Podcasts about hirebetter

What if the people you trust most in your business are actually holding you back? In this episode, host Brien Gearin is joined by Kurt Wilkin, co-founder and CEO of HireBetter and author of Who's Your Mike?. Kurt dives deep into the challenges entrepreneurs face when it comes to building and scaling teams. From identifying when your loyal "Mike" might be out of their depth to avoiding the pitfalls of "silver bullet hires," Kurt shares actionable advice and relatable anecdotes to help business owners get the right people in the right roles. Kurt also discusses the power of fractional talent, how to identify your team's gaps, and the key traits he looks for when investing in companies. With insights from his book and podcast, Unlocking Moves, Kurt empowers entrepreneurs to recognize their opportunities and seize them. Whether you're scaling your startup or navigating tough hiring decisions, this episode is packed with value you don't want to miss! What we discuss with Kurt: + The “Mike” Problem: Loyal team members outgrowing roles + Silver Bullet Hires: Why expensive hires often fail + Fractional Talent: Affordable access to expert help + Identifying Team Gaps: Understanding what your business needs + Harry the Hustler: Top salesperson ≠ great leader + Resume Ralph: Impressive resumes don't guarantee success + Promotion Trap: Safely testing employees in new roles + Setting Hires Up: Tools and systems for new hire success + The Power of Grit: Why grit matters in entrepreneurs + Unlocking Moves: Seizing game-changing opportunities Thank you, Kurt! Check out HireBetter at HireBetter.com. Check out Bee Cave Capital at BeeCaveCapital.com. Purchase a copy of Who's Your Mike? at WhosYourMike.com. Follow Kurt on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Listen to the Unlocking Moves podcast. Follow Unlocking Moves on Instagram. Watch the video podcast of this episode! And follow us on: Instagram Facebook Tik Tok Youtube Twitter To get exclusive offers mentioned in this episode and to support the show, visit millionaireuniversity.com/sponsors. Want to hear from more incredible entrepreneurs? Check out all of our interviews here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In episode 149, Coffey talks with Kurt Wilkin about people leadership in entrepreneurial firms.They discuss the premise behind Kurt's book "Who's Your Mike," which focuses on the different kinds of workplace personalities encountered as an entrepreneurial firm matures; the evolution of HR in entrepreneurial businesses; common misconceptions that entrepreneurs have about people practices; what HR professionals often misunderstand about working in entrepreneurial firms; finding the balance between tactical and strategic HR; and the keys to building a successful culture in a growing firm.Mentioned in the episode:Kurt's book, Who's Your Mike?: A No-Bullshit Guide to the People You'll Meet on Your Entrepreneurial Journey: https://a.co/d/4BgnGchExceprt from Who's Your Mike?: HR Rhoda: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/hydaddz5jfo84znstzd2w/12.-Who-s-Your-Mike_-HR-Rhoda.pdf?rlkey=52au278hhaevml73lesm7182d&e=1&dl=0All-In Podcast Episode 168: https://youtu.be/-Am0vMW3fA0?si=LeH5WLnE8mO4CA77&t=1855Good Morning, HR is brought to you by Imperative—Bulletproof Background Checks. For more information about our commitment to quality and excellent customer service, visit us at https://imperativeinfo.com. If you are an HRCI or SHRM-certified professional, this episode of Good Morning, HR has been pre-approved for half a recertification credit. To obtain the recertification information for this episode, visit https://goodmorninghr.com. About our Guest:Kurt Wilkin is a gifted connector—of dots, ideas, and people.For the past 30 years, he has advised high-growth companies, starting his career with Ernst & Young, and today in his roles as Chairman of HireBetter and Managing Partner of Bee Cave Capital. He's a serial entrepreneur with multiple successful exits and has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs and CEOs build their own companies.Kurt Wilkin can be reached at:https://www.HireBetter.com https://www.WhosYourMike.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/kurt-wilkin https://twitter.com/KurtWilkin About Mike Coffey:Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, human resources professional, licensed private investigator, and HR consultant.In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations firm helping risk-averse companies make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business.Today, Imperative serves hundreds of businesses across the US and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies.Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence and has twice been named HR Professional of the Year. Additionally, Imperative has been named the Texas Association of Business' small business of the year and is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association. Mike is a member of the Fort Worth chapter of the Entrepreneurs' Organization and volunteers with the SHRM Texas State Council.Mike maintains his certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) through the HR Certification Institute. He is also a SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP).Mike lives in Fort Worth with his very patient wife. He practices yoga and maintains a keto diet, about both of which he will gladly tell you way more than you want to know.Learning Objectives:1. Understand the evolution of the role of HR as entrepreneurial businesses grow.2. Identify common people challenges entrepreneurial organizations face.3. Learn strategies for balancing tactical and strategic HR to build a successful culture.

