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The business world is volatile these days, with some (rare, and very lucky) companies shooting through the stratosphere to become multi-million pound companies – think of start-up ‘unicorns’, valued at a billion dollars before even getting their feet on the ground – while others struggle to get into five figures in their first five years of hard work. Obviously, it is the latter category that most businesses will fall into, so how can you acquire and develop the right levels of executive talent to form a resilient leadership team that can carry your fledgling company to the comfortable peaks of success and longevity? Let’s have a look.
Set Your Values
When you set about hiring people, take your time with the recruitment process. This will allow you to properly get to know the people who will be shepherding your team into the future. And greater proximity to your potential hires will allow you to get a sense of their natural values as well as express your own values, and to express your mission statement for the business. Try to observe your candidate in a situation where they are unaware that they are being assessed – many people will be on their ‘best behaviour’ for interviews and formal meetings – to get a picture of their natural selves. By being clear about your expectations of your employees and overtly stating company values, you will be able to put together a solid team of high-level employees who share your vision.
Choose Wisely – Then Trust
Once you’ve found your executives, put them in place with clear expectations of their jobs for the next six months, year and even a five-year plan that they can start working towards. And then let them get on with the job. After all, you are hiring them because you cannot do everything yourself, so trust your newly talent to fulfil their function. Nothing kills enthusiasm for an executive job than being micromanaged and second-guessed – so don’t do it! After all, you’ve probably used a high-quality recruiter, like Eagle executive headhunters, to find your perfect candidates, so let your new hires settle into the job and find their feet with grace and a good measure of trust.
Hire a Jester (sort of!)
Not literally, although a court fool might be a useful addition to the board! No, the reason kings of old kept jesters around despite their pun-heavy jokes and cheeky near-impertinence was because jesters were traditionally allowed to speak truth to power without fear of reprisal. Make sure your executive board is confident enough to contradict you if they can see pitfalls that you have not noticed. A boardroom full of yes-men will watch you drive your company into the ground and shrug and abandon ship without a flicker of conscience, whereas someone who knows their expertise is valued and who feels listened to will take strenuous steps to prevent missteps – and they will very often come up with new goals that avoid the snags and achieve the same (or better) aims as you were hoping.
Set Realistic Goals
Finally, do be realistic in your targets and goals. As mentioned in the introduction, companies soaring to riches in a short time are vanishingly rare, and those who achieve lofty heights and manage to stay there are even more so. Set achievable and reasonable KPIs, and be sure to praise your teams when these goals are achieved. Success seldom occurs overnight – but taking the long way to the top can make your eventual success all the sweeter!
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