for W3c validation

It seems many people would love to delegate their work for a variety of reasons, yet they don’t have super star employees below them. Trizle gives a couple great reasons as to why delegating is necessary in their post “How Delegating Your Work Rocks.” If companies don’t enable their managers to delegate, they risk over-working their top performers and burning them out. Top performers have the highest potential if you put them on the hardest and most profitable tasks, so having them do day-to-day tasks someone could do better is not good business. Recruiting is something young companies struggle to master because the time and patience it takes to hold out for the “superstars” and large companies struggle with due to not having many top posititions to give to  the brightest and most ambitious potential hires. Furthermore, recruiting is very critical to large companies because they are constantly losing superstars they already have to promising young companies with more opportunity to oversee company departments (I would bet Google is about getting to the point where they are going to start losing some of their superstars).

So, how do employers/recruiters find truly great employees that they can trust? My thoughts- Network, Network, Network. And don’t just network yourself, encourage your entire company to network. There are great people out there, it’s just a matter of finding them. Utilize your companies “connectors.” Chances are, every company has a few “connectors” (the people that know everyone). Look to those people to be great sources of candidate referrals. Great people attract great people. So, keep the standard high all along. Don’t hire just to fill a position. Leave it open if you can’t find the right fit. 

Some other good tips I’ve come across:

• Get help from your team- Every person in your business should develop (and share) their own list of 12 superstars that they would like to see added to the team. This is a superb idea in my opinion. I know there are at least several people who I know that I would recommend for any job. While they may not be actively looking for a job now, 2 years from now they may be the perfect fit for an opening. Employers should be constantly seeking to build relationships with those deemed “superstars” by their own employees.
• Hire “Potential”– I don’t think a young company can ever have too much potential. People with potential are the ones that will learn and master their job quickly. Don’t be scared off by a person with little experience.
• Hire infected people– Once again, Guy Kawasaki comes through with another great piece of advice. Find people genuinely interested in your business or industry. Infected people will be very likely to be passionate about their job. Perhaps even look into interviewing your most active customers…see if they may be a fit. Afterall, it’s obvious they love your company already.
• Use all the means available to get the right people for the job– Pull out all the stops, not just newspaper ads or job boards. GREAT employees are well worth the effort.

The big take-away? A companies success is directly tied to the team that is put in place. In business, people have to learn to trust and lean on each other to get the job done. Make sure prospective employees will fit your corporate culture. The reason I work for Zillow is the people that work there. It certainly helps that I love technology, real estate, and business, but I’ve really come to realize it’s all about people. Working with people you trust and admire makes going to work enjoyable (I don’t even consider it work since I love what I’m doing). If you have any other suggestions, please leave them in the comments section.