Welcome to the "Secrets of #Fail," a new pod storm series hosted by Matt Brown. In this series of 2023, Matt dives deep into the world of failures and lessons learned along the way from high-net-worth individuals.  Join Matt as he dives into the world of failures and lessons.Series: Secret of #FailHireBetter was built by seasoned entrepreneurs who have grown and exited successful businesses. Get an interview on the Matt Brown Show: www.mattbrownshow.comSupport the show

Today we're reposting an episode of the Unlocking Moves Podcast where Erik sat down with host Kurt Wilkin to discuss Erik's journey to becoming the bestselling author and sought after motivational speaker that he is today. Erik tells the stories behind his famous green glasses, how he came up with the name Equalman, what led to Erik giving the commencement speech at Michigan State University this year, and he breaks down the term flawsome.   The Unlocking Moves show dives into the pivotal moments in an entrepreneur's journey that unlocked their true potential. Many business leaders only like to talk about their success stories - but Kurt Wilkin is a firm believer that we learn more from the stumbles and mistakes.   Learn more about HireBetter https://www.HireBetter.com Follow HireBetter on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/2S9sigx   5x #1 Bestselling Author and Motivational Speaker Erik Qualman has performed in over 55 countries and reached over 50 million people this past decade. He was voted the 2nd Most Likable Author in the World behind Harry Potter's J.K. Rowling.   Have Erik speak at your conference: eq@equalman.com   Motivational Speaker | Erik Qualman has inspired audiences at FedEx, Chase, ADP, Huawei, Starbucks, Godiva, FBI, Google, and many more on Focus and Digital Leadership.   Learn more at https://equalman.com

In this episode we dive into a topic that resonates with all of us: salary negotiation. I'm your host, Allen Plunkett, and joining me on this episode are three remarkable guests, Amy Ancira from HireBetter, Keld Jensen from Thunderbird School of Global Management, and Rinkan Patel, a friend and seasoned professional with expertise spanning various industries. In this episode, we explore the art of negotiation from different angles. Amy kicks off the discussion by shedding light on the importance of creating safe spaces for open conversations between employees and employers. Keld Jensen, drawing from his extensive negotiation experience, shares invaluable insights on transforming negotiation from a confrontational win-lose scenario to a collaborative venture where both parties gain asymmetric value. Rinkan Patel, in his dual role as a hiring manager and a candidate, emphasizes the significance of preparation, realistic expectations, and recognizing various levers of compensation in negotiation. The conversation also touches on the evolving landscape of remote work and the challenges it presents for both employers and employees. So, if you're looking to understand the dynamics involved before you walk into that negotiation, you won't want to miss this insightful episode. Remember, negotiation isn't a conflict; it's a collaboration where both sides can find value and achieve their goals. Thanks again for listening to Rewired Mind. Allen   Allen Plunkett website | Allen Plunkett LinkedIn Amy Ancira LinkedIn Keld Jensen website | Keld Jensen LinkedIn Rinkan Patel LinkedIn

Guest: Kurt Wilkin, Co-Founder and former CEO of HireBetter and a Managing Partner of Bee Cave Capital. Kurt is also the author of a new book, Who's Your Mike? A No-BS Guide to the People You'll Meet on Your Entrepreneurial Journey. Overview: A fast-growing company will only keep accelerating towards BIG if it has the right people working the right jobs. Sometimes CEOs can maintain that alignment with a mission and values system that inspires good performers to become great. In other cases, CEOs need the courage to make difficult decisions and the EQ to help folks exit the company as gracefully as possible.  On today's show, Kurt Wilkin discusses how CEOs can avoid some common people challenges and assemble next-level teams that will Make BIG Happen. 

  "Most entrepreneurs are reactive with their hiring, but I'm more of a big picture guy. I want to have more of a strategy. So we've developed a strategic approach to recruiting, including assessing your existing team against a future state chart." - Kurt Wilkin   Kurt Wilkin Kurt Wilkin is the co-founder of HireBetter and author of Who's Your Mike? His book explores the characters entrepreneurs encounter in their journey to success.   In this episode you will learn: How a strategic approach to recruitment can help entrepreneurs solve tough hiring problems Why you should be wary of hiring people to be a “quick fix.” The potential pitfalls of promoting from within Episode Resources: Whosyourmike.com Who's Your Mike Quiz HireBetter.com Kurt on Twitter Kurt on LinkedIn Catch up on our last 3 episodes: Brand Evangelism, Self-Awareness and Clarity with Alexis Scott Community, Learning, Golf and Sales with Jeff Bajorek, Scott Leese and Larry Long Jr. Unlock Value with Customer Led Growth with Georgiana Laudi Connect With Us! Instagram YouTube Twitter LinkedIn www.catalystsale.com Please share this podcast episode with friends and colleagues and leave us a review and rating via your favorite podcast platform.  

On this episode of Investor Connect, Hall welcomes Kurt Wilkin, CEO of HireBetter, Managing Partner of Bee Cave Capital, and Author of the book  “Who's Your Mike?”. For over 25 years, Kurt has advised high-growth, middle-market companies. Through his roles as CEO of HireBetter and a Managing Partner of Bee Cave Capital, he had the opportunity to work with hundreds of entrepreneurs and CEOs—challenging and inspiring them to take their companies to that much-hyped “next-level.” But before Kurt got to where he is now, he worked in some challenging roles. His goal in writing is to pull back the curtain on the business world and take the reader on the real entrepreneurial journey—bumps and all. No one gets to the top overnight without falling and making mistakes. He hopes to inspire and help others on their path by telling his stories. Kurt is a  firm believer that business success is all about having the right people. During his career, he has been fortunate to work with hundreds of interesting companies. He hopes his book will inspire, challenge, and entertain you as you chart your course, wherever it may take you. Kurt shares a bit of everything he had encountered in his business life, the inspiration behind his book, and much more.  You can visit Kurt at , via LinkedIn at , via Twitter at , and via email at .   You can purchase his book from his website or from Amazon, at . _______________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at:    Check out our other podcasts here:   For Investors check out:   For Startups check out:   For eGuides check out:   For upcoming Events, check out    For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group    Please , share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of .

