Partners, Recruits and Early Hires

Part C: Prepare the Business to Launch

At RedKnight, one of our core beliefs is that we hire people, not resumes. It is more important that someone fits the company and its culture than that they arrive with every skill on the list. Skills can be taught. Training someone to work within the norms of a company is not always possible. Bring a lone wolf into a team that works collaboratively and it will not end well, no matter how talented the wolf.

This applies far beyond employees. Whether you are forming a partnership, formal or informal, hiring your first person, or contracting a subcontractor or professional, the question is the same. What can they do, and will they fit how this business works and where it is going?

They need to believe what you believe

The first few people you bring into a business shape it more than you will. Your customers will meet them more than they meet you. Your image, which we spent earlier lessons on, will be carried by them. So the people you pick need to believe what you believe about how customers are treated, what quality means, and what the business is for. They also need to understand what you are trying to accomplish, not just the task in front of them.

Here is the distinction I want you to hold. Diversity of skill, temperament and background is a strength. If you are a big picture person, a detail-oriented assistant is ideal. But diversity of values is not a strength. Someone who works counter to the culture will damage both the culture and the brand, because in a small business those two are the same thing.

Ask open questions and listen

You can find out more about someone than you might think by asking simple, open-ended questions and then actually listening. Here are some we use. Why would you like to work with us? Tell me about a work environment where you were comfortable and did your best work. What would you do if a customer tried to return a product they had obviously damaged themselves? Tell me about a project you completed on your own that you considered successful, or, if your culture is team-based, one you completed with others. What have you done in the past when a deadline was clearly not going to be met?

Write your own too. The questions matter less than what you hear. Listen for what is important to the other person. When they describe the environment where they excelled, does it sound like your business? When they handle the damaged return, do they reach for the rule or for the relationship, and which one do you want? If their answer is unclear, ask for more detail. Ask for the story behind the answer. Time spent doing a good interview saves you time and money for years.

In general, if the person answers in a way that lines up with how things get done in your business, they are likely to fit. If their answers keep pulling against it, no amount of skill will fix that.

Partners deserve the same interview

Owners interview employees and skip interviewing partners, because partners are usually friends. That is backwards. A partner has more influence on your business than any employee, and the questions above apply with even more weight. Why do you want to do this? What does success look like to you in five years? What would you do if we disagreed about a large client? Put the answers in writing, and if they differ meaningfully from yours, resolve it before you sign anything, not after.

The same goes for subcontractors and vendors who touch your customers. The installer who shows up in your name is your brand for that afternoon. Interview them like it. And when you are deciding whether a helper should be an employee, a contractor or an outside firm, Hiring Versus Contracting Versus Outsourcing, later in Track 4, walks through the choice.

Your next step

Write down, in one paragraph, what you believe about how a customer should be treated in your business. Then write five open questions that would reveal whether someone else shares that belief without you telling them the answer first. Keep them, and use them on every person you bring in, including the partner you have already half agreed with.

What it costs

Two to four hours per candidate, including a real conversation rather than a quick coffee. It is free. Skipping it costs you a bad hire or a bad partnership, which in a small business can take a year to recover from.

If your partner answered the five questions right now, how sure are you of what they would say?