Armand’s Hiring Guide

The first one is trust. I have to be able to trust them 100%, not 80 or 70%, but 100%. The second is loyalty. I have to believe they’re looking out for my best interest just as I will be looking out for theirs. Number three is follow-through. If someone is working with me, follow through is crucial because for me or anyone else to say something twice is a waste of time.

These are the characteristics you should look for when you hire someone for any position in your company. This would also apply to anyone that I’m going to do a joint venture with.

Knowing that those are the three essentials you need, how do you find someone? You might start off with finding a virtual assistant who could start off working for you part time and then possibly grow into a full time position.

You Can Run a Company Virtually and Make It Work Effectively

All of the people on my team live somewhere else, yet I’m able to run a company from my home. You can run a company virtually and make it work very effectively.

The other thing you have to look at is when you bring a person on board how are you going to pay them? Are you going to pay them hourly? Are you going to pay them a salary?

I look at some companies and I see them with 50, 75, 100 or 150 people, and I’m saying what do they do? I’m talking about companies the same size as my own and having 10 times the amount of staff that I do.

I’ve come to the realization that the way I’ve brought people into my company is that they don’t just wear one hat.

We work when we work and we work at whatever needs  to be done at that time. It’s not them only doing one thing and nothing else. That reverts back to a job description. Just because a person has signed on for you to do a specific job doesn’t mean that’s the only thing they have to do.

Remember, it’s a company, so as the company grows that person’s opportunity for growth is that much bigger.

What can people do aside from their normal job? What could be another fit for them to keep that person going all day?

To have a person sitting idle in your company means either (a) you didn’t need them in the first place or (b) they’re so efficient at their job, they finished early. It’s usually because you don’t have enough work for that person to do a full time job. If that’s the case, give them something else to do.

Don’t make a job description so specific that they’re locked into doing one thing. Keep them working. If a person is taking too long to do a specific job, I ask the question, how are you doing it? I want to see them do it because chances are I can show them a short- cut.

I am qualified to do that because when I started my company, I was the only person doing all the jobs. I had to think of all the shortcuts myself. Surely you have thought of shortcuts in your own system that can make jobs easier.

If a person is coming in, and they’re taking longer than they should on tasks, you need to know why. It might be that you didn’t explain how to do the job properly in the first place. They may not be using the shortcuts you created, or there might be an easier way you haven’t explained to them yet.

Keep it to the Point

You should have a company manual in some way shape or form. For example, when it comes to email, there is a certain way that I want our emails written. Conversations with our customers should be brief, to the point and should not be personal.

An email should not go to one of our customers asking them about their kids because that’s not pertinent, and they should not have smiley faces because that’s not professional.

If we’re that close to that particular customer, then it’s too personal.

Remember, get the job done and get out. That sounds almost militaristic and it is to a point, but remember what the job is. It’s to answer their question. Keep it quick, short and to the point.

Answer the question and don’t give any other information unless it’s necessary or pertinent. You should be able to explain almost anything within 100 words. If you keep to that rule, your time answering emails should be cut to a minimum.

Keep this in mind. Getting the job done means simply do what you need to do to get the job done and finish it. It shouldn’t be a long, drawn out process.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re dealing with customers or if you’re dealing with any facet of your business, it should be straightforward and to the point. Remember this is business.

I joke around an awful lot about many different things, I have fun working. However in running my company, I take it seriously. This is my livelihood, my family’s livelihood, I want to make sure this is going to be around in the future.

Email is going to be your primary communication with the majority of people in an online business. Keep your messages short, sweet and to the point.

Get It In Writing & Be Clear

When you’re dealing with people that you’re working with, whether you’re outsourcing to them or they are full time, even though they may be friends, it’s best to have something in writing saying this is what it is and this is how it works.

You want everyone to be clear. That way there is no miscommunication. Be sure everyone understands the rules before getting involved.

Don’t ask why something didn’t get done…it gives an opportunity for excuses

One of the things you never want to ask someone on the team is why wasn’t something done. To you, the “why” shouldn’t matter because asking why gives them an opportunity to ultimately give you an excuse. I don’t care why. All I care about is getting it done…so how do you get this done now? That’s what you want to stay focused on.

In compensating a virtual workforce, they’re contract employees and get a 1099 at the end of the year. The way I work is I pay every two weeks. These are things you have to think about, plan out ahead of time as you’re building your company.

The Greater Good

You also have to take into consideration the greater good of the company, meaning it’s your butt on the line. You are the owner of the company. What’s going to be best for your company and the decisions you have to make sometimes aren’t easy. You might have to fire someone at some point.

When I sold my previous company, the hardest thing for me to do was to tell my employees we were shutting down. There were tears because we were a really close family. That’s a tough thing to do to tell people we can’t work with you anymore. Some people even wanted to stay and work for free.

You’re going to have struggles. You’re going to have things that are going to come up and you have to take them one step at a time. The question is what’s for the greater good of the company? You have to think about that. It’s your company and your brand that you have to be looking at, and you have to look at it from multiple angles.

The most important angle as an owner is what does the company look like in the customer’s eyes? I don’t want my company or me to ever look bad to them.

Every one of the people working with you is a representation of you and your company. If I’m holding a live event and someone’s working with me, I want my team to look and act a specific way. I want them to act very professional at all times, whether at the event or away from it.

I believe everyone should have a good time, but there’s a time and place for everything. While they’re representing my company, there are things you have to address.

If you see something happening with a team member that you don’t like, the best thing you can do is say something right up front. Address the issue or get someone else to address the issue with him or her as quickly as possible.

The longer you let it go, the harder it is to bring it up. If you’re very clear on what you expect from people when they start working with you, there’s no question in the future.

These are techniques and strategies that I use in my company that have been developed over the years. I’ve developed a very successful Internet business based on these strategies and tactics when hiring team members.

I’ve put a lot of thought and energy into how I run my business. I’m banking a multi-million dollar company on these strategies. These are methods that I use, and I know they can work for you!