Human Resources

Why bring HR expertise on board early?

I previously wrote that one of your first hires should be someone to help with recruitment, HR operations, and other aspects related to managing your company's most important asset: your team. At such an early stage, what matters most is how professional and credible you appear to the talent you're seeking to help build and roll out your product quickly. Since you won't have all the perks that larger or well-funded startups use to attract talent, the way you manage the people component of your venture will make the difference.

Once you've found the perfect match for your HR role, design and implement a solid recruitment process (and stick to it). This should include interview questionnaires and assessments that show you take recruitment seriously. Implement simple but efficient HR management software. Finally, ensure that you, your co-founders, and your HR partner craft job descriptions that best reflect the kind of company and brand you aspire to be.

Your early focus on HR shouldn't stop at recruitment. Once your first team members are in place, show that you care. Hold all-hands meetings from day one. Establish one-on-one meetings where every employee has a safe space to express concerns, issues, or sources of satisfaction directly with you and/or your co-founders. This will set you apart from many companies (who often fall short in this area). One last piece of advice, echoed by many: Don't hire too quickly just because you want to move fast. Hiring mistakes drain a lot of energy. If you don't find a good match, hold off on hiring for now.

At flyiin, we brought someone to help us with HR just two months after securing our first (and only) round of funding—which proved to be a good move. Actually, I had made her a first offer already in 2017 when I thought we had secured financing for our Air Travel Marketplace model. The term sheet fell through (as you know so well by now), so I had to tell her the position was no longer available—talk about credibility. Surprisingly, she still joined two years later when we pivoted and finally had cash in the bank (but I had to show her a bank statement).

We quickly assembled a team of eight engineers, including quite a few stars. We established a few principles to ensure this small but crucial team felt properly informed and motivated. We held monthly all-hands meetings to share transparent updates about our situation. We established monthly one-on-ones for every member to speak openly with my co-founder or myself. We also hosted regular team outings to foster a sense of community and team building—except for that one after-work bar gathering which resulted in a trainee being let go the next day. That much for team building.

I am convinced that our focus on building strong HR foundations and maintaining a high level of transparency enabled us to keep the team together even when things got complicated—ultimately leading to our way out with Priceline (rather than having to shut down the business).

Key Takeaway #24

Your early investment in HR will set your venture on the right path. By prioritizing a professional recruitment approach and fostering an open, transparent culture from the start, you'll attract better talent and retain them long-term—even when times get tough.