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Every entrepreneur knows that the team he or she builds is the backbone of the business
and that without great employees you can�t have a great business. But when you�re just
starting out or are a small business without the mounds of cash the titans have to attract
top talent, how do you find -and keep- the stars you need?
Firstly, you have to understand what motivates the type of people who would look for -and
thrive in - a job at a startup for small business to begin with. These people aren�t focused
on the money alone or they would be headed to the big corporations for a hefty paycheck
and whatever semblance of stability is left in the business world. Those who seek out
work with small businesses and startups want to make a difference, be a valuable part of
the team, and feel heard.
That means that all you have to do to attract and retain the top employees is to make sure
they have the opportunity to contribute fully to your business.
Firstly, you need to be building a business that will resonate with their world view.
Clearly you shouldn�t be looking at former PETA interns to fill a role in your new fur
coat business. When you�re recruiting, try to connect what your company�s mission is
with what the candidates� passions are, if possible.
Secondly, make sure that the roles you create for people will allow a certain level of autonomy
and a clear vision of how that role directly affects the success of the company - and make
sure candidates are aware of that. Everyone wants to feel important and a star employee
will appreciate being an integral part of a team as opposed to being a cog in another
company�s machine.
Thirdly, if you can�t show a clear advancement path that includes raises and title upgrades,
at least make sure you show the candidate and current employees how they can grow in
their positions through training and development, increased responsibilities and autonomy, and
hopefully some advancing level of compensation and or perks (even if it�s not a huge raise
every year). Nobody wants to get stuck in a rut so if you show employees and potential
employees that you care about their growth, they�re more likely to be loyal to you.
Also, make sure they see how their unique personality fits in with the rest of the team
- and make sure the rest of the team is awesome. People spend most of their waking hours at
work and nobody wants to hate their boss or coworkers, so if you�re careful with every
hire, the ones that come after will be just a tiny bit easier to recruit and retain because
they will see what a cool team they�re joining and know they�ll be able to have fun at
work every day.
And finally, remember that you may be able to reward employees with equity stakes or
profit sharing even if you can�t pay a top shelf base salary. Either option, but especially
equity, makes employees feel even more invested in the success of the company and an equity
stake in a startup gives employees the hope that their hard work for less than market
pay may eventually be rewarded with a big payday if your company is acquired or IPOs.
Remember, attracting and retaining star employees is about making them fulfilled both emotionally
and intellectually more so than keeping their bank accounts topped off so a business need
not be a large multinational to get
and keep top talent. www.CateCosta.com