As an entrepreneur, Kurt has experience growing, scaling, and exiting high-growth companies and now devotes his time to helping business leaders unlock their own success. Through his roles as the Co-Founder at HireBetter and Managing Partner at Bee Cave Capital, he's had the opportunity to work with hundreds of entrepreneurs and CEOs—challenging and inspiring them to take their companies to that much hyped “next-level.” Kurt began his career with Ernst & Young, and prior to founding HireBetter, Kurt founded and led The Controller Group (TCG), a professional services  An alumnus of the University of Arkansas, Kurt is a Certified Public Accountant and an active member and officer of Young Presidents' Organization (YPO). Kurt is passionate about entrepreneurship, is an active angel investor and sits on the boards of several companies and nonprofits. He lives in Austin with his wife and three sons and can usually be found coaching youth sports around town.

Kurt Wilkin is a trusted advisor for high-growth, middle-market companies as founder and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital and Co-Founder of HireBetter. With a passion for growth and a hard-earned, proven set of tools in his toolbox, Wilkin works with other entrepreneurs and CEOs to help them escape the start-up mindset and achieve next-level success. “Keep grinding. It's hard work, it's glorified when you see Mark Zuckerberg and Steve jobs of the world… But it's a grind and it's worth it if you can continue the journey”…[Listen for More] Click Here for Show Notes To Listen or to Get the Show Notes go to https://wp.me/p6Tf4b-nuj

CEO of HireBetter and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital. Episode page with video, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #193 of the My Favorite Mistake podcast is Kurt Wilkin, a co-founder and CEO of HireBetter and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital. His bio says he's “coach, mentor, entrepreneur… and proud mistake-maker.” Prior to founding HireBetter, Kurt founded and led The Controller Group (TCG), a professional services firm focused on accounting, technology and recruiting, which was acquired by Tatum in 2006. He's the author of a new book, Who's Your Mike?: A No-Bullshit Guide to the People You'll Meet on Your Entrepreneurial Journey. You can learn more at WhosYourMike.com. His quiz that he mentioned in the episode: WHOSYOURMIKE.COM/QUIZ In this episode, Kurt tells his favorite mistake story about not having a complementary “execution partner” to help him run a business. How (and why) did he adjust? Why did he step aside from the CEO role and what did he learn from this entire experience that serves him well today? We also talk about questions and topics, including: What does it mean to you to be a “proud mistake maker”??” How do you try to create a culture where people can also be proud mistake makers? Leading by example? Investing in people who are humble enough to learn… Learning from mistakes vs. avoiding company-killing mistakes? You've said that you saw your dad struggle as an entrepreneur. Were you able to learn from any of his mistakes? You joined a failed startup in the dot-com bubble… any lessons learned from that? Mistake to try to swing for the fences vs. lifestyle cashflow positive business TELL US ABOUT THE BOOK: A business book for people who hate business books? Find Kurt on social media: LinkedIn Twitter --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/favorite-mistake/support

On this episode of the Startup of the Year Podcast, we hear from Kurt Wilkin, who is the CEO at HireBetter (HireBetter.com), which is a national recruiting firm working directly with leaders of high-growth companies to build game-changing teams. He is also the Founder and a Partner at Bee Cave Capital, a Texas-based early-stage venture group that invests in Texas companies who are making a difference in a variety of industries.   Kurt is also the author of “Who's Your Mike?: A No-Bullshit Guide to the People You'll Meet on Your Entrepreneurial Journey.” Grab yourself a copy today at: whosyourmike.com   We also again talk about our virtual event we are hosting on December 13th, which concludes our “Grow Your Startup” series. This virtual event will feature five companies from our community, who will be pitching their ideas to investor judges and a global audience. The event timeline, the application, and the event registration can be found at: soty.link/growpitch2022   We also again shine a spotlight on one of the startups from our community and that company is ClearCOGS, which builds a proprietary “crystal ball” to empower restaurant operators with specific tools and information, including demand predictions, that they need to make proactive decisions and reduce management stress, labor inefficiencies, and food waste. Learn more about them by visiting: clearcogs.com   Lastly, we invite you all to join our community today to access the support, expert advice, and resources you need to elevate your startup by going to: www.est.us/join     Thank you for listening, and as always, please check out the Established website and subscribe to the newsletter at www.est.us   Checkout Startup of the Year at www.startupofyear.com   Subscribe to the Startup of the Year Daily Deal Flow: www.startupofyear.com/daily-dealflow   Subscribe to the Startup of the Year podcast: www.podcast.startupofyear.com   Subscribe to the Established YouTube Channel: soty.link/ESTYouTube   *** Startup of the Year helps diverse, emerging startups, founding teams, and entrepreneurs push their company to the next level. We are a competition, a global community, and a resource.     Startup of the Year is also a year-long program that searches the country for a geographically diverse set of startups from all backgrounds and pulls them together to compete for the title of Startup of the Year.    The program includes a number of in-person and virtual events, including our annual South By Southwest startup pitch event and competition. All of which culminate at our annual Startup of the Year Summit, where the Startup of the Year winner is announced, along with an opportunity at a potential investment.   Established is a consultancy focused on helping organizations with innovation, startup, and communication strategies. It is the power behind Startup of the Year.  Created by the talent responsible for building the Tech.Co brand (acquired by an international publishing company), we are leveraging decades of experience to help our collaborators best further (or create) their brand & accomplish their most important goals.  Connect with us on Twitter - @EstablishedUs and Facebook - facebook.com/established.us

The Shred is a weekly roundup of who's raised funds, who's been acquired and who's on the move in the world of recruitment. The Shred is brought to you by Recruitology.

