Original post by the Mullings Group
Written by: Joe Mullings
Your emerging company is growing.
You are excited and you should be.
To accommodate the growth, you need to bring on more people.
Especially leadership.
Here is where first-timers or those that do not learn from the past put their business at risk when selecting their leadership team.
Be thoughtful:
…To not hire a person just because they are familiar to you. They tend to index towards an echo-chamber and at times you will want a contrarian.
…In giving a title that has not been earned, either in your organization or an analog to your business. You create an instant log jam of progression of greater talent than what you have just hired. And if you think that the person you just hired is “the answer”, you will find out quickly that they are not.
…Not to dismiss the importance of life experience, maturity, and demonstrated perseverance. Youth is great, but we are way more of what we do not know.
…Of a short interview process. Especially if you knew the person from your outer circle, industry meetings and social experience. People are often quite different than you had imagined once they are in your foxhole.
…And seriously ask yourself if you would feel 100% comfortable if you would have that person spend a full business day and dinner one-on-one with your best client.
Violating these can cost you employees, business opportunities, time, remediation of poor performers, and reputation.
Sharing these as missteps I have made in building businesses and as a person who has watched leaders and organizations rush to build their executive leadership teams and learn the hard way.