What is an entrepreneurs most important talent?

Much has already been written regarding the characteristics of the successful entrepreneur. Most lists include such things as passion, faith, resiliency, etc. and it’s true that these are invaluable for all entrepreneurs. But the one characteristic that is most important really depends on the objectives of the entrepreneur. Is the key talent required to open a single retail store, restaurant, a bed and breakfast or a one man consulting firm the same as is required to build a multi-million dollar, multi-national firm?

In my experience, those with ambitions to grow their firms into multi-million dollar, national or multi-national firms need this number one, most important talent:

             The ability to find, recruit, leverage and keep talent.

I define talent as people who are really good at what they do, and are better and smarter at it than you are.

Finding Talent

Entrepreneurs in a hurry to complete their organization chart are often tempted to fill in the blanks with friends and family. Some of these come with reasonable capability, many don’t. Entrepreneurs with big, long term goals however, should recognize two important factors:

• Most of the foundational and positioning decisions will be made very early. Do you want those decisions made by less than the best?
• Many of these original hires will necessarily be replaced in order to facilitate growth and scalability. It’s wise to resist the temptation to just fill in the blanks. 

Depending on your industry and/or the specific skill you seek, finding qualified talent can be easy or difficult. The sagging economy generally produces a fairly large selection of talented and under employed people, many with interest in entrepreneurial ventures if for no other reason than that there is little else available.  It is also the case that you can often get significant experience and education for below market rates. 

Who are you looking for? People who are smarter than you are, more talented in their specific role, capable of making decisions, people you don’t need to shepherd, people you can trust with that function within your business, people who will allow you to grow beyond your own personal abilities. A great many entrepreneurs I have worked with across the country have an alpha dog ego that doesn’t allow them to hire people smarter or more qualified than they are. Wise entrepreneurs will seek and find real talent to help build their organization for the long term.

Recruiting Talent

Finding talent is useless if you can’t recruit it. As easy as finding the talent might have been, recruiting it for an entrepreneurial venture is a little harder. Again, it’s made a little easier due to the sagging economy, but most people are not cut out for the rigors of an entrepreneurial environment. Most want a secure paycheck with a company that has been, and will be, around forever.  Getting real talent to accept the uncertainties and variability of entrepreneurship can be a real trick since security, a high salary, great benefits and other perks or generally beyond the capability of an entrepreneur.

Many entrepreneurs will use instruments that have little to no current value, but carry the hope of significant future wealth. Recruiting true talent can be very expensive, but the deciding factor will not be the quantity of stock, it will be based on the belief that the entrepreneur and the team he recruits will be able to make those instruments valuable. 50% of zero is zero. 1% of $100 million is $1 million. As long as current expenses are met, faith in the entrepreneur and the rest of the team will trump other considerations. If you hire talent, more talent will want to join your successful team.

Leveraging Talent

Recruiting talent is useless if you can’t leverage it. Many times I have seen companies go through a rigorous recruiting cycle to find the most talented person they could, in order to compensate for recognized shortcomings in a specific functional area.  After all that they turn the new talent into an assistant tasked with executing the original plans of the entrepreneur.  Or, they may restrict the person’s ability to impact the organization by providing no budget or authority to make decisions. Why find, recruit and pay for unused talent? That person will leave anyway, causing you to start the process over again. 

In my history, before considering an executive position, I first confirmed that the company was looking for an executive, not an assistant, that budgets were allocated, and that the requisite authority was included. Only hire as executives, people you believe to be smarter than you, then let them perform their functions based on their education, experience and expertise.

Keeping Talent

The greatest value of an entrepreneurial venture, particularly in its earliest stages, is its people. When real talent leaves an entrepreneurial organization it can be devastating. Keeping that talent is significantly important. 

One entrepreneur I know was so greedy for control, money and recognition that he alienated his first several partners, who went on to professional successes without him. Subsequent partners had so little trust that literally every discussion and agreement was written and signed by all parties after being approved by attorneys. Today the entrepreneur is wildly successful, in large part because his legal agreements have prevented him from inhibiting, even firing the very talent that is primarily responsible for his wealth. In the end, however, the two key partners have made enough money that they don’t need the entrepreneur any longer.  They are finishing out their contracts before they too move on to professional successes elsewhere, in which the original entrepreneur will have no participation.

People don’t leave companies, they leave management. Talent will stay loyal, as long as they believe in an increasingly improving future opportunity, in an environment they enjoy. They need to believe in, and trust the entrepreneur and the team they are working with, and their ability to execute and create that better future. When that is not the case, they must instead be compensated through their current paychecks. Since real talent can be expensive, entrepreneurs need to compensate them with reason to have faith in their future.

Summary

Entrepreneurs are the strength that holds up their organizations. They are also often the weight that holds them down. Those who are comfortable surrounding themselves with talent beyond their own have no limits. Those who need to receive all the recognition, receive all the rewards, make all the decisions, and be intimately involved in every little detail, will be forever limited to what they alone can accomplish in their 16 hour days.