You know your team better than anyone; after all, you personally recruited and hired every single one of them. The process is time-consuming and mentally taxing which is why corporations have hiring managers who are dedicated to onboard the chosen candidates. The formula for a great team is the 60/30/10 Rule. That is broken down into whom the team consists of, how the team works together, and the leadership, respectively. So adding new members to the team can throw off the dynamic, and possibly team success. It’s a delicate process, but don’t worry. Here are 5 ways you can add to your team even though you are the only one constructing it.

Here are 5 ways you can add to your team even though you are the only one constructing it.

1.    Know How Your Team Works Together

A team that works well and efficiently together saves time. According to Eric Barker, 40% of your team’s effort is wasted time. With more employees becoming virtual workers because of trending telecommuting, collaboration is more important than ever. 65.5% of employees agree that collaboration could fix some of the problems in wasted dedicated project time with team members.  A root to the issues – 80.9% of employees agree – is difficulty communicating effectively as a whole.  Making sure your team currently works well together is a prerequisite to adding another talent to the group.

2.    Understand How Your Team Works as Individuals

“Individual commitment to a group effort – that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.” – Vince Lombardi

Lombardi is correct. The dedication of the members in your team is important to the success of the entire team. They don’t call it “teamwork” for nothing. As a leader, you have to make sure that everyone is on the same page, first of all. Understanding the individuals in the team, how they work, and the dedication to the success of the group could help you to hire for any gaps in skill. It could also help you find someone who fills a motivational gap within the team as well.

3.    Allow Every Employee to Contribute

The fault of many leaders is the inability to – or sheer lack of – delegation. 53% of business owners believe that they can grow their business by more than 20% if they simply delegate 10% of their workload. The same can be said for team leaders. Adding to the team could make it easier to disperse project tasks in smaller pieces.  

4.    Clarity is Key

When hiring for a new team member, be sure the new hire knows what they are getting into. According to a study by OfficeTeam, 97% of HR managers said accurate job descriptions are critical when recruiting for an open position. In fact, they make the hiring process easier and quicker. A detailed and clear job description will help jobseekers to self-select out of positions they personally don’t feel qualified for, taking another applicant off of your plate.

5.    Switch It Up

Getting the same people, in the same room week after week, to work on the same project, begins to become stale after a while. Bring in “special guests” to project meetings to cultivate fresh ideas. Invite candidates who passed the interview into the meetings, allowing them to add to the thought process as a type of working interview. The candidates who performed better, and interacted with current team members well during the project meeting, are the ones to keep around long-term. Even Walt Disney switched it up in the 1920s. He would invite any employee to put in their idea for a short. The winner would get today’s equivalent to almost $60. Who was consistently the champion? The custodian. Adding guests – and new permanent members – benefits the team and the company. 

Recruiting and onboarding new candidates isn’t an easy task, especially when you’re doing it alone. It’s even more of a daunting task knowing your new hire has to be able to work well in a team that already meshes perfectly together. However, knowing your team individually and how they work together before you hire can ease this process. Clarity and switching up team projects keeps ideas from becoming stale. 

Bio: Raj Sheth, CEO/Partner

Raj Sheth is the co-founder of Recruiterbox, an online recruitment software and applicant tracking system designed especially for growing companies. Prior to Recruiterbox, he founded two other web startups -- a classifieds portal and an ecommerce site. He is a graduate of Babson College and spent the first three years of his career as a financial analyst with EMC Corporation in Boston. Learn more about Recruiterbox right now.

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