Executive Search Firm


Hire Thoughts

Insights to help you build an extraordinary team.

A Simple Truth about Building a Company & Hiring

street-building-construction-industry-mediumHere is a simple truth: Great companies are comprised of great people.

If you hire, how often have you created your list of hiring criteria by first asking the question, “What is it that I want my company to be known for?” (or department, or team, or nonprofit…)

What is your definition of a great company? You can change the words in the above statement: Innovative companies are comprised of innovative people. Customer-focused companies are comprised of customer-focused people. And so on…

What are the descriptors that you want to be evident about your company? Do these same descriptors show up in your job requirements? Do you interview for these attributes?

After an interview with one of my clients last week, the candidate commented, “I was really impressed with the quality of the team. If these top-notch people who obviously could choose where they want to work, made the choice to work here, this tells me a lot.”

The core team and the leadership team that you hire will determine the quality of subsequent hires, in other words, who is attracted to your company, and as a result, the culture you create, and your company’s identity.

The smaller your team, the more profound the influence of each hire.

Regardless of company size, the higher up in the organization a leader is, the more this person will influence what your company becomes, especially as this person begins to hire.

Building a team requires careful architecture. Create a blueprint early on that includes the attributes and qualities that you will look for in hires. This should be in direct correlation to the vision you have for your company.

Donna White

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