In the late morning at GrowthCamp today, the 60-something entrepreneurs were divided into groups of 10 to participate in "Idea Exchange" roundtables - where they get to talk to each other, in a confidential setting, about mutual problems and exchange experiences and possible solutions.
The conversation, as I mentioned, is confidential, but here are a few highlights from the session I moderated.
* There were two main topics everyone wanted to discuss: building the sales funnel, and attracting new talent. No matter what business they're in (we had everyone from construction contractors to app developers), they all wanted to talk these two issues.
* One other issue emerged: how you build your team, create alignment around quality, and how you deal with staff members who don't get it. We tackled this issue first, and the group could have spent the entire hour discussing this alone.
The consensus: hire people for attitude. ("Find people who think like owners," said one entrepreneur.) Never hire in a hurry: Take as long as you need to find the right people.
And treat your team like adults: Delegate responsibility and hold people accountable for results. Don't tell people how to do things - but adopt quality assurance standards to ensure you get the outcome you want.
Good stuff, huh?
GrowthCamp brings together the leaders of Canada's emerging growth companies.
Click here for the 2010 "Hot 50" rankings.
Click over here to read about the list and what it means.
And click here to meet the No. 1 company on the Hot 50 this year, Great Circle Works Inc.:
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