Does it feel like there simply aren’t enough hours in your day, and that you’re just not getting things done? 

If the answer is yes, and you’re feeling that your work and your time in your HMO business is becoming less and less productive, it’s probably an indication that you’re getting overwhelmed with the sheer number of tasks being thrown at you. 

And if that’s the case, then it’s probably time to start thinking about hiring a member of staff to help you out. 

However, hiring your first member of staff is easier said than done. The process doesn’t happen overnight, and there are numerous things you have to consider to make sure the person you hire will be a great help to you and your HMO business.

You have to know exactly who you’re looking for when you should look for them, and how you’re going to hire them. And with all of these considerations, the process of hiring your first member of staff can definitely be daunting! 

That’s why in this blog, I’ll be sharing with you the three-step approach I take to recruiting every single member of staff into my own HMO business. I’ll be teaching you the WHO, the WHEN, and the HOW. 

However, before we get into the details, it’s important to say that, who we decide to recruit and the skills we need them to have will be different for each of us. That’s because we each have our own strengths and weaknesses, our businesses all look and function differently and what we want to achieve is different for all of us. 

By the end of this blog, you’ll be on your way to focusing on higher-level tasks that will be more beneficial to you and your growing HMO portfolio business, and this means you can start working ON the business, as opposed to always working IN it. Sound good?

Let’s get started!

WHO

The very first thing that you need to do is to identify the role of the person that you want to hire. Write down every single job that happens in your HMO business on a daily, weekly, and even monthly basis. By doing this, you’ll be able to build a map of your processes, and it will help you figure out where your strengths and weaknesses lie.  And be honest about your weaknesses!

By writing it all down, you’ll start to see some patterns emerge and you’ll realise that perhaps other aspects of your business need more of your attention than you first thought! 

And the most important thing about this step is that you’ll be able to see a full picture of what the potential role of your first staff member might look like. Once you’ve got that, you can mould this into a specific job description that you can use to get applications. 

But, based on my personal experience, it’s likely that the first role that you’ll be looking to fill is an admin role. Administrative tasks are usually low-level (and rarely income-generating), but they can take up so much of your time. So opening up an administrative role will free you from these time-consuming tasks and enable you to focus on the higher-value ones like formulating sales and marketing strategies or developing important network connections. 

WHEN

Now, let’s talk about when you should be hiring. 

You’ll want to start thinking about your first hire well before you actually need them. What I mean by this is, you should plan to recruit your first staff member with plenty of time so that you’re not bringing them into a chaotic environment. 

With this in mind, how do you determine exactly when? It’s so easy to get lost in the business that you barely find time to think about these things. So ask yourself —

Is your business suffering from a lack of time? 

Are things not getting done? 

Are you not bringing the results you want? 

Are you not driving enough revenue? 

If you answer yes to the above questions, then you really should start looking into hiring your first staff member immediately to avoid further problems. But don’t forget, you have to make sure you’re prepared to bring someone on board. This means that you have to be on top of your cash flow to make sure you can pay them, and you need to have processes and systems in place so you can induct them into a well-managed environment. If you don’t do this, the chances are they might not come back for a second day in the office!

HOW

Making the wrong decision when recruiting somebody into your business can be a very expensive mistake, which is why we have to make sure that we recruit in the right way. 

You can either hire someone who’s in the UK if you need them to work in an office, or you can consider a virtual assistant (VA) because it can be less expensive to hire overseas. It’s all about figuring out what the position you’re hiring for needs because some roles need your staff members to be based in the UK. 

Once you have figured out whether you need a local-based staff member or a VA, you now have to prepare the job specification and a list of roles and responsibilities for the person you’re looking to hire, and this will form the basis of your job description. This is also the chance for you to introduce your business and create a description that will attract candidates who fit your requirements. 

After posting your job offer, review the applications you have received and consider directing applicants to an online form with some questions that will help you get to know them a little better. Aside from gaining a deeper insight into who they really are, this is also a good way to see if they are really committed to the application. 

From this pool of shortlisted applicants, you can now invite a handful of people to interview. This is your chance to not only learn about their skills but also their values as well. And remember, you can teach new skills, but you can’t teach values!

The interview process is your opportunity to extract the answers you need to know, so plan your questions in advance and ask questions that will help you establish their ability to fulfil the role. In the end, you want someone who has the autonomy to confidently execute the things that need to be done. 

The goal of hiring a new staff member is to create more time for yourself, so you can focus on the most important tasks that enable you to grow your business. 

Having a great team is crucial to the success of your business, and once you have the right people in place, the sky really is the limit. 

So there you go, I hope my three-step process has inspired you to take the first step and hire your first member of staff that will help you scale and systemise your HMO business.

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About the Author:

Andy Graham is the founder and the lead trainer at The HMO Roadmap! He is also the co-founder of The HMO Mastermind and Smart Property, a specialist HMO property investment and management company. He writes as a regular columnist in different magazines about a variety of HMO topics and is the host of The HMO Podcast! Follow Andy on Instagram!