5 People You Need to Have on Your Startup’s Payroll

[This article was written by Anica Oaks.]

Staring your own company may have been a dream of yours for years. When it finally takes flight, there tends to be a lot more responsibilities than you initially thought there would be. Because of this, it’s important to start out with the right employees, in the right positions. Here are five different types of people you need to have on your payroll to get your startup off the ground.

Marketing Manager

Finding your first customers all starts with marketing your business. Find someone who has experience in a gritty startup roll to run all of your marketing campaigns. This initial person will need to wear many marketing hats, so they should know about everything from website design and copy to advertising and lead conversion. At the very least, this person will be at the helm ensuring that your brand gets out there to potential consumers.

Product Manager

Your product manager will be your go-to person in respect to everything that you produce. They need to have a solid grasp on your company vision, what your customers want and need, and how to get that to them. This person will be managing most of the work on the ground and will relay the needs from higher-level management to employees, and vice versa. It’s important that this person has strong communication skills and works well as part of the team. The product manager plays a key role in making sure that your products get created and sold efficiently.

Sales Manager

The next person who should be added to your payroll is your sales manager. This is the person who is responsible for creating relationships with clients and getting your products sold in the marketplace. They will handle everything from inducting new client information to ensuring the proper delivery of the goods. The sales manager will work closely with the marketing manager in helping to get potential customers through the conversion funnel. It’s often smart to hire the marketing manager and sales manager as a team together, and finding people who have worked together in the past can be an added bonus.

Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Knowing where your money is going and how much you’re truly making is an important part of your CFO’s job. They will take care of all aspects of handling the company’s finances to ensure your future success. There is a lot of technical legal paperwork that needs to be taken care of to make sure your business stays out of the red in the first year, and your CFO will be a huge part in making sure all of that gets done. From setting necessary budgets to managing the payroll software or finding ways to reduce operation costs, your CFO will always play a key role in your business.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

The CEO is the person in charge of the big picture view of the company. They set the culture, the vision, and the goals for the company over the long-term. Instead of focusing on the day to day operations, the CEO is in charge of ensuring that your business is moving in a positive direction. While you may be tempted to deem yourself CEO of the company, it is a smart move to bring in someone else who has managed a growing startup before, particularly if this is your first time at it.

As a startup, understanding who to hire can be a big challenge at first. Many times, company owners will find that they wait way too long to hire for the positions that they need. The above are five different positions that should be filled for your startup to ensure that you have the staff you need to flourish going into the future.

Author Bio:

Anica is a professional content and copywriter who graduated from the University of San Francisco. She loves dogs, the ocean, and anything outdoor-related. You can connect with Anica on Twitter @AnicaOaks.