There’s another way to approach business: one which involves finding the right team of self-sufficient, capable individuals to help you grow and scale your company. In a recent Success Story interview, I spoke to someone who’s managed to achieve this many times over. Charlie Feng is the co-founder of Clearco, which you may recognize as one of the leading startups in Canada.
Why make yourself redundant?
If the team no longer needs you in order to function, or even to excel, then you’ve done something wrong
- It’s critical to hire yourself out of a job to scale your startup
- You are the only one with expert knowledge in your field
When should you build your dream team?
Focus on your first 10 hires, and make them the best of the best
- Cast a wide net
- Use social media wisely
- Get personal
- Follow up
- Success indicators to look for
- Your team has all of the key roles filled
- The team is performing well and meeting or exceeding goals
- You feel confident enough in the team to take a step back
Final thoughts on team building to scale
With the right attitude and hard work, you’ll be able to find and assemble the perfect team for your startup.
- Building a startup is hard. It takes time, effort, and a lot of blood, sweat and tears. But it’s also one of the most rewarding experiences in life.
Charlie Feng’s team building magic
Co-founder of Clearco, aims at democratizing access to capital through the use of AI
- Helps turn every team into a high-functioning, cohesive unit
- Shares his team building know-how and advice
Strategic team building: hire yourself out of a job
Find people who complement you
- Clashes between personalities can derail progress, so it is important to find individuals who share your vision and are able to work productively together
- Don’t disregard similarities
- Hire the people you would want to work for
- Diversity is the inclusion of people who are different from you, and it’s the understanding that a team with different backgrounds, ideologies, and experiences will always be more successful
