A startup refers to a company in its early stages of operations. The business is initiated by one or more entrepreneurs with a business model rooted in innovation. Startups look for potential significant business opportunities in solving the deficiencies of existing products or developing a new category of product, service or platform which they believe has a market demand and will make an impact. This is the reason why they are called “disruptors” within their respective industries.
Asia, particularly Southeast Asia, is an emerging market for tech startups. According to Jungle Ventures, a venture capital firm, technology startups in Southeast Asia were valued at $340 billion in 2020 and are expected to grow triple by 2025. It’s an exciting time to invest in Asian startups because of the huge potential for growth and opportunity.
Growing a startup team that fulfils your expectations is a dream come true for any employer. Hiring your first employees is an important milestone that can make or break your business. Why? Because each individual in the team needs to align with the culture and values you’ve set-up in order to have a work environment that’s positively stimulating and will increase productivity levels.
Startup Hiring Guide
Setting up a new company is already a challenge itself especially if there are only a few of you, or it’s solely you who’s fulfilling all the roles in the initial stages to get the business started. What many startup founders later realise is that the hiring process is an entirely different department that requires the capability of knowing where to find the right and top talents that the business needs.
Here are six startup recruitment solutions that will help your business hire the right talent:
Identify your hiring needs
What are your business goals and objectives? How do you see the business growing in the future? These are some of the important questions to ask yourself and your co-founders to help identify the job roles you need to build the business. Make a hiring plan that includes the following:
- Timeline – Determine the time it will take to recruit staff.
- Budget – Factor in the salaries, benefits and compensation as well as the additional fees for hiring tools and platforms, agency and referrals.
- Resources and tools – Look for the tools and technologies that will help you hire efficiently such as investing in HR software that helps in automating manual tasks.
Develop a hiring process
Every startup begins with their own network. The better network you have, the easier it is to get your message across your entire contacts that you’re looking for talents to help grow your business. It’s all about the relationship you’ve built within your network – friends, colleagues, ex-colleagues and even your former bosses and mentors. Next, involve your team in the interview process in order to assess the candidates better. Conduct effective interviews by giving candidates an assignment to check their experience. Verify their information, qualification and work ethics through background checks. Look for creative ways to recruit talents such as creating an employee referral program with incentives to motivate your first employees to bring people into your network
Hiring an on-demand recruitment service helps
Expect that you’ll need to expand your recruitment process as your business grows especially if you’re planning to expand internationally. Hiring an on-demand recruitment service that knows how to navigate the competitive talent market can help you find the best potential candidate that you need for a certain job role.
Offer competitive benefits
Startups have a limited budget but it’s also best to consider that having a market-competitive salary will truly attract top candidates. One of the perks that many candidates are looking for are flexible working hours and remote work. Providing perks are cost-effective but make sure that you’re offering traditional benefits such as health insurance that’s one of the top considerations among jobseekers.
Have a well-defined onboarding process
An effective onboarding process helps employees learn about the business culture and process that’ll inspire them to make an impact. Have a clear definition of the company culture and help employees map their career plan within the company through training and development. Moreover, communicate your feedback with clarity regarding their performance and encourage a collaborative work environment.
Create a positive company culture
Building a positive company culture inspires employees to engage more and collaborate, building a culture of teamwork. Employees feel valued in the company and find purpose in their work, which improves their performance and productivity levels. According to a study by Gallup Organization, disengaged employees led to 16% lower profitability, 37% lower job growth and 18% lower productivity. Keep your company’s retention rate higher just by building a positive work environment that begins with startup leadership. Be aware of how you and your co-founders’ managerial style and interaction with your employees impacts them.
CXC is a global HR outsourcing organisation with 30 years of experience in workforce management. Our innovative and cost-effective solutions help companies gain a competitive advantage by improving efficiency while reducing risks.
Contact CXC today to start enabling your future workforce.
