Here is one phrase that could save you thousands in ineffective hiring…

You can’t manage what you don’t measure.

Recently, Naomi Marshall and I hosted a ‘How to Hire Without Regret’ talk with fellow business owners at The Commons (which I took a total of zero photos of, great).

We went through the hiring process from start to finish, but one area struck a chord with the majority of Founders in the room.

Building out a newly created role / hiring your first employee.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but writing a job description never sparks joy. It’s another admin task that gets added to the to-do list.

You just want that person who ‘gets it’, who is ‘plug and play’, the saving grace to the variety of ever-changing tasks that you don’t have time to do but are required to keep the business moving forward.

There are incredible people who you will hire who will do that, BUT even so, you still have to give direction as a leader, and ultimately define success.

Your first step… writing a rock-solid job description. (Don’t you dare copy and paste from an old, dusty JD buried deep in the shared drive!!).

Our advice on what to explore in depth before you hit publish:

– What problems will this person solve? THE most important one – you’re paying someone to be a SOLUTION. So what do they need to remedy?
– Do you need a strategic thinker, a do-er, or both?
– What outcomes will define success in 30, 60 AND 90 days?Who will they collaborate with? Structure matters, and you need to be clear on this.
– What skills are must-haves vs nice to haves? Be realistic on this before you go ‘unicorn’ hunting. You’re unlikely going to identify someone who is a pro at accounts AND a marketing genius – they just don’t go hand in hand.

Don’t rush this homework. To build a role that sticks, you have to carve out the time. Future you (and your payroll bill) will thank you.

As we told our friends at The Commons, if you need help writing a JD that has clarity, structure and clear deliverables, we’ve got you. We’ve written hundreds and can help you nail it.