easier to target them. When writing job descriptions or posting ads online, ensure that you clearly outline the skills required for the position. 

Can you promote from within? If you have employees who are doing a great job, promote them. It’s good for morale and gives them more experience before taking on more responsibilities. 

Where do you plan to find your top talent? It’s one of the most important questions you should ask yourself because it can help you better understand where your company sits on the hiring spectrum.  

You need to know these things before you start the hiring process. A company’s greatest resource is its people. And while it’s your job as a recruiter to find, attract and retain top talent, it can be challenging to know where to start.

What Does Your Startup Hiring System Look Like?

When building a team, you need a hiring system that makes sense. As a founder, you don’t have resources to waste on hiring mistakes.

Identify What You Need and Build a Job Description

Before looking for candidates, ensure you know what role they’ll be filling. Then write up a clear and concise job description. 

A good job description should include all the requirements for the position and highlight the skills and experience most important for success in the role. It will help attract suitable candidates and keep them engaged once they’ve joined the team.

Identify Benefits and Compensation

The benefits and compensation package is essential in attracting top talent. You must ensure that your salary and benefits offers are competitive with other companies in your industry and geographic location. 

Remember that it’s the whole package that counts. Benefits include health insurance, vacation/sick time, maternity or paternity leave, paid holidays, tuition reimbursement, and more! If you can’t afford top salaries yet, maybe you can bump up compensation in other areas.

Top talent wants to be sure they’ll receive fair compensation for their hard work and dedication.

Find Top Talent and Conduct Interviews

First things first — you need to find top talent for your company. It means evaluating resumes, contacting job postings, and handling interviews. Another way to find top talent is through referrals. 

Now that you’ve found candidates who might be a good fit for your team, it’s time to conduct interviews. This is where the rubber meets the road in determining whether someone will work well at your company.

Onboard as Efficiently as Possible

Onboarding is critical for building a solid company culture and retaining top talent. To get it right, you need to think about all aspects of what makes an employee feel welcome, supported, and productive. 

Hiring at Your Startup Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated!

When it comes to hiring, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Some essential considerations will help you make good hires at the right time, and many aspects of hiring are also financial. 

It costs time and money to search for candidates, conduct interviews, and complete the onboarding process. So it’s essential to prepare before you begin hiring.

Founder’s can help you with a smooth process for all your hiring needs. Contact us today to make sure you get your startup hiring right!