Navigating Hiring

Hiring isn’t just about filling positions, it’s about building a winning team that aligns with your vision, culture, and work ethic. Whether you're growing to a team of two or a team of 200, the importance of how and who you hire cannot be understated.

Today, I'm talking about what Trent and I have learned throughout the years of growing teams.

Make sure there is a solid job description for every role

Building a great team often starts with clarity. Every role needs a solid job description, not just for the people you’re hiring but also for the people they’ll be working with.

Founders often forget to write down their own job description. Founders can wear a lot of hats - all the more reason to create clarity (and boundaries) to avoid confusion, overlap, and frustration.

Beyond the Desk

​Lululemon founder Chip Wilson brings potential new business partners and hires to a 90-minute Grouse Grind hike in Vancouver at 7am. It’s a litmus test for gauging their physical fitness, mental resilience, and overall compatibility with his company's culture. Observing individuals in an uncomfortable setting reveals qualities that traditional interviews might not.

I usually do something less extreme, much like Steve Jobs and take people for a walk. You learn a lot more about people in tandem motion, than you do with a face-to-face dynamic.

Cut Bait When Needed

Most areas around the world have a probation period for new hires, use it to your advantage. Figure out what the probation policy is and don’t hesitate to cut bait if someone isn’t the right fit. You have to learn how to fire fast - it’s better for everyone involved, I promise.

Even if someone is crushing their numbers, but wrecking the culture, they have to go. Gary Vee talks about the overall effect on other people working with somebody they don’t like regardless of individual success. Culture over everything. No exceptions. A rising tide raises ALL ships.

Know What You Can Afford

Hiring gig workers, consultants, or full-time employees? You need to be crystal clear on costs. It’s not just about salary, it’s about:

• Employment Insurance

• Statutory & Vacation Pay

• Health Benefits

• Paying someone/software for payroll management

• 
  

If a hire takes two years to generate ROI, is that sustainable? Know your numbers and which roles need to contribute directly to the bottom line. You may want to have freelance help to keep costs flexible while growing as it avoids the burden costs above.

Put It in Writing

We always have a detailed employment agreement and an employee handbook, which covers everything such as what happens if a family member gets sick. No ambiguity. No second-guessing, or making tough decisions on the fly. Employees know what to expect and have something to refer to. It also builds culture because policies reflect a company’s values.

Great Hires bring more than just their Ability

We didn’t understand this concept early on, but when you hire amazing people, they also usually have amazing networks that end up being exposed to your company. They also have perspectives, ideas, and abilities that the founding team might not have. Look for those extra benefits of the great people you are interviewing.

Work Ethic Usually Wins

As an owner or founder you’re usually going to be the hardest-working person at your company. Nobody is going to care as much as you do about this thing you created.

Trying to find hard working people, and aligning those people with the right incentives is a key to getting them to match the intensity that you’re going to need early on.

Hold People Accountable

Set Clear Deadlines: When someone commits to delivering something, have them set their own deadline, then hold them accountable. This builds a culture of ownership early on.

Stay in Your Lane: People should be accountable for the job they were hired to do. Avoid silo drift. If you hire a marketing lead, ensure they’re focused on marketing, not getting pulled into sales or product.

• Silo drift kills ROI on employees.

• It muddies performance evaluation, you can't measure effectiveness if the role keeps shifting.

• Come back to clarity and refine the Job Description if it turns out their roll wasn't properly defined

Fair but Pragmatic Hiring with Family

Always recruit fairly, but you don’t have to be afraid to hire friends and family if they are truly the best candidate. The only requirement we learned for hiring is to always cast the net to see who’s out there. If they turn out to be the best candidate and are a good fit, then go for it (with the equal professionalism you would give a stranger).

The bottom line is to hire for culture, recruit for values, and always bet on people who show up ready to run.

We love unique interview experiences and questions (the good ones that is) - let us know in the comments if you've had or heard of an effective interview tactic that our audience would appreciate!