When your business is growing fast
-- faster than you could ever possibly imagine -- it's likely that you will
consider bringing in
an expert who has "been there and done that" to help your
business go where you want it to go. But whether you are inventing something
completely new, creating a new business model or merely shaking up the status
quo (and aren't we entrepreneurs always trying to do that?), an expert from the
trenches of business-as-usual may not be the perfect fit for your company.
It's not that you don't need an
expert. Most growing businesses could benefit from a seasoned point of view.
But you need a very special kind of expert, someone willing to help you build
the business you want to build, not the one she thinks you should be building.
That kind of expert is not so easy to find.
To avoid making costly mistakes (and
I'm speaking from experience), here's what we try to do at my company, Lolly
Wolly Doodle:
Don't start with the title.
Old-fashioned job titles can send you down a rabbit hole. Even if you're sure you need a vice president of operations, you should identify the top three things that you want accomplished by the person sitting in that job. Be as specific as possible. Then, when the VP of operations from the big-box store down the road walks in for an interview and shares her experience with you, listen for those three things.
Old-fashioned job titles can send you down a rabbit hole. Even if you're sure you need a vice president of operations, you should identify the top three things that you want accomplished by the person sitting in that job. Be as specific as possible. Then, when the VP of operations from the big-box store down the road walks in for an interview and shares her experience with you, listen for those three things.
Prepare three scenarios and ask how
she would react to them. If she answers differently than you expect, don't
discount the expert right away, but explain how your company reacts and listen
carefully to how she responds. That will give you clues as to how her
experience might align with your needs.
Get granular.
If you're interviewing a candidate from a traditional top-down company for your new and growing business, don't gloss over the specifics of his experience. Startups require someone who is hands-on and flexible and who has been close to the ground recently enough to understand not only how to manage people and develop processes, but also how to roll up his sleeves and do it themselves.
If you're interviewing a candidate from a traditional top-down company for your new and growing business, don't gloss over the specifics of his experience. Startups require someone who is hands-on and flexible and who has been close to the ground recently enough to understand not only how to manage people and develop processes, but also how to roll up his sleeves and do it themselves.
If you're looking for an expert in
enterprise resource planning, ask each candidate how many systems he has
implemented. What went right and wrong? What was his specific role? You may be
in apparel, like Lolly Wolly Doodle, and the candidate may come from the
grocery business, but you may find that his experience dovetails with your
needs. You won't know unless you ask for specifics.
Don't compromise.
It's so easy to be dazzled by the promise of experience when you're determined to succeed. But tread carefully. A wrong hire can prove costly -- in time, in money and in business progress. Make sure the cultural fit is right. If you're gutsy and fast-paced, then your expert -- no matter whether he hails from a traditional role in corporate America or the startup in the office next door with the magnetic black walls and neon chalk -- better share your values and vision.
It's so easy to be dazzled by the promise of experience when you're determined to succeed. But tread carefully. A wrong hire can prove costly -- in time, in money and in business progress. Make sure the cultural fit is right. If you're gutsy and fast-paced, then your expert -- no matter whether he hails from a traditional role in corporate America or the startup in the office next door with the magnetic black walls and neon chalk -- better share your values and vision.
Know exactly what you need.
If we knew exactly what we needed, we might not have sought an expert in the first place, right? Well, not exactly. As someone who built a business from the ground up, I still feel the urge to do everything myself, but realistically I can't. So if you wind up hiring an expert who doesn't work out (and it's bound to happen at some point), reevaluate those top three things that you thought you needed in the first place.
If we knew exactly what we needed, we might not have sought an expert in the first place, right? Well, not exactly. As someone who built a business from the ground up, I still feel the urge to do everything myself, but realistically I can't. So if you wind up hiring an expert who doesn't work out (and it's bound to happen at some point), reevaluate those top three things that you thought you needed in the first place.
The best way to revamp that list is
to do the job yourself. If the person you hired was perfect on paper but didn't
work out, it may be that you didn't fully know what you needed. You probably
won't be able to do the job perfectly, which means you will quickly learn what
skills you are seeking to fill your knowledge gaps. After all, isn't filling
gaps in knowledge what working with an expert is all about?
The author is an Entrepreneur
contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.
Brandi Temple is the founder and CEO of Lolly Wolly Doodle, a social shopping innovator and leader in personalized children’s apparel and accessories. A mother of four and a first-time entrepreneur, Temple founded the Lexington, N.C.-based company in 2008. All Lolly Wolly Doodle clothes are designed, manufactured or customized in the U.S., creating new American manufacturing jobs.
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