Article: Here’s a guide for startups seeking to build a great team

Culture

Here’s a guide for startups seeking to build a great team

Having a great team is one of the critical factors considered by investors. Identifying business needs and setting the organizational and work culture are imperative for building a great team.
Here’s a guide for startups seeking to build a great team

One of the critical factors that investors consider before investing in a startup is the strength of the team. Employees that add value to the venture are one of the strongest anchors driving the success of startup organizations. A great team that realizes and is passionate about the idea will stick with the company in its startup journey through thick and thin.  Patrick Henry, Founder & CEO of QuestFusion, aptly highlights the importance of great teams by saying that, ‘It’s a group of people brought together to compete with the goal of winning a competition.’ He uses a sports analogy to explain the dynamics of the great team. A team which is working towards a common goal irrespective of their roles and positions in the organization/team propels the business efficiently towards success by accomplishing successful tasks collaboratively.        

Identify the roles that will add value

It is essential for startups to identify the roles that will add value or are of utmost importance depending on the size and life-cycle stage of the startup. Hiring for roles that are need of the hour is critical for both cost-saving purposes and building the human resources in the organization. Excessive recruitment or not hiring for the positions that need to be filled will imbalance the functioning of the organization. Founders must keep a keen eye on the positions and roles that ensure smooth functioning of the business. 

Hiring vs. Freelancing

Most of the times startups operate on cut-throat margins. Hence, it is vital to evaluate whether recruitment or freelancing is most effective. Besides cost-efficiencies, it will also affect the functioning of the organization as hiring defines the importance and time spent on core functions of the organizations. According to conventional rules, full-time employees are hired for core functions and freelancers for other parallel roles. But these days, hiring and freelancing are also dependent on the intensity of each task. For example, a consultancy business which needs deployment of heavy technology might be able to get full-time tech employees and can get consultants on a contract basis. 

Define the culture

According to a research document published by Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), employee turnover due to poor cultural fit can cost a company between 50-60% of a person’s annual salary. Organizations need to decide whether they want to build a ‘fit-in’ culture by getting people with similar values and mindset or ‘add-in’ culture by getting individuals with different perspectives, ethnicity, and background. Founders must define the culture based on organizations values and mission. A culture either ‘fit-in’ or ‘add-in’ must add value to the overall goals of the organization. This will not only make the organization more potent but will also help the employees to decide whether or not they can align their values with that of organization and its culture.

Hire the passionate ones

Hire only those who believe in your idea because to sell the idea to others they must themselves believe in it. Getting employees who understand and are passionate about your idea as much as you are will motivate you to work even harder towards your goals. People who are passionate will not only work with all their dedication but will also bring enthusiastic energy to the organization. 

Give the right care

From interviewing to hiring, all the interactions with the candidate will give him/her a glimpse of the organization’s culture and its values. Induction after hiring is also one of the most important phases for the employee to get acquainted with the founders, their perspectives and startups’ mission and goals. The initial phase of bringing the employee on-board from interviewing to induction mirrors his/her journey in the organization during later stages. For example, induction program which emphasizes not only the organizational dynamics but also on knowing the employee’s personal and professional goals will assure him that his goals will be taken into consideration while assigning him/her particular role or project in future.  

Define organizational goals

Defining your values, goals, and practices will set a clear picture of the organization and will help both the employer and the employee while making a hiring decision. It will also help prospective hires assess whether their individual goals align with that of the organizations. Along with values and goals, it is also important to define the scope of work and give a precise job description for all the positions. 

Give employees liberty to innovate and create

One of the crucial parameters considered by high-flying corporate employees while making a transition from MNC to a startup is the autonomy that comes with it. Innovation and improvisation being the key drivers of any startup business, employees get enough autonomy to be creative and bring to life new ideas and innovations. It is imperative for the founders to understand that to bring out the creativity there needs to be a free-flow of thoughts and ideas, and hence, micro-managing might only lead to substandard quality of work. 

Though building a great team is not rocket science, but it is one of the most important factors that determine the success of the startup. By keeping in mind, some of the critical parameters businesses can build their dream team and harness its true potential to make that startup dream come true.

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Topics: Culture, Diversity

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