My last post looked at a bootstrap culture as I have been writing about it for my new textbook on bootstrapping. There are four steps that can be taken to help build and maintain a bootstrap culture as the business grows. The first of these steps is recruiting for a Bootstrap Culture:
When bringing new employees into a business, it is critical to look beyond their technical skills and experience to fill the position. A fit with the bootstrap culture should also be examined.
One approach is to develop open-ended questions that can be used during the interview process. For example, “Tell me about a time when you had to accomplish a task when limited resources were available.” If the interviewee answers the question by saying that she always had more than enough budgetary support in her old job, it might be difficult for her to adapt to a bootstrapping environment not having worked that way in the past. Or, if she answers by complains about the availability of resources in her old job, or about how her old boss was always cheap, that is a good signal that the employee is not have bootstrapping as a part of her work ethic. On the other hand, if she speaks with enthusiasm and pride about how she got the job done within the limited resource available, she would more likely fit into the bootstrap culture.