As the founder or CEO of a growing business, you’ve likely traveled down a bumpy road.
The good thing about that is that you’ve likely learned some valuable lessons along the way. These lessons might include knowing that shortcuts are rarely what they seem. You should always trust but verify. Plus, now you know how to see the value in your offerings that your enterprise clients don’t see, and vice versa.
At this point, as your company grows and you struggle to balance regulatory compliance with increasingly complex data management responsibilities, you’re probably facing a new challenge: staffing.
The demands of SOC 2 and the five trust principles (plus the demands of the GDPR or HIPAA, if they apply to your company), are pushing you beyond your current staffing capabilities, and it’s time to bring on some new faces and expand your team. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you take this critical step.
Understand your legal requirements before you start writing your job post
Do you need a compliance officer or Data Security Specialist? And if so, what legal or regulatory mandate requires you to make this move? If you don’t really need to create a new position just yet, hold off until you’re sure and until you can clearly define the responsibilities of the position. Confirm that you can’t find those skills on your current team, or from an existing third-party relationship. There are few bigger headaches or more expensive mistakes than those that come with hasty or unnecessary hiring.
Max out your current team before adding someone new
Trust that each member of your team will speak up honestly about their bandwidth, and push the limits of your current capability before bringing a new person on board. Four people with a steady work rhythm, a strong social fabric and a sense of personal commitment are better than five people burdened by holdups, clashes, and miscommunications. This will require fostering a culture of open communication within your team, so that each individual has a chance to speak up when they feel they’re at their limit or that they are taking on work that isn’t valuable to them.
Recognize the responsibilities of having an employee
Your current team may consist of co-founders connected by clear contract terms and compensated with company shares as well as paychecks. A new employee will bring an entirely different set of terms, obligations, tax requirements, and workplace accommodations that you’ll need to understand before you hire. Will you apply an at-will agreement? A six-month contract open to renewal? A full-time position with benefits, or a part-time hourly role? What will you owe your employee in exchange for their labor and intellectual property? How will you protect your own intellectual property when the person decides to leave?
Before you begin the sourcing, interviewing, and hiring process, talk to our team of compliance experts and make sure you understand both the benefits and the responsibilities of inviting a new person into your workplace and your data infrastructure.
You can reach out to us on our contact page.