Kurt Wilkin, co-founder of HireBetter, tells Loren Feldman he thinks concerns about a recession are largely media-driven, but if your business is slowing, this might be a good time to reevaluate your team: Are you happy with everyone you've hired? Plus: What does it mean that wages kept rising in the third quarter? Should job listings include salary ranges? And what would Kurt tell business owners who struggle with compensating themselves?

Kurt Wilkin is a gifted connector—of dots, ideas, and people. For the past thirty years, he has advised high-growth companies, starting his career with Ernst & Young, and today in his roles as co-founder and visionary of HireBetter and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital. He is a serial entrepreneur with multiple successful exits and has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs and CEOs build their companies. His website Overwhelmed? Snag the free guide, 10 Quick Ways to Conquer Overwhelm! It's my gift to you. http://OverwhelmSucks.com WHO IS MARK STRUCZEWSKI? Mark “Ski” Struczewski (also known as Mister Productivity) is a productivity expert that is obsessed with helping 100 million solopreneurs bust through overwhelm by 2032.

Kurt Wilkin is a trusted advisor for high-growth, middle-market companies as founder and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital and Co-Founder of HireBetter. With a passion for growth and a hard-earned, proven set of tools in his toolbox, Wilkin works with other entrepreneurs and CEOs to help them escape the start-up mindset and achieve next-level success. His debut book, Who's Your Mike? A No-Bullshit Guide to the People You'll Meet on Your Entrepreneurial Journey, Kurt reveals how entrepreneurs can transform their companies by minimizing hiring mistakes, investing in high potentials and making the difficult decisions to drop dead weight from their team.Main Topics Kurt's professional journey, from becoming a CPA to launching his own firm to buying the company HireBetter (2:13) Why Kurt believes The Great Resignation is a myth and how to find employees who are dedicated to making an impact rather than just a paycheck (5:25) Are employees looking for more money or more fulfillment? (9:07) How to hire people beyond just what you can see on a resume and how to hire “A-players” (11:00) Kurt's book Who's Your Mike? and how to know when it's time to move on from an employee (15:10) Episode Links Leadership Tactics with Sergeant Major Kyle Lamb Episode 203: Part 1 Episode 204: Part 2 https://whosyourmike.com https://whosyourmike.com/quiz/ Connect with Kurt:https://www.kurtwilkin.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/kurt-wilkin-7345255/https://twitter.com/kurtwilkinConnect with Adam:https://www.startwithawin.com/https://www.facebook.com/AdamContosCEOhttps://twitter.com/AdamContosCEOhttps://www.instagram.com/adamcontosceo/Listen, rate, and subscribe!Apple Podcasts Spotify Google PodcastsToday's episode was brought to you by RE/MAX, nobody in the world sells more real estate than RE/MAX. For more information head over to www.REMAX.com

Join us on Be Brave at Work as we speak with Kurt Wilkin. As founder and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital and Co-Founder of HireBetter, Kurt is a trusted advisor for high-growth, middle-market companies. With a passion for growth and a hard-earned, proven set of tools in his toolbox, Wilkin works with other entrepreneurs and CEOs to help them escape the start-up mindset and achieve next-level success. Links of Interest LinkedIn Twitter Website Who's Your Mike?: A No-Bullshit Guide to the People You'll Meet on Your Entrepreneurial Journey A special thank you to our sponsor, Cabot Risk Strategies. For more information, please visit them at CabotRisk.com Please click the button to subscribe so you don't miss any episodes and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! More information about Ed, visit Excellius.com © 2022 Ed Evarts

