At the start of the year I met a business owner who told me “Most importantly, I just want to be sure that we’re getting the ‘people bit’ of this business right”.
What a great way to approach business; after all it really is all about the people…the people you employ, the people you buy from, the people you sell to, the people you enter into agreements (or disagreements!) with….
Its a big step for many business owners to take the leap into becoming an employer. There are fundamental questions to ask and answer: what / who do I need, who would be the best type of person to work here, what do I want them to do, how am I going to find them, how will I know they are the right person, how can I trust them, if they are as good as I hope how do I keep them and how do I deal with any problems along the way?
I have heard many business owners say they would rather not grow the business if it means taking on staff and if people have had bad experiences with poor employees I can understand why they might feel that way, but it isn’t going to help generate the kind of success or wealth that many of those same business owners aspire to.
So what to do? Well be like my client who wants to get the “people bit right” and focus on answering those questions before you even place a card in the window to say “staff wanted”.
Get the fundamentals sorted first – once you have a clear vision for employing staff, a solid objective about who to employ, a robust set of policies and procedures to manage those employees, strong leadership to ensure those employees are working towards your business success and the desire to really grow your business, then you stand a pretty good chance of getting the people bit right!
As for my business owner client – he’s doing a great job!