Episode 39: Hiring in the Creative Industry

Show Notes for This Episode:

[1:00] This week we’re talking all about hiring and delegating
[1:45] The hosts have different levels of experience when it comes to hiring
[2:15] Dustin started by himself and then hired a virtual assistant working for 10h a week, then moved on to a more skilled person on a 20h contract, and then later to a 40h contractor and also hires freelancers for one off projects
[3:00] Ian also started on his own and sometimes outsources his work, such as using a designer for creating the previews for his typefaces and other products
[4:00] He hasn’t hired any people or virtual assistants
[4:20] Lisa has hired while working as a graphic designer and art director and since she’s been a full-time illustrator has hired a designer to help with a bit of Photoshop work
[5:15] She doesn’t have a problem with hiring but thinks she’s not very good a training and admits she is a bit of a “control freak’
[6:00] Ian and Lisa have very unique styles and it’s a bit difficult to hire people to do their work
[6:40] This came much easier for Dustin as his business is more of a general brand
[7:10] The hosts aim to find a solution for Lisa’s hiring problems
[7:30] While working on his blog Tom used to outsource some of his work
[7:45] Now at Design Cuts, Tom works with a team of 10 people and around 6 freelancers and had to also hire 2 temps to help
[8:00] Tom has learned everything through trial and error
[8:30] Now with four years of experience he sees things in a different light
[9:00] You should hire someone, if you can afford it financially, as this is generally the only way to grow
[9:30] It is a huge stress relief being able to pass some of the more mechanical work to someone else
[9:50] Dustin hired to relieve the stress of having to deal with the emails
[10:20] Tom constantly had his phone with him, checked emails while he was away with friends and has only been able to move away from emails in the last 10 months
[12:00] Ian doesn’t have to deal with many emails coming in and doesn’t feel the stress as much while on holidays
[13:00] He felt more pressured while doing webdesign work
[13:45] He also does more of his social media posts on the day and is not very good at planning the posts before hand
[14:30] The ‘spare of the moment’ posts end up being his most popular
[15:20] Dustin mentions the book “Principles” in which the author talks about the concept of triangulation
[15:45] You can find fresh ideas for your business by talking to two people with opposing thoughts than yourself
[16:20] Applying the triangulation concept to his business, led Dustin to launching a “The I want it all box” which was a mix of digital and a physical product
[17:00] The hosts cover the benefits of hiring: e.g. being able to go on a holiday
[17:40] Tom suggests Lisa should get someone to help her convert the illustrations into digital products
[18:10] Lisa fears that she doesn’t have enough of this type of work to give to a freelancer
[18:40] She worries that there won’t be anyone interested in the work she needs done, as they will need to do a little bit of everything
[19:20] Part of being a designer is communicating to people via email
[19:50] Most new designers dream of getting a job doing admin and learning from an established designer
[20:20] Lisa doesn’t want to feel responsible for the person’s living and worries if she will have enough work for them
[21:20] Tom got in touch with Allie, a designer recommended by Dustin, to do some freelance design work for Design Cuts and both Tom and Allie are very pleased with the arrangement
[22:00] As a young designer, Tom would have loved to work for a company like Design Cuts
[22:40] Ian recommends Lisa first starts a relationship with a designer that is flexible
[23:10] Ian works with a designer who has a daily job but helps him with work in her spare time
[23:40] Dustin also worried about being responsible for another person when he first hired
[24:30] Tom thinks that Lisa needs to change her mindset, and think she is doing something positive and helping that person
[25:00] He also thinks if the relationship works, she will end up giving them more work
[25:30] Tom thinks Lisa will be consistent and have plenty of work and emails
[26:00] Once you’re one step through the door, the work will gradually increase
[26:40] Dustin believes that Lisa could get products out faster if she had some help
[27:15] Another reason that stops Lisa from hiring is the worry that she will have enough time to teach and train someone to do the job
[28:00] Ian uses Dustin’s example and suggests giving the new person the ropes of the trade and then sending them away for a period to learn the job
[28:40] Tom might consider implementing this at Design Cuts
[29:10] When you don’t have the time to learn a new skill, the new person will come in useful as they could learn it, and use this skill for your business
[29:40] This will either free you time to launch new products or learn something new
[30:30] Famous designers like Charles Schulz and Walt Disney, also started alone and now their companies employ a lot of designers to replicate their work
[31:30] Tom’s suggestion to Lisa is pick a job that she doesn’t like doing and hire someone to do this job
[32:10] If everyone insisted on doing every job themselves, there will be no industry and unemployment would be high
[32:40] Dustin thinks Lisa should spread the word on social that she is looking to hire, and she will get a huge interest from the audience
[33:20] Working with a freelancer or a team also gives you a nice feeling of companionship
[34:00] Lisa wonders how the training works for a person who works remotely
[34:30] There is a job for everyone and people enjoy doing a lot of different things
[36:00] Tom gives the example of hiring Lizzy and explains how hard this was as it required a lot of different skills
[37:00] Tom finds that now Lizzy is doing a better job than he did, as he was spreading himself too thin
[37:30] You need to put out a job description, listing the skills required and you will be surprised that you can find someone who is interested and can actually do the job
[38:15] If you’re interested in working for Lisa, please let us know
[38:40] The biggest benefit of hiring and delegating your work is what you can do with your available time
[39:15] Lisa has about 20 products in her mind, and she doesn’t know when she will be able to launch them
[39:50] Hiring is possible and there are so many benefits to it
[40:10] Ian suggests having a trial period, and Tom suggests doing a half day trial as part of the interview. This is something he started doing at Design Cuts recently
[40:40] This is great way of seeing how the person is on the job and makes it easier to decide who to hire from the shortlist
[41:40] Dustin found the trial period a good way of finding what the person is good or not good at doing the job
[42:30] He thinks it is important to adjust to the things the person’s good at and their wins
[43:10] Tom has allowed employees to implement some of the things their interested in into the role and made this work
[43:30] Dustin found the more people he works with the richer the business gets
[44:00] You will have a pool of people with lots of ideas but will still be able to retain control and have the final say
[44:30] Lisa wonders how did the other hosts feel about allowing someone else’s design aesthetics to represent the company
[45:00] Dustin believes the employees will acclimate to the designer’s style
[45:30] Ian looks at the style the audience is looking for
[46:00] At the beginning there will be many rounds of feedback
[46:50] Lisa has a lot to take in from all the information the other hosts provided
[47:20] Ian reiterates that Lisa just needs to give it a try with one hire
[48:00] Lisa admits she had a very bad experience with firing someone
[49:00] The law in South Africa makes it harder to fire someone and Lisa has struggled with it for a long time
[49:50] This is likely one of the reasons Lisa is so reserved about hiring now
[50:30] Firing someone is the worst part of any job
[51:30] If and when you’re firing someone think that you’re also protecting the business and your other employees
[52:00] Tom suggests it’s better to do it earlier – the longer you leave it the harder it will get
[53:00] It’s also good to be vigilant and see early on if the person is a good fit for the company
[53:40] The hosts decide to feature a whole episode on managing and training the new employee and Dustin also suggests covering the topic of project management
[54:30] Lisa promised her husband that she will hire someone in the new year
[55:20] If the need and opportunity to hire comes along, take advantage of it
[55:40] The benefits and the good experiences will definitely top the bad ones
[56:00] “If you continually find out you’re putting of the same job, you should definitely delegate it” – Tom Ross
[57:00] Thank you all for listening to this week’s episode