{"id":10002,"date":"2021-08-24T10:00:22","date_gmt":"2021-08-24T09:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/?p=10002"},"modified":"2026-01-29T09:38:36","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T09:38:36","slug":"hire-employees-first-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-gb\/blog\/hire-employees-first-time\/","title":{"rendered":"How to hire employees for the first time"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPeople & Leadership<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tHow to hire employees for the first time\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Anthony\t\t\t\tAnthony Impey<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Anthony Impey, CEO of productivity non-profit Be the Business<\/a>, hired his first employee when he was at school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He\u2019d set up a business making folders for art students, and hired classmates to help assemble the folders, paying them a piece rate per folder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since then he\u2019s started, built and operated several businesses in the IT and telecoms sector, including IT services company Optimity, and created two social enterprises for young Londoners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among his advisory roles, Anthony chairs the Department for Education\u2019s Apprenticeship Stakeholder Board, the Federation of Small Business\u2019 Big Ideas Group, and is a member of the Department for International Trade\u2019s Digital & Telecoms Expert Trade Advisory Group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here, he shares his five top tips on how to hire employees<\/a> for the first time:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Recruit people with high potential<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Think about what you are not good at<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Take your time<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Don\u2019t leave it too late<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Use technology to help<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Download your free copy of A guide to hiring and supporting your first employees<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

1. Recruit people with high potential<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I have always focused on hiring people with high potential, who you can develop on the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Really think about the skills you need. Don\u2019t get distracted by the list of organisations someone has worked for. You want people with the right mindset and attitude who you can invest in with professional development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is a great way to build a high performance team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Equally, hire the very best people that you can afford. Having a great team is really the difference between a successful business and a not so successful business, but it can\u2019t just be a random process of throwing people together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The principle of building a high performance team applies whether you are a company of 100 or a company of two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Think about what you are not good at<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ve got to be rounded. You\u2019ve got to understand every aspect of your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, it\u2019s really important to focus on and do what you are really good at, while hiring people for the roles that you\u2019re not so good at.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You wouldn\u2019t expect a track athlete to be an Olympic swimmer as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the same in business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there is a discipline you ace, become world class in that discipline and when you recruit, recruit for all those activities that you\u2019re either not strong in, or that distract you from your core discipline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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At Sage, we\u2019ve joined forces with Be the Business<\/a> to help you hire and inspire your new employees like a boss<\/a>. Check out our series of articles, which will support you along the way:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n