Attracting and hiring new talent is a challenge that all businesses face, but it can be especially trying for startups. New to their respective markets, these entrepreneurs often lack the extensive connections, credibility in their field, and ample funding enjoyed by established competitors. With many new companies failing in the first year of operations, they cannot offer the same job stability to potential job candidates either. These deficits make the hiring process more complicated and time-consuming.
For a startup owner who may have little or no experience hiring executives, partnering with an executive search firm to find the best candidate for your growing business can be well worth the investment.
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New Territory
Embarking on the path to starting your own business guarantees unforeseen bumps, turns, and twists in the road. Encountering problems you don’t understand will challenge you to acquire new skills. These obstacles are opportunities to roll up your sleeves and get to work. While your company is growing, you may be required to wear many different hats managing advertising, marketing, finances, operations, and inventory.
Hiring executives for your startup is an entirely different arena. Without previous experience, positive or negative, you may not have a frame of reference for the task. You may sense that it is time to bring on a leader to help grow your rapidly expanding business but may fumble with the specifics of what your company needs. The wrong hire at the wrong time can have disastrous results, slowing or even reversing your momentum. Just as you would not venture to rewire your office space without consulting an electrician, you will get better results hiring an executive if you call an expert to assist in the process.
Experience
Search firms bring years of knowledge and skills to the table. After thoroughly analyzing your company’s unique background and considering your goals and vision for the future, they can assist you in defining the essential skills and knowledge for your executive position. Because executive positions typically have higher salaries attached to them, many candidates may apply, but some may not be qualified or aligned with your business. Not only do executive recruiters know what to look for in a candidate, but they can narrow down the applications to the strongest candidates, saving you time sorting qualifying and quantifying. Search firms are experts in vetting candidates for all types of leadership positions.
Pivotal Decisions
Hiring the wrong candidate for any position is a costly decision. The time you spend advertising, interviewing, and training new hires is time you could devote to other areas of your business pursuits. Additionally, poor executive performance can negatively impact employee productivity, decrease revenue, and damage the reputation you are working hard to establish. This decision can make or break your burgeoning business.
The connections and contacts that businesses build over the years cannot be duplicated overnight. In the beginning, your contacts may be limited to those within your local geographical area, and there is a decent chance they know or work for your competition. Because the top performers in any field are usually employed, they may not be available when you are looking to hire. You may have to wait until they are willing to consider a change. Even then, you will have to compete with others if you want to win them over.
Partnering with an executive recruiter immediately extends your search radius and expands the candidate pool. They have a wide range of contacts in different geographical areas, markets, and areas of expertise, bringing options that you may otherwise have overlooked or thought out of reach. These expanded efforts can help identify and attract executives with a proven track record that will not only fit in your organization and make an impact, but will instill confidence in your investors, allowing you to secure continued funding for your venture.
Focus
Hiring a talented executive search company to assist in hiring executives allows you to focus your attention on the aspects of your business that are essential to attracting top talent. For candidates currently employed in a stable position at an established company, you must show them the benefits of vacating that position to join your startup. Will your mission accomplish great things in the world? Will their work be cutting edge? Do you offer fantastic career-building opportunities for employees? While you may not be able to compete with larger corporations in terms of compensation or a proven track record, focus on what you have to offer that is unique. An executive search recruiter can help identify your strong suits in comparison to the competition and showcase those to potential executives.
Hiring your first executives is a crucial moment in the life of your startup. These executives will be instrumental in taking your product and your vision and transforming them into a prosperous business. Your company’s performance in the coming years depends on hiring the right executives with the right skills. Partnering with the experts at Diestel can help deliver leadership talent to drive your business to the path of success.
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As a startup business, it is a challenge to attract and hire new talents. It is especially true when the entrepreneur lacks credibility, extensive connections, and enough funding. There is also no assurance of job stability since many new companies often fail in their first year of operations. One thing that can help is partnering with an executive search firm.