Kurt Wilkin:                  The disruption piece is most recruiters are trying to fill a seat. You got an empty chair, well, yeah, give me a job description and we'll start throwing it against the wall. What we created was a strategic approach and said, "You know what? You say you've got an empty chair. I want to understand what that chair is doing. How does it interact with the rest of the chairs?" Keep the analogy going. We created something we call strategic talent planning. It's our way of taking your business plan, your financial forecast, your hopes and dreams. What do you need to do to accomplish those hopes and dreams? What does your existing team look like? Then, let's start thinking about what you need to add.Thryv:                           The following is brought to you by Thryv, the end-to-end client experience platform that helps you get the job, manage the job, and get credit.Gordon Henry:              Hey. Hey. This is Gordon Henry, at Winning on Main Street. This week, we're fortunate to spend time with an expert in the field of hiring and building the people side of your business, Kurt Wilkin. Welcome, Kurt.Kurt Wilkin:                  Hey, thanks so much for having me, Gordon.Gordon Henry:              Great to have you. Brief intro on Kurt. Kurt Wilkin is a connector of dots, ideas, and people. He's the co-founder and visionary of HireBetter, a recruiting firm out of Austin, Texas. He authored the book Who's Your Mike?: A No-BS Guide to the People You'll Meet on Your Entrepreneurial Journey, and also the ebook, The Recruiting Industry is Broken. Prior to founding HireBetter, Kurt founded and led the controller group, TCG, professional services firm focused on accounting, technology and recruiting, which he and his partner sold to Tatum in 20... Or 2006.                                    Kurt began his career as an accountant with Ernst & Young, where he worked with early stage in high growth, middle market clients. Kurt's an active at angel investor, managing partner Bee Cave Capital, and he sits on the boards of several companies, a nonprofits. He lives in the Austin, Texas area. He has a wife and three sons, and he loves coaching youth sports. Me too. That's near and dear to my heart, Kurt. Kurt, tell us in 2011, this is after you've exited The Controller Group. You bought HireBetter, right? Your goal was, I think, to disrupt recruiting. What did that mean to you, and did you? Have you disrupted recruiting?Kurt Wilkin:                  Yeah, it's a great question. I set out to change everything I knew about the recruiting industry. I felt like, and still believe, much of it is dastardly broken. You mentioned the ebook, The Recruiting Industry is Broken. I came in and changed everything. The way recruiters are paid, the way they recruit, the types of roles they recruit and everything. In fact, it was so funny. I would talk to my friends. They're like, "Oh, tell me what you're doing." I'd word vomit on them, right? After 10 minutes, they're like, "Dude, I have no idea what you do because you say you're the anti-recruiter." What I learned is that, and got some advice on this, if you're trying to disrupt an industry, choose one thing. You can't change five things because you're going to try to change too much and people don't understand what you're doing anymore. We have disrupted our niche. We work exclusively with what I call high growth companies, entrepreneurial companies, who are going from scrappy startup to scale. We help them really professionalize their team.Gordon Henry:              Okay. Where was the disruption piece in there?Kurt Wilkin:                  The disruption piece is most recruiters are trying to fill a seat. You got an empty chair, well, yeah, give me a job description and we'll start throwing it against the wall. What we created was a strategic approach and said, "You know what? You say you've got an empty chair. I want to understand what that chair is doing. How does it interact with the rest of the chairs?" Keep the analogy going. We created something we call strategic talent planning. It's our way of taking your business plan, your financial forecast, your hopes and dreams. What do you need to do to accomplish those hopes and dreams? What does your existing team look like? Most of which, or many of which, you probably outgrown or in the wrong roles. Then, let's start thinking about what you need to add. The book you mentioned earlier, Who's Your Mike?, There's virtually almost no recruiting in the book. It's more about what does your existing team look like, what are some of the people you've outgrown on your way to where you are.Gordon Henry:              Let's talk about Who's Your Mike? It was a book that you obviously wanted to write and you felt tell the unique story. Why don't you tell us what was the message of Who's Your Mike? and what does that title mean?Kurt Wilkin:                  Yeah. Great question. First, I'll say it's a... While it is in the business book genre, it's the most anti... Different business book you've ever read. Mike is the title character, but not every chapter is set up like this. But Mike is your fraternity brother in college. You guys were best buds, thick as thieves. You trusted him with your life. When you started your business in your garage, Mike was right there with you, nights and weekends, helping you with all the administrative things, the back office stuff, the stuff you didn't like to do, and didn't know how to do. When you became a real company, Mike joined you as your accountant, still doing those non-biz dev non-product related things. Things like setting up your bank account, maybe setting up your LLC, stuff like that.                                    As you grew, you rewarded Mike's 100 weeks by promoting him. As he continued to grow with title and responsibilities, he didn't grow professionally. The challenge is Mike's never done this before. He's never built an accounting team for a $20 million company. He's making all this stuff up on his own. You look up and Mike is swirling. He's in over his head. He's now trying to negotiate a big merger with your biggest competitor, maybe a $10 million line of credit with the bank. Whatever it is, he's swirling and he doesn't want to admit it because he's so loyal to you. The question, for all your entrepreneurial audiences, who's your Mike? Everybody who's an entrepreneur's got a Mike. Either has one, used to have one, or will have one. Who's your Mike?Gordon Henry:              Yeah. Fascinating. To just finish the story, so you recommend, I assume, that when you have a Mike who's maybe risen above the level where he's really capable, you've sadly got to find a way to exit out of Mike and bring in somebody who's more appropriate for the company where it is today.Kurt Wilkin:                  Maybe, maybe. That's the way the book is written is, look, I don't have your answer. No one's got your answer. But I can tell you stories of what other people have done and you can find the nugget in there that's going to support you. Every fourth or fifth chapter, I have what's called an intermission where we ask questions about Mike. Is Mike coachable? Could he become your CFO tomorrow? Maybe. Can you learn all the bumps and bruises along the way that you're going to have if he's learning on the job? Maybe you need to go too fast. You need to bring someone in from the outside. Maybe he's a strong individual contributor. What we often find is that Mike is a damn good controller, a good accountant. He's just not a future looking financial partner. Maybe we put him back into that role and bring in an outside CFO. Lots of different nuances based on his coachability, his humility, his capabilities.Gordon Henry:              Hmm. Fascinating. Sounds like a really compelling read. I want to switch gears to more local businesses. I know you tend to work with these sort of high growth businesses, but a lot of the businesses that, frankly, are listening to our show, tend to be local business owners. They're a dentist or they're a plumber, or they're a roofer. They own a local business, a business that's successful. Maybe they have a couple of trucks on the road, servicing people's houses. They're not looking to become the next Facebook. They just want to run a successful local business. I say just because that's not an easy thing to do. I hear from them that there's a dearth of workers, that it's tough to find people who have the skills they need. It's tough to bring people in and keep them. What's going wrong in the hiring market today? Are kids busy wanting to be digital marketing majors and social media specialists, but not plumbers or roofers anymore?Kurt Wilkin:                  First and foremost, we tell all of our clients and all companies, the employees of today are different from the days of even two or three years ago before COVID. What I mean by that is, for the most part, we are, they are looking for purpose and meaning more than just a paycheck. Whether you're a forklift driver or a restaurant employee or a CMO, you're looking for something more powerful than just a paycheck. That doesn't mean you have to be saving the world. It just means you're doing something bigger than yourself. What most of your listeners can do is find that meaning, that purpose that they can hold themselves out for. Why do we exist? Find out what it is and, usually, more often than not, it's impactful. If it's just making money, that could be a purpose. You're going to attract certain employees, but not all of them.Gordon Henry:              I've always heard that the key to keeping an employee happy is good manager, that they like their manager, that it's not necessarily about pay. Maybe not even about the higher cause of the company. That they have a good manager who does things that managers should do, look after them, mentors and so forth. That's nothing new. That's the way it's been for a long time. Are you saying that's no longer true that those kind of old ideas about what made people like a job and stay are no longer true and it's got to be this higher purpose idea?Kurt Wilkin:                  I think the manager is part of the higher purpose, in my opinion. The manager is not necessarily whether you're good at holding people accountable and giving people direction. That's also the relationships that you build and the type of person that your manager is. That's what I think of when I think of staying for managers. That's something we have at HireBetter is, I think, the people aspect is so strong that people are staying, oftentimes, for managers, because they can make more money elsewhere, especially being recruiters right now.Gordon Henry:              What are the fundamental concepts other than this mission that you talked about? Are there other fundamental concepts about hiring better that companies who come to you need to learn in order to succeed?Kurt Wilkin:                  There's a whole myth out there for companies that only need to hire A players, or you should only hire A players. We have a chapter in my book called B Player Bob, where we say, "Look, B players have a place too. In fact, a B player can be a really good employee. They're not necessarily your future president, but they're very solid employees." Just understanding that is part of the aspect, but here's the bigger things that more to your question. Especially in today's job market, if you look back two or three years ago, most companies were hiring based on LinkedIn and Indeed and other job boards. If you get somebody to answer an ad, it's not that hard to get them to join your company. They're probably C players.                                    If you really want to hire an A or B player, sure you need to interview them and screen them and do all the things you want to do, but you've got to sell them some sizzle too. Why should they leave their amazing opportunity to come work for you? If all you're doing is grilling them and you're putting them through a five-week process and having them interview with 30 people, and everyone's just organized and no one knows what they're doing, you're not going to win the A or B players. You're only going to be able to get what's left over. Put on your own A game if you're going to try to attract amazing teammates.Gordon Henry:              We have more to cover with Kurt Wilkin, but first, a message for Winning on Main Street guest, Mark Myers, over at Peak Profit Solutions. It's unfortunate that every year, an estimated 90% of high-income earning employees and businesses overpay at taxes. Yes, overpay at taxes. If only they have the time and resources to navigate the seemingly endless pages of tax code, larger companies have those resources. As a result, they often pay zero or very little in tax. Well, the good news is there's hope and it starts with a brief phone call to Mark Myers, founder of Peak Profit Solutions. Mark is a tax savings architect and has a track record reducing his client's tax burden by 30 to 60%. No need to change your CPA or invest in high risk assets. If you're tired of cutting fat checks to the IRS and want to know how to pay lower rates like the big guys, book a free 20-minute consultation with Mark. Just go to peakprofitsolutions.com, and click on Schedule An Appointment. Knowledge is powerful when properly applied. Peakprofitsolutions.com.                                    Back to Kurt Wilkin, curious about your thoughts on virtual work and this whole question of what should the work environment be? We've got some people saying it should all be virtual. Some people saying, "Nope, get back to the office." Some people saying, 'I want the hybrid in between." What are your thoughts on that as an expert in this area?Kurt Wilkin:                  Yeah. It's really your preference as an employer. I will say that if you're based in Tupelo, Mississippi and you want people in the office every day, it's hard for us, HireBetter, to recruit for you because there's a lot of other options that those A players have that might include a virtual or hybrid environment. However, many of your listeners, small to medium-sized businesses, they're not geared or set up to work with virtual employees. If you can't hold people accountable and you don't have systems and structure to make sure that they're doing their job properly, I don't know if I would do it. I guess most of your folks have the problem also of having some people who have to be on site, like restaurant employees and factory workers, and then you try to have a virtual office environment. That's tough.Gordon Henry:              Well, Kurt, we're just about out of time. I'm curious. HireBetter is your latest adventure. You've been doing this, I guess, since 2011. What's the future of HireBetter and what's next for you?Kurt Wilkin:                  Yeah. Great question. We talked a little bit earlier about recruiting as a service. I'm super excited about that. On a related front, we've been working on we call fractional chief people officer, but most early stage companies have a desperate need for people strategy. What they usually pay for or get is an HR department that they hate. What we're working on is just the strategy piece and then we'll have another team do the compliance related generals things that HR people generally lean to, because I think anything more broken than the recruiting industry is probably the HR industry. That's the next on our list. But, for me, we've gotten so much success with Who's Your Mike? The book strikes a chord with entrepreneurs everywhere, because we've all had versions of these employees and it's been fun watching and listening to the responses from folks. I've been doing more podcasts and I know speaking engagements are coming back in Vogue. I know I've already been booked for some of those. I'm excited to spread the message. It's a great message.Gordon Henry:              I just want to conclude. First of all, thanks for coming. How should people learn more about getting involved with you and HireBetter?Kurt Wilkin:                  We have a website for the book called at whosyourmike.com. We have a fun quiz for those of you who think, "Maybe I've got a Mike, maybe not. I'm not really sure my situation." It's whosyourmike.com/quiz. That's probably the best way. Hirebetter.com, I'm happy to be a sounding board for any of your listeners as they go through their own people challenges.Gordon Henry:              Right. Well, thanks for stopping by Kurt. Great to have you on the show.Kurt Wilkin:                  Hey, Gordon, I love what you guys are doing to help small, medium-sized businesses. Man, keep up the great work.Gordon Henry:              Thank you very much. Well, thanks to our producer, [Tim Alleman 00:15:58], and coordinators, [DF Barnett and Daniel Huddleston 00:16:00]. For those out there, if you enjoyed this podcast, and I hope you did, please tell a friend or colleague to subscribe and please leave us a five-star review. It really helps us in the ratings of the podcast and allows other people to find us. We'd really appreciate it. Until next time. Make it a great week. 

