So, your recruitment startup is thriving and you’re wondering when the time is right to scale up and take on your first employee. First off, congratulations!
We at New Millennia love hearing about start up success stories from those who have been brave enough to take the plunge.
Taking on a new employee is a big bold step for you and your agency.
For a lot of people, it’s even more intimidating than starting the business in the first place. However, while it might seem scary at first, in the long run it can help your business grow.
With this in mind, there are two big questions you have to ask yourself: who and when?
As for who, we know you’re the real expert here, you wouldn’t be in the recruitment industry if you couldn’t spot talent!
When, however, is a little trickier:
Is my recruitment agency ready to take on a new employee?
The first thing you need to decide when figuring out if now is the right time to hire your first employee is: is my business ready?
What ‘ready’ looks like will be different in every business. Are you already so swamped with clients that you need someone to take more work on? Or are you looking for someone to come in and help publicise your business and land you new clients? Do you think your business would benefit from someone with years of strategic experience? Or does it need an admin wizard to get you organised?
Whether your business is ready, really does depend on your recruitment agency and what you’re looking to achieve.
However, there are a few things you need to have in the bag as outlined below:
Am I Ready for the Responsibility of a New Employee?
The first question you need to ask yourself before taking on your first employee is: am I ready?
Having an employee will give your business a boost, but it is also an extra responsibility for you.
Now, you may be an experienced manager. At previous employers, or even other businesses, you could have handled another staff member or a team of dozens. If so, you know just how important it is that you’re available to help train, oversee, advise, and assist your employees.
However, this could well be the first person you’ve supervised in a work environment, and that can certainly be intimidating.
Whether you’re the former, the latter, or somewhere in between, you only need to ask yourself one key question to decide whether you’re ready to take on managing a new person. Are you going to get out more than you have to put in?
Now this isn’t just a financial question. While you do have to factor in wages, equipment, National Insurance etc, you also have to consider the extra time you will invest in managing your new employee.
You might need to spend a significant amount of time at the beginning training them, or perhaps you even need to spend some time training yourself by going on a management or leadership program.
If you have accounted for all this and decided that you’re confident in leading as well as simply hiring, it is probably time to take the plunge, but not before you have considered a few other points.
Do I have enough work in the pipeline?
Firstly, you need to be turning a reasonable profit. Even if you’re looking for someone to come in and drive-up business, you need to be sure you can pay their wages first!
Secondly, you need to make sure you have room to grow. Are there more opportunities in the industry that you’re not getting a chance to exploit?
Finally, make sure you have a business plan. Sometimes it is easy to get excited about the endless possibilities that come with building your own team and business. But it is key that you have a medium and long-term plan for success.
Consider setting out how you want to grow your business over the next six months, two years, and five years. If an extra pair of hands is essential to taking the next steps along your plan, now may well be the right time!
Do I have the infrastructure?
With all these things to think about, you need to remember the reason you’re looking to hire a new employee: to grow your business!
You already know how much work can come from the administration that comes with running a recruitment agency.
When you are hiring new temp workers for a client, you need to know they’re going to be paid on time and in full and you also need to know that your invoicing is going to be done efficiently and accurately.
The question is, do you have the infrastructure to cope if your new employee starts bringing in new clients?
At New Millennia we can offer you the support your business needs, to ensure your back-office infrastructure is one thing you don’t have to worry about. Check out exactly what we have to offer your business here.
Now or never?
Remember, while it might seem scary, expanding your team can be one of the best ways to expand your business. Pick the right individual, at the time that’s right for you, and watch your business soar!
We’re experienced in helping recruitment agencies grow. Get in touch with us today.
