I wholly understand the desperation and criticality of a start-up to not end-up being reckoned amongst those who hire and then fire. As a potential employee I need to appreciate the ‘risk’ and hence the inherent ‘expectation’ that an entrepreneur builds around his hiring decision. He is well aware of the fact that an individual’s contribution may not be more than 10% in total scheme of things yet he bets on falling into the trap to hire – hire in hope of being party to the ‘luck’ that may come with a potential recruit who has been ‘lucky’ in his past employment. Even if it’s all random, it’s more about cracking the code.
So all start-ups some wisdom on your business (of course only if it’s funded by the PEs):
a. They are to ‘milk’ your idea. Remember not to fall into trap of higher growth just because more money is available on table.
b. “Equity” is precious. Never offer it instantly to any new hire. It reflects that you value your own ‘idea’ (since it’s still not a sustainable business) far lower than the ‘pitch’ used to reach the target audience.
c. Remember the fact that ‘randomness’ is a fact and luck will play a significant role. If that’s what is accepted, choose to grow at a pace that is sustainable. After all firms gain ‘competitive advantage’ as function of time more than anything else.
So when out to hire, some caveats:
1. Try not to be an optimizer
2. Be careful on bias the causality may bring when reviewing the profiles and
3 Remember the inverse rule – no super heroes exist and if they do it’s only random
If you find me interesting, I will ATTEMPT to be rewarding as well 🙂
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