You can't build a business on your own. And as you grow, the people who helped you build may no longer be a good fit for their role—or for the growth and direction of the company. So how do you handle these employees? And how do you hire for the future?Kurt Wilkin is the co-founder of Hire Better, an award-winning agency based in Austin, Texas, and the author of Who's Your Mike?: A No-Bullshit Guide to the People You'll Meet on Your Entrepreneurial Journey. We talk about who those people are, and more importantly, how to handle the transitions as your organization grows.Learn all about “Mike” and the different employee archetypes in your company in Kurt Wilkin's book, Who's Your Mike?To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit: the1thing.com/pods.We talk about:Who “Mike” is and how to find them in your businessThe pros and cons of hiring friends in your businessThe real cause behind “the great resignation” and how you can avoid it in your organizationIdentifying values and aligning them with your goalsApproaching remote or in-person workWhat to do when your company outgrows an employeeRecognizing when you're the problemLinks & Tools from This EpisodeLearn more at kurtwilkin.comRead: Who's Your Mike?Free ResourcesWant to be a guest or share feedback? Email podcast@the1thing.com--What if you could learn a skill from one of the best?With Masterclass, you get truly immersive learning experiences taught by masters at the top of their field. The best part: You can learn from the best minds anytime, anywhere. You can learn at your own pace and revisit whenever you need. That thing you've always wanted to do is closer than you think.Get unlimited access to everything at masterclass.com/one and get 15% off an annual membership. --Hiring is challenging — but you don't have to do it all by yourself!If you've ever had to hire a new person, you know how difficult and time-consuming hiring can be — and you know this is a perfect task to delegate so that you can spend more time focusing on Your ONE Thing. ZipRecruiter will go out and find the candidates for you, and 4/5 businesses find a quality candidate within the first day.You can try ZipRecruiter for free by going to ZipRecruiter.com/ONEthing.

