Community Table: Hiring Your First Employee And A “Second In Command”

The Un-Billable Hour

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:

• Who should a solo attorney hire first? You’re building your firm. Who’s the next person you add to add (and you want avoid the wrong hire)? For starters, what do you need? Where are you wasting time? From there, “hiring is marketing,” it’s crucial you attract the largest pool of great candidates.
• How do you prepare a job candidate for your hiring process? Start by being transparent. It’s that easy. “Hey, here’s our process, it may be different from what you’ve done before.” The important thing is to find what’s not only right for you, but what’s right for the new hire. And if they start by questioning your process, move on.
• How do you introduce your “second in command” to your team? Maybe that’s the wrong question. “Second” in command suggests you still want people to report to you. You don’t. The whole idea is to offload daily decisions so you can focus on strategy and bigger things. There’s no “second in command,” there’s the “here’s the new person in charge for all of you.” Your language can sabotage your intentions.

Mentioned in This Episode:

“Who: The A Method for Hiring,” by Geoff Smart and Randy Street

“Hamlet Was Wrong,” a transcript, from Malcolm Gladwell discusses “hiring nihilism”

Join the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind?