Series: Tech startup success – Part II: How to build a great team

Welcome to this week’s instalment of our entrepreneurial series. Today, in part two of our four-part series, we’re looking at how to build a winning team. 
Teamwork truly makes the dreamwork. You may have a great, proven offering, but without an equally great team to execute delivery, it counts for little. 
So, how do you build that team? Is it just a case of finding the right hires? Or is training and process more important? Perhaps a team is just a reflection of its leader? In truth, great teamwork is about all these factors and more.

Let’s take a look below at some of the key considerations.

• Make the right hires: Finding, hiring, and training a new recruit takes considerable time and resource. Getting it wrong can be catastrophic for a new business. The key is to put in the groundwork long before you reach the interview stage. Take the time to iron out the job description and build a clear profile of the skills and personality type that the role requires.
• Find out what makes them tick: A happy and engaged team is often more productive. But not everyone is motivated in the same way. Some may be driven by money, others by responsibility or work-life balance. To make sure you always get the best from your team, you need to find their motivators and incentivise them individually.
• Lead by example: The days of “Do as I say, not as I do” are long gone. When you lead by example, you make it easier for others to follow. If your people can see you working hard and getting results, they’ll be more inclined to do the same.
• Perfect your process: Process is the glue that holds a great team together. You may have found some great individuals, but with a rock-solid process, they can become much more than the sum of their parts. Put clear workflows in place to make sure everyone understands the part they play in your success.
• Build for the future: What if we train them and they leave? What if we don’t and they stay! It’s something of a cliché, but with good reason. Just as your business never stands still, neither should your employees. Ensure they are continuously learning new skills, individually and together, so yours is always the team to beat.