here are lots of factors that can influence whether or not your business succeeds. Most of these factors, however, ultimately boil down to good management. That means you need at least one good manager. In the beginning, this will probably be you. As your business grows, however, you will need to hire managers. Here are three tips to help.
Understand the different management roles
When people think about management, probably the first thought which comes to mind is people management. That’s understandable, after all, in any given business almost everyone will have a manager. The head of the company will almost certainly have had at least one manager in the past.
Products and services, however, also need to be managed. In smaller companies, one person can manage people, products, and/or services. As companies grow, however, it generally becomes more practical to split out these functions. It’s also, usually, very desirable to do so as they typically require different, albeit related, skill-sets.
Promote from within as much as possible
There may be some people who are born outstanding managers. For most people, however, management is learned. The learning process is usually a combination of formal education, mentoring, and experience.
Even for lower-level management positions in SMBs, it’s helpful for candidates to have some kind of formal education. This does not, however, have to mean a business-related degree let alone an MBA.
If you have a promising talent, then you can send them on a certification course to get up to speed on the academics. Their own manager should mentor them and experience literally comes with time. As an internal hire, they should already be familiar with the company and the people in it. This means that they can focus all their energy on learning their new role.
Recognize when you need to hire experience
Internal hires tend to need time to grow into their roles. If you need quick results, then an external hire is often your better, if not your only, option. External hires can also be a better choice if you’re going to be dealing with particularly challenging situations. Bringing in somebody with experience in a similar environment can be literally invaluable.
With that said, you still need to allow yourself plenty of time to find the right candidate. If you’re really against the clock, think about bringing in consultants or hiring someone on a fixed-term contract. This can be more expensive and potentially more disruptive than making a permanent hire. It is, however, vastly better than rushing into making the wrong permanent hire.
On similar logic, try starting your search by simply advertising the position on your website and your social media feeds. Anyone who takes the time to look at these should at least have some sort of interest in your company. If this doesn’t get you a result, then move on to advertising the job actively and/or using an agency.
Make sure that any serious contenders are introduced to the key stakeholders in your company and given the chance to interact with them in a meaningful way. Ideally, this should go beyond the standard interview environment. For example, you could give them a tour of the company or have a coffee session. These days, either could be done remotely if necessary.
(Cover Image: Pexels)