How To Recruit People To Work For Your Business
Eben Pagan explains how to build a 'virtual bench' of potential team members by identifying specific talent strengths needed for future roles and proactively networking with potential candidates. He teaches the 10% rule for relationship building and how to approach recruitment conversations strategically.
Key Moments
How to Build Your Virtual Bench of Future Team Members -- A systematic approach to proactively recruiting talent before you need them
Proactively Build Relationships With Future Star Hires
Spend 10% of your time proactively connecting with potential future team members and building relationships with stars
▶ 2:29
Identify Three Referral Sources for Every Role You Plan to Fill
Identify three specific people you can contact for referrals to each role you're planning to fill
▶ 1:46
Build a Virtual Bench Around Specific Talent Strengths Not Job Titles
Build a 'virtual bench' by identifying future roles and specific talent strengths needed, not just general job descriptions
Identify One Core Strength Candidates Must Excel At
Focus on identifying one core strength that candidates must excel at, then let driven people figure out the additional skills
Recruit 6 to 9 Months Ahead by Projecting Future Growth
Approach recruitment conversations by projecting future growth and asking for referrals 6-9 months in advance
Relevant Clips18
- How-To
How to Build Your Virtual Bench of Future Team Members -- A systematic approach to proactively recruiting talent before you need them
- Teaching
Identify One Core Strength Candidates Must Excel At
Focus on identifying one core strength that candidates must excel at, then let driven people figure out the additional skills
- Teaching
Build a Virtual Bench Around Specific Talent Strengths Not Job Titles
Build a 'virtual bench' by identifying future roles and specific talent strengths needed, not just general job descriptions
- Teaching▶ 2:29
Proactively Build Relationships With Future Star Hires
Spend 10% of your time proactively connecting with potential future team members and building relationships with stars
- Teaching
Recruit 6 to 9 Months Ahead by Projecting Future Growth
Approach recruitment conversations by projecting future growth and asking for referrals 6-9 months in advance
- Teaching▶ 1:46
Identify Three Referral Sources for Every Role You Plan to Fill
Identify three specific people you can contact for referrals to each role you're planning to fill
- Answer
The Virtual Bench — Recruit Before You Need to Hire
A virtual bench is a proactive recruitment strategy where you identify future roles your business will need and build relationships with potential candidates before you actually need to hire them.
- Answer
Find People Who Excel at One Core Strength
Focus on finding people who excel at one specific strength rather than general job categories. If they're great at their core skill and driven, they'll figure out the additional tasks.
- Answer
Build a Virtual Bench Before You Need to Hire
Build a 'virtual bench' by identifying specific talent strengths you'll need, then reach out to your network for referrals to those specialists months before you need to hire.
- Answer
Start Recruiting 6-9 Months Before You Actually Need to Hire
Start building relationships with potential team members 6-9 months before you actually need to hire them, based on your projected business growth.
- Answer▶ 2:29
Spend 10 Percent of Your Time Building High-Performer Relationships
Spend about 10% of your time connecting with people who could be good future team members and building relationships with high-performers.
- Quotable▶ 2:22
Spend 10% of Your Time Building Relationships With Future Stars
my rule of thumb personally is spend about 10% of your time doing this us spend about 10% of your time connecting with people that could be good future team members building relationships with stars
Show 6 more
- Quotable▶ 1:23
Let Prospects Exaggerate Sales Numbers — It Works in Your Favor
what's the one thing that you really really need them to be good at and if they're great at that and they're and they're a driver then they'll figure out how to get all the other stuff done
- Question▶ 2:30
How Much Time to Spend Recruiting Future Team Members
How much time should I spend recruiting future team members?
- Question
Hire Specialists Not Generalists
Should I look for generalists or specialists when hiring?
- Question▶ 2:19
Finding Good Team Members for Your Business
How do I find good team members for my business?
- Question▶ 2:33
When to Start Looking for Future Team Members
When should I start looking for team members?
- Question▶ 0:05
What Is a Virtual Bench in Business
What is a virtual bench in business?
Entities Touched
Concepts
Canonical Teachings
Procedural frameworks taught here
Summary
Building Your Virtual Bench Strategy
Eben introduces the concept of a 'virtual bench' - a proactive approach to identifying future team members before you actually need them. Rather than thinking in general job categories, he teaches focusing on specific talent strengths and core competencies that will drive success.
The 10% Rule for Relationship Building
The key to successful virtual bench building is consistency - spending about 10% of your time connecting with potential future team members. This involves reaching out to your network for referrals 6-9 months before you plan to hire, giving you time to build relationships and find the right talent.
Counterpoint
Claim: “Hire people when you desperately need them and focus on general job roles”
Reframe: Build relationships with potential team members months in advance and focus on specific talent strengths
Eben teaches spending 10% of time building relationships with stars and approaching people 6-9 months before you need them, focusing on specific skills like 'HTML expert' rather than generic 'web designer'
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Topics
Business Frameworks