Fill Your Roster

Chapter Four, “Fill Your Roster,” in “Unlocking Scale” explores the intricacies of hiring for startups and growing businesses. The authors offer insights into when, how, and who to hire, emphasizing that hiring should be a strategic decision, not a quick fix for problems.

Key takeaways from the chapter include:

1. The Importance of Hiring Right: Hiring is underscored as a crucial leverage point in any business stage, but it’s also time-consuming, resource-intensive, and risky. The authors caution against hiring too quickly or relying excessively on specialists.

2. Start with Generalists: Early in a business, hiring generalists, or ‘comb-shaped’ people, is advised. These are individuals with broad skills and adaptability, capable of handling various tasks, as opposed to specialists who have deep knowledge in one area.

3. Hiring is Not a Silver Bullet: The chapter warns against seeing hiring as a solution to all problems. New hires can add complexity and cost, and it’s important to ensure they align with the company’s needs and culture.

4. Efficiency Before Expansion: Emphasis is placed on improving efficiency before considering expansion through hiring. Efficiency can be enhanced by streamlining processes, leveraging technology, and maximizing the potential of existing team members.

5. Avoiding the Death Spiral: The authors describe the ‘death spiral’ of startups as a result of inefficient hiring and expansion without corresponding growth. They advise focusing on creating revenue and efficiency first, then hiring to sustain and enhance growth.

6. Identifying the Need to Hire: Hiring should occur when the workload becomes unmanageable for the existing team and when the new hire can bring in more value than their cost.

7. Try Before You Buy: The concept of initially bringing in potential hires as contractors to evaluate their fit and contribution is recommended. This approach mitigates the risks associated with full-time hiring.

8. Resist the Lemming Hire: Founders are cautioned against following trends blindly, especially in hiring. The focus should be on the specific needs of the business, not on what others are doing.

9. The Right Time to Hire: The chapter outlines conditions to meet before hiring, such as existing team members being at full capacity, and ensuring the new hire can bring in significant value.

10. Exercise for Evaluation: An exercise is proposed to help founders assess their team’s views on deficiencies and inefficiencies in the business, aiding in identifying where hiring is genuinely needed.

In summary, “Fill Your Roster” emphasizes strategic hiring, advocating for generalists in early stages and cautioning against rapid expansion without corresponding growth. The authors promote efficiency and a thorough evaluation of business needs before adding new team members.