On Hire

Follow Me and I Shall Take You on the Path of Righteousness

N o this is not because of a sudden religious streak in me nor am I preaching anything, this is what every entrepreneur tells its co-workers. Whenever I look at an entrepreneur I am reminded of a passage from the bible made popular by Pulp Fiction - here's what Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) says, adding bits from the 23rd Psalm and his own rhetoric:

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides with the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who in the name of charity and good will shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon those with great vengeance and with furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know that my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee."

That is what entrepreneur believes or likes to believe, build a company - build lives. But do all of them build lives? What if the path to righteousness is lost amidst the journey and the company along with YOU starts taking a ride in the wrong direction. This post aims at helping out people decide what they should be looking in a startup before taking the plunge:

The Founding Team: I am starting with the point every job seeker seeking an opportunity in a startup should be starting with. The most important factor in a startup is the people who are starting it up. The vision, goals, roadmap and most importantly the guts to take the company through thick and thin comes from the people who first believed in the idea. If you have weak minds believing in an idea, then no matter how great the idea sounds, it will crumble once dry. You should research about each founders background and personal achievements. Most of them would be more than happy to share their trials and tribulations; all you have to do is ask. All of them have a fascinating story that no one wants to hear, so they will be more than willing to share it with you.

Knowing their backgrounds gives you an idea about their individual strengths and weaknesses. Yes weaknesses as well, because this is what matters the most. Multi founder startups should have people with complementary skills. IIM and IIT degrees does not necessarily mean great ideas and a great company. A company is far bigger than the education that the individual has.

The Team: This point is valid only if the startup has anyone else working for them apart from the founders. Ask the interviewer about the number of people and their roles in the organization. Also, you don't want to be stuck with people whom you are not comfortable working with. Ask people about the company culture and if possible visit the office at least a couple of times un-announced, just to check how the environment is generally. Sometimes people might not appreciate your visit, but at the end of the day, they would be glad you did.

Company Goals: Make sure that the goals of the company match your personal ambitions. Nobody likes to sit on a roller coaster without knowing what the track is like. If you are planning to get married in the next one year, make it very clear. If you are planning on a kid and would not want to work in a different city, let them know. If you are planning on an MBA and would want some leeway while pursuing it, convey this well in advance. These are just generic examples, but align yourself with the company goals and see where you will land up a year or two from now.

Know what they want from you: It is a very basic thing and does not apply only to startups. If you are a PHP guy and you will not appreciate the company wanting you to do a Flash animation, tell them in advance. Discuss the job description and the responsibilities as much as possible with the founders OR the hiring staff. You don’t want to work into your office the first day and realize that this is not what you signed up for.

Every founder will tell you that the company is going to be the next Google - but not even Google knew what they would be. Only if you believe in the idea should you work for a startup. Although the path is beset by evil men(metaphor), there are people who will walk you through the valley of darkness.

Rizwan Iqbal - Co-Founder of Sutra Services Pvt. Ltd.

A full services People Consulting firm which offers a unique partnering model with Digital, Mobile and Internet startups.