6.) Hire people who are smarter than you. If you don’t have the knowledge and experience to get your company where it needs to be, find someone who does.
7.) If you want to attract talent and have them work above and beyond for your success, give ownership as incentive -- the earlier, the better. It’s difficult to lose key employees when you’re growing.
8.) Don’t give up too much, too soon to your management team. Make sure they earn it, that no one is “dead weight,” then reward generously.
9.) Be clear about the different components of your benefits package, and what long-term components are rewards as opposed to base pay.
10.) If incentives are dependent on profit, put out the numbers so the employees know how they’re doing.
11.) Consider that benefits have different value to different employees. Also think about the intangibles of your company that might help keep your employees. Create the right benefits and atmosphere for the employees you want to hire and keep.
12.) Communicate, communicate, communicate -- to employees, investors, the public.
13.) The right management team means having the right people at each stage. For example, having a bookkeeper –> having a comptroller –> having a CFO. Each time you add the right person, you’re adding value, even though the cash hit can be difficult at the time.
14.) Constantly stay on top of cash flow. Check every day so you don’t have surprises.
15.) Qualify your new customers. Set payment terms and credit limits. Follow up on slow payers. Offer discounts to get customers to pay more quickly. Offer credit card payment. Impose finance charges for late payments (and also use as leverage.) You can sometimes renegotiate terms with your manufacturers and suppliers. Convert sales as quickly as possible into cash in the bank.
16.) Take the time to organize your board. Over time, try to increase its sophistication to one that’s informed, and will take action when necessary.
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