First Key Employee
Hey everyone, we have a remodeling company and made my first big hire and I don't think he's the right fit. this employee is very expensive and does not produce enough for the company. What are some ...
Forum Discussion
Hiring that first key person is a major move, and it shows you’re serious about growth. A lot of us have been where you are realizing after the fact that the fit might not be right.
Here’s something I always come back to:
Who exactly are you hiring for and what problem are they supposed to solve?
A lot of contractors hire out of frustration or pressure, but don’t slow down to define what the business actually needs at that stage.
Do you need:
• A helper to support you while you still lead from the field?
• A journeyman who can take jobs off your plate and generate revenue?
• An office manager to clean up scheduling, admin, and back-end chaos?
Each one solves a different problem, and comes with different costs, expectations, and time-to-return.
Now, here’s the part that most guys overlook:
Even if you hire the “right person,” if you don’t have training, structure, and expectations in place.
You can’t just throw someone into the field and hope they perform.
Leadership means preparing them to win.
So here’s what I’d recommend moving forward:
1. Clarify the pain point.
What bottleneck is slowing the business down? Field work? Admin? Growth?
2. Choose the right hire for that problem.
Not just based on skill, but on how you want your role to evolve.
3. Build a basic onboarding plan.
Even 1 week of shadowing, a checklist, or “this is how we do things” goes a long way.
4. Measure output, not just activity.
Track how they’re contributing, whether it’s revenue, saved time, or customer satisfaction.
I put together a visual framework that breaks this down, it helped me to start hiring with intention.