Nearly 80% of all new startups cease to exist within 2 years of starting operations. In some cases, this is due to poor planning or a lack of resources, but in many cases, it is because of a lack of expertise on the part of the owner. Some of the biggest companies in the world have been successful because of the people behind the brand new what they were doing. Here is how you can get good human resources into your SME or startup and significantly improve the chances of your success.
Passion
While skills and experience are both important elements, the one thing you can’t quantify is passion, and it is the most important thing you want to see in your employees. The most successful businesses in the world are born out of passion, and the top entrepreneurs indicate that the level of passion you have will determine how long you will be willing to stay in the game. This is just as important for your team members as it is for you. A person with a certain degree of passion for their work will strive to go above and beyond their job requirements. When you have an entire team working in this way, not only do you get a lot more done, you get much higher quality results.
Existing Relationships
You may already have friends or acquaintances in the industry, and these people know other people. Just because your business is small doesn’t mean you should shy away from inviting people to work with you. It’s not always about the money, and SMEs attract talent because they give employees more room to be who they are and really make a name for themselves through their accomplishments. Get in touch with the people you know and ask them to get the right people in touch with you. Many will be happy to share their knowledge and contacts with you.
24-Hour Shadow
Back in the day, people would work under a superior for many months to learn the ropes and improve their skills. Today, we don't have months, but you can still get new recruits to shadow your employees for at least 24 hours. This is the best way to show new recruits what the job requires and to get them up to speed with how things happen in your organization. This will help speed up the filtering process and will eliminate less effective training programs.
Freelancers
Everything doesn't have to be in-house. You can easily find freelancers online who will be willing to work with you either full-time or on a per-project basis. This will save both time and money, and you are no longer restricted to only hiring from local talent. You get to choose from people residing all over the world. If you find someone particularly useful, you could get them to join in a full-time role later on.
Getting the right people is challenging even for the biggest companies in the world. If you are facing problems in this department, keep at it till you find the right person. Don’t hire someone that you harbor any misgivings about because this will impact the quality of your operations and will compromise the business itself. Commit some more time to the search and be willing to spend a little extra if you must, but do ensure you get the best people for the job.