.

Hiring is one of those activities which is, and will always be, core to a business regardless of its size, location, sector or vertical. Businesses need great people in order to succeed and this resonates every step of the way. You often hear large companies like Google talk about the importance they place on hiring the best teams, and nowadays there has been a significant shift from hiring “employees” to hiring “team members”.

The truth is that we are in an age where individuals can choose to work for the companies they love and do a job that they thoroughly enjoy. This goes beyond the job description, as more and more importance is being placed on company culture, the management team, career growth and a clear fit with the values that a company holds.

As a founder of a small startup, you may find the thought of hiring the best team daunting. You may be in a situation where you need to hire a strong team in order to grow fast, but are not sure if you will be able to raise your next financing round. Or, you may be working out of your living room, not sure yet that you want to or can have a physical office space with a foosball table and unlimited snacks in a state of the art kitchen. So, how can you compete with the big guys? Having met with over 250 startups at different stages, these are the five core principles that I believe will allow you to compete with tech giants:

#1 Decide on and believe in your company culture

Personally, I believe this is of utmost importance. There is no point in selling the idea of a culture that you put in place just to have a “cool” culture. The culture needs to be reflected in everything you do, both personally and professionally. The most believable cultures I have come across are those where a founding team has come together and outlined a culture that is a reflection of themselves. Ultimately, you will need to identify with your company’s culture in order to act in a way that is representative of it for the rest of its existence, so make sure it is a combination of your and your co-founders beliefs and values.

#2 Hire people smarter than you

This may sound very cliché, but it is in fact very true. It is not so much about a colleague’s IQ, but more about their ability to challenge you. Challenging one another fosters creativity and innovation. Being able to have that on every team in your business means that everyone will always be looking to reach for more and constant improvement.

#3 Only consider candidates who love your business as much as you do

Easier said than done, right? As the founder of your business, you know what it means to be passionate about the product, service or technology you are building. Try to find a similar passion in the new additions to your team. Within the spectrum of technical hires, this is somewhat easier to identify. An interesting technical challenge will often be a great selling point when hiring developers. On the flip side, if you hire business profiles, try to identify a passion of theirs which is in line with either their specific role, or something they have done in the past or do in their spare time.

Hire the top 10 % of sales & marketing professionals. Skip recruitment agencies. Save 500 % on fees. Learn more

#4 Maintain a standard on the management team:

This is my favourite principle. A startup, due to the open environment and collaborative approach, is often similar to a family. As a result of this, I tend to compare the management team in a startup to the parents in a family. Unlike with parents however, the management team can change over time, and it is of utmost importance to maintain a standard in order to avoid putting stress on the rest of the team. This includes maintaining a steady flow of transparency, answering your team’s questions openly and hiring execs who your team approves of. There is nothing worse than your team disagreeing with an executive hire. This will just cause unhappiness and a lack of productivity amongst your team, so make sure to hire a “parent” who your team can learn from and respect.

#5 Reward your employees with flexibility and responsibility:

In most cases you probably won’t be able to pay above-average salaries during the early stages of your business, but this shouldn’t stop you from hiring the best talent. Think about the things that would make you happy and feel accomplished outside of your salary. Startup employees like to feel that you trust them to grow your business alongside you. Allowing them to organize their own schedule and work at their own pace makes them feel that they are trusted and will often lead to them being more productive.

Even having them take on a project which is 100% theirs will intrinsically motivate them to achieve more! A team outing or team building activities also do the trick, allowing your team to bond with one another and the management team in a laid-back manner, bringing them closer to the company’s goals. Having said this, underpaid employees will never be motivated because despite them spending a lot of time at work, they need to be able to enjoy their life outside of work!

To wrap things up, the size of your business should not stop you from hiring the best talent around. The same way you meet people on a personal level who share similar interests, values and beliefs, you will meet individuals who professionally are looking for a similar challenge and experience to you. Being able to relate to your team is super important, so try to hire those people you would enjoy having a beer with, but could also have a heated conversation with, challenging the status quo!

by Chiara Massironi. Chiara Massironi ([email protected]) has been working within the startup eco­system for several years. She is currently on the SendGrid Community Development Team for the EMEA region where she provides mentorship and support to startups. Previously in the startup recruiting space, Chiara visited over 200 European tech companies and was responsible for the UK market in her previous company, source{d}.

SendGrid has developed a cloud based service that solves the challenge of email delivery by delivering emails on behalf of companies. SendGrid’s Accelerate Program has been specially crafted for top tier startups, accelerators, VCs and incubators. As a dedicated team of business and technical experts that live and breathe startups, the SendGrid Community Development Team is here to help founders and their companies grow faster and smarter by providing comprehensive support, networking, and resources including access to SendGrid’s world class email deliverability platform and engagement tool.

Looking to discover non-tech startup job opportunities, or hire startup talent without recruitment agencies? 

Join leading startups like Uber, GoCardless, Yieldify and more.