{mosimage}You are on your way and it is time to bring in those first key players. You have decided what their role is and the initial process to get them moving towards success.  Now, how do we translate your love for the game to those first hires? We must find your Evangelists. Before we dig into the profile of whom you need on your team, let me clarify what I mean by business evangelist.

From Random House:

Evangelist - e·van·ge·list  [i-van-juh-list] – noun

A person marked by evangelical enthusiasm for or support of any cause! How can you go wrong with a room full of people that have a religious dedication to your strategy, offering, company culture…? Be careful with my meaning as Evangelists are not pitch men, but people that have taken your desire and emulated that excitement, then translated it into enthusiasm.

The next question is how do we find these people? I gave a talk today called Educate your Evangelists and the first section was dedicated to just this topic. There are particular attributes in the warriors of the startup. They are not still and rarely like the status quo. Here are the core points I made today:

Ambition and ideals

Your evangelist builds a core set of principles in everything they do. This means they have dreams and the vision to actualize those dreams. They desire to learn and pass that knowledge on in application or educating. As torch passers they are infectious and being around them will get you excited.

Many people ask in interviews, “What do you see yourself doing in five years (10,20)?” They also seem quite content with the hierarchy driven answers of wanting to manage or start a business. The question is almost as pointless as the answer. Instead I suggest replacing this question with this:

“If you were not able to work in sales (or whatever you are hiring for) what would you do?”

Now this question will get you some answers that you can chew on. If they want to own a business or run something or best yet educate others, you are on your way to finding an Evangelist. This question will share their ambition and ambition drives the heart of the enthusiastic.

The quick wit

Someone that plans to jump into the foray and go after the opportunities in the unknown must have a quick mind. Without the ability to problem solve on the fly and the knack to develop responses to new objections, there is little hope of unearthing the barriers of introducing new ideas to the business community.  There is a fine line between pitch and evangelizing and finding those that can educate without sounding like a pushy telemarketer is paramount.

A great way to find these people is to ask people to handle objections during an interview. If they come up with unique points, correct or not, then you have a quick thinker willing to tackle tough problems. If they complain that they do not know enough to handle your objections, politely do what you need to do to end the interview.

The fiery drive

How quickly did your interview get turned around? Did you spend more time answering questions than asking them? Did your candidate constantly confirm what you have asked or re-examine how you answered their questions? Good! This is what a sales evangelist must do in order to accomplish anything. If you exhausted your question list before the time was up and had to prompt them to start asking theirs, then run for the hills. Your new team member has to turn heads in every moment, there can be no fear, no tentative moment, and most of all they have to be capable of making everyone a potential business partner. This includes their potential employer. What you get in the interview is what you can expect when they are working.

{sidebar id=14 align=left} The ability to listen

How much did they retain? When they asked questions, be sure to go back later and ask them about what you have shared. Are they treating this interview like a discovery session or is it just lip service. The first sales for an organization can make or break the future. Missing a beat because you were not paying attention is both costly and inexcusable. Your evangelist will listen to you, and if they do, then you know they will listen to your prospects and customers.

There is one last intangible that is really important with the first people you bring in to your organization. On a personal level you have to trust your instincts. If you have any doubts, they will not fade. Trust your initial instincts and do not move on people you are not comfortable with. Happy team building and enjoy the ride.