How to Select Perfect Team Members for Your Software Startup

The startup life can be harrowing.

Damning statistics show that out of four venture-backed startups, three are doomed to fail.

So, what’s so special about the 25% that survive?

The team.

That’s the magic factor.

A recent survey showed that 23% of failed startups attributed their failure to the lack of a proper team.

Let’s take a mobile app development startup as an example.

Your mobile app development team sits at the core of the company’s success and failure story.

How you choose the members of your core team, will dictate whether you’ll see past the first year.

1. The Buck Starts and Stops With You

Let’s face it.

The actual person or persons at the core of the company is you, and/or the team of founders and cofounders.

A lot of energy trickles down from the founders all the way down to employees who have been hired by the company or startup.

Thus, if you desire to put together a strong team to help bring your mobile app startup to life, you need to lay the foundations right at the start.

And that means, establishing a clear chain of command.

Establish a Clear Chain of Command

This is a common mistake most cofounders make from the get-go.

In fear of spurring up leadership conflicts, most startups would work with a flat hierarchy where no one is really clear on what responsibilities he/she holds in the company, as a founder or cofounder.

This sort of flat hierarchy ends up confusing the workforce itself since no one knows which boss exactly to go to as far as certain issues or areas of work are concerned.

Matter of fact, research shows that this kind of a flat organizational structure may end up hindering the long-term growth of the company.

Thus, ensure that the decision making process and chain of command is clear from the get-go.

And after knowing what positions and responsibilities have been filled, you’ll be able to know what roles and positions are needed and thus have a proper bucket list of the team members you require.

2. Look for The “Rock-star”

The rock-star, in this case, is not, someone literally quite good with the guitar strings.

Rather, this is someone who’s quite good with team development and management skills.

The rock-star would be an individual with great intrapersonal skills, such that he/she inspires high esteem and morale in the workplace while being always ready to buckle down and get the job done.

More Importantly, They Are Highly Adaptable

Yes.

In a startup, a lot of work gets done and in most cases, some of your team members may end up working longer hours than they should, and in fields, they are not inherently comfortable in.

This diversity and magnitude of work would definitely require a team member or members who can comfortably switch from one field to another, without much hustle.

Let’s stick to the mobile app development example from above.

For such a team, a member conversant with both swift and android, and not shy of tackling APIs and backend work would come in quite handy from the onset.

Matter of fact, this is the kind of talent that you would want to be seated at the Lead Developer’s desk.

3. Recommendations Can Provide an Easy Find

Within your circles, there may be one or two people who’ve made use of a software development team before.

Talking to them, knowing their experiences, and asking for referrals can go a long way in helping you get the right team for your software development startup.

Since you’ll be getting firsthand information, you’ll be able to accurately assess the fitness of each team or each team member before they even set foot for an interview.

And more importantly, you’ll be able to get a good feel for their skillset, first hand, and decide whether that’s what you want or not.

4. Attend Hackathons, Conferences, and Meetups

As far as skill set and experience is concerned, most seasoned developers hone their skills through hackathons, conferences, and meetups that are held annually.

An example is the Google I/O conference that focuses on mobile app development tech and happens every summer and attracts some of the best developers from across the globe as they discuss the latest technologies and trends stimulated by Google itself.

Attending such conferences would, on most occasions, lead you to the right team members as far as your software development startup is concerned.

Just ensure that you attend the conference that is relevant to the type of software you are trying to develop.

5. Make Sure Your Company’s Culture Is Already Established

Preferably, you want to incorporate a team into your startup, who will live and build with the values that your company holds close to heart.

And to do this, you need to hire your A-team after your company’s culture has already been established.

This will allow the developers to associate with the vision and mission of your startup more, and develop a passion for it.

That way, you’ll have better morale and drive better results in the development team.

6. Don’t Hire for Your Startup

Yes.

As confusing as this may be, it illustrates one of the most prolific points most entrepreneurs don’t get – you should always work with the long-term goal in mind.

You are not hiring people who will struggle to bring a young company to life, for their lifetime.

These are developers who will, in a reasonable amount of time, bring up a successful tech company in your region, or nation, or globe.

Thus, hiring with this kind of mindset will allow you to carefully sieve through the field and identify proper, long-term talent.

These are the people who will eventually sit at executive positions in your company.

If your focus is on mobile app development, you have to hire based on skills, but also their ability to see the bigger picture when it comes to the development process and what to do after the code is written.

More importantly, hiring with this kind of mindset positions you for better scalability, as you would have already envisioned your company’s long term architecture.

7. Hire Slow, Fire Fast

There’s nothing costlier to a business than a bad hire. Matter of fact, research shows that a business may lose up to $25,000 due to a poor hire.

So, don’t be fast to bring someone into the team.

Ensure that you have done a proper assessment of the candidate and that they fit the job description.

And when the mistakes escalate, do not hesitate to let go.

Startups can be financially fragile, thus you won’t want to be among the 29% that closed business due to bankruptcy, especially if a series of bad hires caused it.

To Wrap This Up

Not everything can be done by you, as you try and bring your startup to entrepreneurial life.

You need to delegate and look for the right fit for the type of software you plan to develop.

They will do some of the heavy lifting.

As long as you follow the steps mentioned above, then the 25% piece of pie is where your startup belongs.