Tech startups often do not have an experienced and efficient HR department, making it very important for startup founders to know how to hire and retain great employees. In this post, Chris Franks explains why employees may leave startups, and what startup founders can do so that their employees are motivated to stay.
Chris Franks is the Head of Growth at Schoolrunner and a Contributor at MadSmarts. He was previously the Co-Founder of RealGood Technologies, and the Founder and CEO of Moblify.
The article "How Tech Startups Can Recruit and Keep Awesome Employees" originally appeared on Chris Frank's LinkedIn. It has been republished below with permission.
"Why is there so much turnover in the tech world?
I've worked at big companies. They sucked, and I quit. For me, it was a clash of culture. Work was no fun.
The tech startup world, on the other hand, is obsessed with making work fun. They build slides in their office (that few people use). They have ping pong tables (that become work-spaces). They stock their fridge with tasty snacks (vegan and gluten free). They even have free beer for their staff (which is pretty damn awesome). They do all this stuff and offer competitive salaries, 401Ks, stock options and more.
You would think that tech startups have created a panacea where no one would ever leave. Where every employee would have to be dragged out kicking and screaming if asked to do so.
In my experience, this is not true. There is still plenty of employee turnover. Some companies do a better job keeping their employees, but almost every startup I know has lost an employee or two over the last few months.
The Grass is Greener
In part, this turnover can be attributed to the transient nature of today's workforce. People get bored easily. Don't have the "company loyalty" of previous generations. They want to (and often believe) they should progress quickly through their career path, and when their company doesn't promote them quickly enough, they look for diagonal jumps to companies that might give them a shot to move up faster.
In my opinion, this does not tell the whole story. I believe there is something deeper at play here, and it has to do with the human condition and our search for meaning. (Things just got deep!)
The Search For Meaningful Work
I believe that a lot of the turnover in the tech world is caused by a simple fact. People don't believe in their work.
Yes, they work with a great team of smart people. Yes, their office is fun. Yes, they get paid a reasonable salary for their skill set. But they're still not happy. The question is why?
I believe, the answer is simple. Their work has no meaning. They can not connect the time they spend working with anything that they believe will make the world a better place. There is a divide between their passions and their profession.
A Better Way
I'm lucky. I work with a team of smart people who have fun and work in an office with tasty gluten-free snacks and beer (and a foosball table). However, this job is different. Unlike other companies I worked for (including ones that I founded) this team is passionate not only about building a great company but also building a better world.
The Schoolrunner team has set their focus on changing K-12 education. Our team gets up every morning inspired by the work of great teachers and great schools, and we work our asses off to give these amazing professionals the tools they need to be even more awesome. In short, we believe our work matters. We believe our work can lead to building a better world, and yes, we're hiring.
Like any startup, we still have employee turnover. There are good times and bad times (often in the span of a single day). But this company feels different from the ones I've been with in the past.
Lessons for Startups - Culture Matters
When my startup friends get together for beers, we often talk about culture. How do you build a great culture? How do you maintain that startup vibe as you grow? They get annoyed when I chime in. Schoolrunner is just different.
Like every startup, we think about culture and invest in building our team but we attract a different type of employee. Each of us is here because we believe in a purpose bigger than ourselves. We believe that our work should be meaningful. We're here to make the world a better place. When you get a group of motivated smart people like that together in one room, amazing things happen, and our culture is the beneficiary.
Schoolrunner is the first company I've ever worked in where the passion of the employees drives the culture. We are all inspired to be great because we work with great schools.
Guy Kawasaki said it best. First make meaning."
If you're interested in working at Schoolrunner shoot us an email - hello@schoolrunner.org
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