By Michael Deane, Editor at Qeedle.com
When you launch your very own start-up, it is important that you get the right team of people behind you to help you run your business and direct it toward success. The type of people you need on your team really does depend on your type of start-up, but there are five key personality types and traits that are integral to the operation of teams across all industries, businesses and start-ups.
Having the right people on your team can be the difference between unparalleled success and massive failure. Any sane start-up founder knows that they can’t make their start-up into a huge success on their own; they know that they need a team of the right people behind them.
Knowing that you need a good team is obvious, but what is not so obvious and simple is building the actual team itself. Finding the right candidates can be a tricky task. To make this whole process simpler for you, we have compiled our list of the five key personalities you need on your team to make it a success and give your start-up the best start in life.
The leader
The leader of your team is a person who has already got experience in business. Although it may be easy to think of yourself as the leader – it is your start-up, after all – you should place somebody in charge of your team who has been there and done that. Although you are the CEO of your start-up, you are not the leader of the team.
The leader is your mentor and has already succeeded in business. When looking for the leader of your team, you should look for somebody who has years of experience in your industry. This person could have a role in an existing company or even be retired. What is important is that this person brings many years of experience to the table to help you avoid making fatal and foolish mistakes in the early days of your start-up.
Whilst, yes, you are the leader of the company overall, this person is the leader of your team and you should look up to this person and aspire to be like them.
A good role for the leader would be a Chief Operations Officer, as they will help operate major parts of your new start-up.
The forward thinker
This is you, in your capacity as CEO of your start-up. You are the person who has brought your start-up to life, you are the forward thinker in your team, and it is your job to bring forward new and innovative ideas to your new company.
You are the person who has the specialist knowledge that has brought your start-up to life, so you are naturally the forward thinker. You are the detail-orientated individual in your team who is best placed to develop a stable plan for how to scale up your start-up’s product or service. Essentially, you are the person behind all the research and development for your start-up and you put the wheels in motion.
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Although you have built your own start-up, you will need another creative mind on board as the Creative Director or Innovation Director to help develop new ideas for your start-up’s future. This person is going to be the creative mind behind new products or services and is going to drive the whole creative process.
This person should come from a creative background, ideally, and have a natural hunch or mind for creativity. This person will not just be creative, but will be process-orientated too. As Creative Director, this person will make sure that there are not only new developments being made, but that there are ways and means to actually implement these new developments and get them in front of your target market.
The busy bee
Often overlooked, but not to be underestimated, the busy bee is somebody who is naturally good with people and has excellent management skills. The busy bee will be your start-up’s secretary or executive assistant and will be in charge of managing its logistics.
Arranging meetings, keeping diaries, taking calls and responding to emails all seem like fairly simple tasks, but you need a busy bee acting as your company secretary to keep on top of all these things. This person should have excellent interpersonal skills, be punctual, have some management experience and be able to keep track of everyone in the team and make sure that they are being productive and performing at their best.
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The goof is somebody who is naturally great with people and should be your start-ups Content Strategist. For a start-up operating in the 21st century and on the internet, content is extremely important; you only have a couple of seconds to get somebody’s attention online.
Your content strategist will work to produce effective social media campaigns, targeted blog posts and any other content that is in your marketing plan, and effectively deliver these to your target audience.
Why does a goof fit in well with this role? Well, who is going to be more engaging when communicating with your target market? An uptight suit or a more laidback, quirky goofball who can get people’s attention?
I know who I’d prefer managing the content for my start-up! This person will give you the best possible start in the public eye and be able to deliver your message to your target market in an engaging way.
Conclusion
Building a team for your start-up is no easy task. In fact, some would argue that it’s even harder than starting up in the first place! These five personalities discussed above will work well together as a team and help your new start-up grow and develop.
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Michael Deane is the editor of Qeedle, an online magazine for small business owners. He has been working in marketing for over a decade, managing teams big and small.