Kurt Wilkin shares an excerpt from his book "Who's Your Mike?". This is part 2 of 2. Episode 673: [Part 2] An Excerpt From "Who's Your Mike?" by Kurt Wilkin Kurt Wilkin is a trusted advisor for high-growth, middle-market companies as founder and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital and Co-Founder of HireBetter. With a passion for growth and a hard-earned, proven set of tools in his toolbox, Wilkin works with other entrepreneurs and CEOs to help them escape the start-up mindset and achieve next-level success. More about the book can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Whos-Your-Mike-No-Bullsh-Entrepreneurial/dp/1954020244  Visit Me Online at OLDPodcast.com  Interested in advertising on the show? Visit https://www.advertisecast.com/OptimalStartUpDaily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kurt Wilkin shares an excerpt from his book "Who's Your Mike?". This is part 2 of 2. Episode 673: [Part 2] An Excerpt From "Who's Your Mike?" by Kurt Wilkin Kurt Wilkin is a trusted advisor for high-growth, middle-market companies as founder and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital and Co-Founder of HireBetter. With a passion for growth and a hard-earned, proven set of tools in his toolbox, Wilkin works with other entrepreneurs and CEOs to help them escape the start-up mindset and achieve next-level success. More about the book can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Whos-Your-Mike-No-Bullsh-Entrepreneurial/dp/1954020244  Visit Me Online at OLDPodcast.com  Interested in advertising on the show? Visit https://www.advertisecast.com/OptimalStartUpDaily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kurt Wilkin shares an excerpt from his book "Who's Your Mike?". This is part 1 of 2. Episode 672: [Part 1] An Excerpt From "Who's Your Mike?" by Kurt Wilkin Kurt Wilkin is a trusted advisor for high-growth, middle-market companies as founder and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital and Co-Founder of HireBetter. With a passion for growth and a hard-earned, proven set of tools in his toolbox, Wilkin works with other entrepreneurs and CEOs to help them escape the start-up mindset and achieve next-level success. More about the book can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Whos-Your-Mike-No-Bullsh-Entrepreneurial/dp/1954020244  Visit Me Online at OLDPodcast.com  Interested in advertising on the show? Visit https://www.advertisecast.com/OptimalStartUpDaily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kurt Wilkin shares an excerpt from his book "Who's Your Mike?". This is part 1 of 2. Episode 672: [Part 1] An Excerpt From "Who's Your Mike?" by Kurt Wilkin Kurt Wilkin is a trusted advisor for high-growth, middle-market companies as founder and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital and Co-Founder of HireBetter. With a passion for growth and a hard-earned, proven set of tools in his toolbox, Wilkin works with other entrepreneurs and CEOs to help them escape the start-up mindset and achieve next-level success. More about the book can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Whos-Your-Mike-No-Bullsh-Entrepreneurial/dp/1954020244  Visit Me Online at OLDPodcast.com  Interested in advertising on the show? Visit https://www.advertisecast.com/OptimalStartUpDaily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, in a special bonus episode, Kurt Wilkin talks about how he helped build several businesses, including most recently a recruiting business called HireBetter, and explains why he hates most business books. It has to do with the attention deficit issues he, like many entrepreneurs, tends to experience. So when he decided to write a business book of his own, he kept it short, and he structured it so that you can find the parts that are most relevant to you and skip the rest. It's called “Who's Your Mike?” and it features chapters on the kinds of hiring and management challenges all entrepreneurs confront, including situations involving employees like Mike. Who exactly is this guy Mike? Oh, you know. He's the incredibly loyal and hard-working employee who's been with you from day one but who isn't necessarily growing with the business. Says Kurt, “We all have, or have had, or will have a Mike.”

