We’ve been partnering with the Miller Center for nearly a year now, focusing on enhancing leadership development programming for social entrepreneurs addressing critical global challenges.
Linda Keegan, a Miller Center Executive Fellow and head Leadership Coach, is one of our allies there, focused on leadership coaching for social entrepreneurs. In a recent interview Linda poses a tough question:
“I’m a social entrepreneur, and I’m smart. I start a business, it’s successful, I hire five, ten people, I have a team — and then what? Now I’m managing people, and I have to fire my best friend. What am I supposed to do?”
Linda says that managers tend to hire too quickly and fire too slowly, when it should be the other way around. She recommends that you treat an employee’s first three months as a trial period. Look for red flags, and if you see them, be ready to say, “I made a mistake.”
I also recommend taking time in hiring. In addition to the usual measures such as academic record, job experience, and recommendations, do not stop calling references and former employers of a candidate until you come across at least two negatives that you can live with. That takes asking better questions and thinking more deeply about the job you’re hiring for and the picture of the employee the reference is painting.
Read the full interview with Linda Keegan on the Miller Center blog