Plans · People

Hire your first five people

12 weeks · 5 phases · 27 tasks · 4 milestones · 6 risks

For a founder or very small team hiring for the first time. Roles are hired in two waves, two in the first half and three in the second, so the early hires can help with the later ones. Notice periods vary a lot, so adjust start dates once offers are accepted.

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Makes it a program in your harbor, dated from today.

Milestones

Week 2Roles and pay defined
Week 6First two offers accepted
Week 9All five offers accepted
Week 12All five started

The plan, phase by phase

1. Define the roles

Weeks 1 to 2. Decide exactly what each person will do and what you can pay.

Week 1Write down the work you need done in the next year
Week 1Turn it into five role descriptionsDescribe what each person should achieve in their first six months, not a list of traits.
Week 2Set a salary range for each roleCheck published salary data and ask peers who have hired for similar roles.
Week 2Decide the order you'll hire in
Week 2Get advice on contracts and payroll from an accountant or lawyer

2. Get ready to employ

Weeks 3 to 4. Have the paperwork and process ready before the first offer goes out.

Week 3Register as an employer where your country or state requires it
Week 3Set up payrollRun a test payroll before the first real one.
Week 3Write an offer letter and contract template
Week 4Write an interview plan for each roleThe same questions for every candidate, a practical exercise and a scoring sheet.

3. Find candidates

Weeks 3 to 6. Get enough good applicants in front of you, and answer them quickly.

Week 3Post the first two rolesSay the salary range in the post; it saves time on both sides.
Week 3Ask your network for referrals
Week 4Screen applications twice a weekFast replies keep good candidates interested.
Week 5Post the remaining three roles
Week 6Hold short screening calls

4. Interview and offer

Weeks 5 to 10. Interview the same way for everyone and make offers quickly.

Week 5Interview for the first two roles
Week 6Check referencesAsk about the specific work the person will do for you.
Week 6Make offers for the first two rolesCall with the offer, then send it in writing the same day.
Week 8Interview for the remaining roles
Week 9Make offers for the remaining roles
Week 10Reply to every candidate who didn't get the jobA short, kind no protects your reputation for the next round.

5. Onboard

Weeks 7 to 12. Make the first weeks useful so the people you hired stay.

Week 7Write a first-week plan for each new person
Week 8Write down how the company worksWhich tools you use, which meetings happen, and who decides what.
Week 8Set up laptops, accounts and access before day one
Week 8Welcome the first two hiresBe there in person on day one, with real work ready for them.
Week 10Hold weekly check-ins with each new person
Week 12Welcome the remaining three hires
Week 12Ask the new team what was confusing in their first weeks

What usually goes wrong

Hiring the wrong person to fill a gap fast
In a team of five, one poor fit affects everyone's work.
What helps: Use a practical exercise and the same scoring sheet for every candidate. If no one clears the bar, keep looking.
Likelihood 3 of 5 · impact 5 of 5
Good candidates take other offers
Strong people are often interviewing elsewhere and a slow process loses them.
What helps: Reply within two days at every stage and keep the whole process under three weeks per role.
Likelihood 4 of 5 · impact 3 of 5
The founder has no time to interview
Hiring competes with selling and building, and it's the first thing to slip.
What helps: Block fixed interview slots in the calendar each week before the roles are posted.
Likelihood 4 of 5 · impact 3 of 5
Notice periods push start dates back
Employed candidates may not be free for weeks or months after accepting.
What helps: Ask about notice in the first call and plan the work around realistic start dates.
Likelihood 4 of 5 · impact 2 of 5
Payroll or contracts aren't set up in time
You can't pay people correctly, which damages trust in the first month.
What helps: Set up payroll and contract templates in week 3, before any offer is made.
Likelihood 2 of 5 · impact 4 of 5
New hires leave after a poor start
People who don't know what's expected of them in the first weeks lose confidence quickly.
What helps: Have a written first-week plan and a weekly check-in for every new person.
Likelihood 3 of 5 · impact 4 of 5

Using it

Copy what fits and cut what doesn’t: no real project matches a template. In Harbor the plan becomes a program with these milestones, one project holding every task with its due date, and these risks in the register, all yours until you hand them out. The first phase starts in To do and the rest wait in the backlog.

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