How to Build Effective Teams, by Christine Comaford-Lynch
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By Christine Comaford-Lynch, Author of Rules for Renegades
Great people can make a mediocre product a success. But mediocre people can make a great product a disaster.
Experience has taught me that you don’t have to have a great product. A good
product is ok. Great people make the difference. Fact: You need a great team
in order to succeed. Fiction: You need to have that great team in place from
the get-go. Building teams takes time.
So let’s discuss who you need on your team, how to build/support/retain that
team, how to find your team members, and who your extended team members
should be. All the other risks you face, such as market size and technology,
won’t have half the impact of your team.
Tip #1: Be Diverse
A successful team must be composed of diverse players. You’ll need
Visionaries, Leaders, Implementers and Infrastructure Builders/Supporters.
Visionaries appear at all levels, but must, of course, be highly visible in
executive management. These are the people who will “see” the future of the
products or services of your company as well as new markets you should
enter. Leaders will also be in executive management as well as throughout
the ranks. Leaders have the uncanny ability to make their mission everyone
else’s. A great leader can inspire and motivate people to do anything.
Implementers make things happen. They build the products/services and market
and sell them. The Infrastructure Builders/Supporters will create the
foundation, processes and procedures of the company to keep it running
smoothly.
The Visionaries need the Leaders to check and disseminate their vision, the
Leaders need the Implementers to execute their orders, and everyone needs
the Infrastructure Builders/Supporters to support the company’s operations.
If you are missing one of these roles, fill it soon. In the meantime hire a
temp executive - a rent-a-controller is better than no controller.
Tip #2: Rock The Culture
The best way to build, support and retain a great team is to encourage a
rockin’ culture that everyone wants to be part of! Your company should have
values that everyone agrees to uphold. These should be posted visibility,
printed on coffee cups, etc. Everyone throughout the organization must be
empowered to “call” any team member on not honoring the values. Here are
ours: add massive value, take ownership, make and keep commitments, respect
one another, and be positive. I’ve seen solid, enduring, and humane work
environments created by endorsing values and I’ve seen the opposite without
them.
Encourage the following virtues too: humility, communication, empowerment,
generosity, focus, fiscal responsibility, innovation, and patience.
Remember: hiring grade A people creates grade A teams. Fill the top slots of
the org chart with grade A people, then let these execs flesh out their
teams. Communicate cross-company weekly - people like to know what is going
on. And finally, help every team member envision their next promotion or
two. I once had a startup where I told the senior execs that I expected them
to start their own companies in a few years (that was their “next
promotion”). I told them to learn all they could, then when the time came
I’d help finance their new ventures. Talk about building loyalty!
Tip #3: Choose Wisely
Now that we know who we need and the environment to hire them into, let’s
look at the attributes to seek out.
1. Smarts. Hire the smartest people you can find. They’ll find their way out
of the majority of messes they’ll get into. This takes guts, but
entrepreneurs have them!
2. Pedigree. An MBA doesn’t impress me. A GSD does. GSD = Gets Stuff Done.
Someone who has results, results, results all over their past has a pedigree
every bit as powerful as an Ivy league degree.
3. Commitment. I don’t mean the fluffy stuff. We’re talking the heavy, deep,
man/woman on a mission stuff. When the grenades are flying the committed
person doesn’t go AWOL. There is nothing more powerful than emotional
equity. No amount of stock options even come close.
4. Plays well with others. I became an entrepreneur because I didn’t play
well with others, and thus was not employable. But I learned. And it’s been
one of the greatest lessons I’ve ever embraced.
Numbers 1-3 are required, number 4 can be learned. But you’ll save yourself
a lot of heartache by getting all four up front.
The best way to find your team is by schmoozing. Go to every industry event
you can and tell everyone about your great company and who you are looking
to hire. Then interview wisely. Check out John Kador’s The Manager’s Book of
Questions. It’s a terrific interviewing tool. Also use your extended team
(see below) to check out your potential hires. Give each candidate two
offers: one with a fair salary and fair amount of stock, and the other with
a lower salary and a higher amount of stock. If you have equity to spare,
there’s no sense in burning all your cash on salaries.
Tip #4: Build An Extended Team
Your extended team will be made up of your investors, board members, and
advisors. Regarding investors, pick ‘em well by creating and executing a
capital acquisition strategy (more on this in a future column). The board
and advisors you’ll have more control over. You’ll most likely have a board
of 5-7 people. I prefer seven, with two seats going to investors, and two to
the CEO and one other exec. The remaining seats should be given to people
you trust and who will help you. For advisors, create a board of about ten
people, max. The profile for both directors and advisors is an industry
heavyweight, model customer, credibility booster, as well as savvy business
person with great connections. Make sure that each advisory board member
plays a specific role, such as helps with strategic alliances, or works with
the sales, marketing, or technical teams. This keeps them focused. Keep your
extended team committed and passionate with monthly email updates. Needless
to say, everyone should get stock options (with the exception of the
investors). The amount will range from .25% - 3%, based on the stage of the
company. You’ll lure killer board members and advisors by having a killer
business. But remember that filling in a board will take time. Most startups
don’t fill all board seats within the first year of operations. Be picky!
So build yourself a great team and get cracking on a great product. Then if
it turns out only good, you’ll still be way ahead of the pack!
_____________________________________________________________
Christine is CEO of Mighty Ventures ( <outbind://152/www.MightyVentures.com>
www.MightyVentures.com), an innovation accelerator which helps businesses to
massively increase sales, product offerings, and company value. She has
built and sold 5 of her own businesses with an average 700% return on
investment, served as a board director or in-the-trenches advisor to 36
startups, and has invested in over 200 startups as a venture capitalist or
angel investor. Christine has consulted to the White House (Clinton and
Bush), 700 of the Fortune 1000, and hundreds of small businesses. She has
repeatedly identified and championed key trends and technologies years
before market acceptance. Christine’s best selling book, Rules for
Renegades, is available now on <outbind://152/www.RulesForRenegades.com>
www.RulesForRenegades.com or wherever books are sold.