In this episode of Startup Hustle, Matt Watson and Kurt Wilkin, Co-Founder and Visionary at HireBetter, talk about executive hiring and how entrepreneurs can transform their companies by minimizing hiring mistakes, investing in high potentials, and making the difficult decisions to drop dead weight from their team. Learn how to run a business, minimize errors and become more adaptable to situations during your founder journey.   Find Startup Hustle Everywhere: https://gigb.co/l/YEh5   This episode is sponsored by Full Scale: https://fullscale.io/   Learn more about HireBetter: https://hirebetter.com/     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kurt is Co-Founder of HireBetter and recently released his debut book, Who's Your Mike?, based on his 28 years working with entrepreneurs. Website: http://www.whosyourmike.com/quiz Website: https://hirebetter.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/KurtWilkin LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kurt-wilkin-7345255/ CallumConnects Micro-Podcast is your daily dose of wholesome entrepreneurial inspiration. Hear from many different entrepreneurs in just 5 minutes what hurdles they have faced, how they overcame them, and what their key learning is. Be inspired, subscribe, leave a comment, go and change the world! Every entrepreneur featured has been recommended by one of our previous guests. www.CallumLaing.com

Hire better to grow your small business with Kurt Wilkin. Kurt also shares his entrepreneur journey, and insights and tips on how to Hire Better to help you launch, run and grow a small business. For the past thirty years he has advised high-growth companies, starting his career with Ernst & Young, and today in his roles as co-founder and visionary of HireBetter and managing partner of Bee Cave Capital. Henry Lopez is the host of The How of Business podcast – helping you start, run and grow your small business. The How of Business is a top-rated podcast for small business and entrepreneurs.

After a year of unprecedented pandemic layoffs, furloughs and shutdowns, something equally unprecedented happened: Everyone started hiring again all at once. In a job market with so many options, how do we ensure we still attract and retain top talent? To help answer that, I'm joined by Francisco (Cisco) Sacasa, CEO at HireBetter, where he has a unique inside-view on the challenges facing companies and job-seekers alike. In this episode, we discuss: -Why every company is your competitor when hiring top talent -Strategies for standing out from the crowd as an employer -How to get the right people sitting in the right seats (and keep them there) Want to level up your people and processes? Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Listening on a desktop & can't see the links? Just search for The COO Show in your favorite podcast player.

Guest: Kurt Wilkin, a successful entrepreneur and CEO. He's the Co-Founder & Visionary of HireBetter, a company that impacts lives by connecting and empowering good people to build great companies. Prior to that, he founded, led, and sold The Controller Group, which was a professional services firm focused on accounting, technology and recruiting. Kurt is also an active member and officer of YPO. Overview: Why are so many companies struggling to fill vacancies? According to hiring expert Kurt Wilkin, businesses that are stuck in a pre-pandemic mindset have to improve their value propositions and get creative about attracting the best talent. And just as importantly, CEOs have to demonstrate to prospective candidates that their passions run deeper than just turning a profit.

“People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime." - Adam Bonsky CBQ: When was the first time you heard about an interim position? Chief Revenue Officer of HireBetter, Adam Bonsky, knows that sometimes you need an experienced “coach” to contribute to the business operations...but only for a short period. It's not always a forever thing, there's a whole interim world out there! Strategic Talent Partner Finite Results Authentic Matches HireBetter.com   www.CareerBlindspot.com