Your startup’s first hire is always special. There are a
couple of reasons for that.
First Experience of
Hiring – Since this is the first time you are hiring someone, it makes you
feel nervous and you tend to more careful and cautious.
For the Long Run –
The first hires have two things attached to them – they are generally hired for
a very particular skill set and are generally hired for the long run. An
entrepreneur hopes to find someone who can stay with the company in the long
run and can maybe lead the team around the skill set he/she was hired for.
Based on the importance of the first hire which we can gauge
from the points above, I suggest that every entrepreneur should look for the
following qualities in this person.
Passion – You don’t
need an MBA degree or 5+ years of experience at this stage, you need passion to
match yours.
Belief in Concept
– Only a person who believes in the business idea as much as you do will want
to be part of the company for the long run.
Strong Skill Set –
Since that first hire will have to do a lot of the skill based stuff
himself/herself, having a strong skill set is a must. Until the startup can
afford to put together a team, this person will have to drive this part of the
business.
Hiring
the right people is a key factor which affects a startup’s growth. Hiring the
first few people is even more critical and an entrepreneur must not hurry up
and think it through before doing so.
