Question
I'm the CEO of a small but extremely fast-growing startup, and here lately I've noticed something that troubles me:
The majority of my employees are fairly thoughtless.
I'm not saying they're stupid. I'm not saying they are lazy. Neither is true.
If they have a clearly defined process, and they've been trained on how to handle it, they can execute with precision and excellence. They'll also do everything in their power to do a good job.
But it's a start up. Almost none of our processes are defined. We are also growing so quickly that I don't have time to train everyone.
What I really want is to give someone an objective or a problem, and they take all of the data and complexity and compose an elegant solution. I want them to think, problem solve, and be creative.
But that's not happening. Pretty much every employee is coming to me with every problem and asking me to think through it and tell them what to do.
I've tried asking questions and providing gentle guidance instead of telling them what to do, but they act like I'm punishing them. They sulk and tinker with the problem halfheartedly until I tell them what to do.
Part of the problem is me, I think. I have trained them to let me think for them. Whenever they develop a solution, I also have a tendency to very calmly and nicely rip it apart and rebuild something better in front of them.
But I also wonder if I'm hiring the wrong people. This is horribly politically incorrect, but sometimes they remind me of a bunch of kids with down syndrome working together to build a sandcastle. They are happy and motivated and hard-working, and they might even create something at least somewhat resembling a sandcastle, but at the end of the day, nobody is going to care when the waves wash it away.
Instead, I feel like I need architects, people with such stunning insight and intelligence they can construct a sandcastle like the world has never seen. People will weep when the waves wash it away.
But where do I find those people? And how do I convince them to work for me?
Answer
The hardest thing in business is hiring the right the people. You need to attract talent that can knock down walls for you. What type of equity are you willing to give up to get those people? It sounds like you have created a bottle neck where by every important decision is ultimately going through your office. Sometimes letting people fail a little bit will motivate them to do better. You have to make it okay for them to fail in order to grow. Making the same mistake over and over is grounds for termination however if they fail and learn they will feel empowered. Read the book Good to Great, it has exactly the type of insight you need.
