Recently, our team—or should I say our matriarchal family—expanded from 2 to 8 members! As I sipped my tea, taking a break from a marathon of early morning meetings, my mind wandered to the changes I was feeling.
What had shifted in these meetings?
For one, I am listening more and speaking less.
It’s incredibly refreshing to hear new viewpoints on topics, of which I thought I had a good understanding.
The fresh perspectives and the inquisitiveness of our new team members are invigorating.
Sometimes, I find myself eagerly anticipating their next questions.
As I respond, I’m developing a deeper and broader understanding of my work, prompting me to reconsider and reframe things I had previously overlooked.
With just two members, our meetings were always focused, transactional, and, dare I say, a bit dull.
Celebrating Team Successes, Meeting Deadlines Together!
That’s the second major change I’ve noticed.
The new team has brought a new dynamism. It feels like a rebirth.
Our team is now as diverse as it can be.
Some new members have lowered our average age by at least a decade. We span four time zones, six cities, and four countries. Our professional backgrounds are as varied as our geographic locations. Most notably, five out of the six new members are new to the impact incubation and acceleration sector.
Having such a diverse team, in terms of experience, age, and cultural background, is powerful.
The energy in our meetings has shifted.
Conversations are now multifaceted.
I’ve lost track of the number of TLAs (three-letter acronyms) I’ve learned!
When you find someone with the right attitude and skills, even if they come from a different sector, or don’t have relevant experience, take a chance on them.
I’m gaining insights from each team member—whether it’s the language of social media, using the various features of Gmail and LinkedIn, the courage to speak your mind, or simply stopping to ask questions. Learning about different cultures and weekend plans has been a delight.
This diversity is crucial for building trust and relationships, setting a strong foundation for when the going gets tough.
Having new team members is fantastic for scaling the organization and long-term growth.
However, setting them up for success in their roles is a great responsibility for the existing team.
Taking the time to set the context, discussing the organization’s vision and goals, and implementing a structured onboarding process are all critical elements.
It is equally important to nurture an open and safe space where members feel comfortable asking questions, sharing opinions, making mistakes, and learning on the job. This requires extra ounces (or pounds) of patience, and availability to help them familiarize themselves with the nuances of the sector, the organization, the stakeholders, the team, and their new role.
I like to equate it to Quality Assurance in software development – if we invest in the processes and people upfront, we can expect to see great results.
Otherwise, we will end up managing the symptoms, aka Quality Control.
Hiring and onboarding are two sides of the “Long Term Investment” coin.
If done right, you are on your way to building a robust team. Compromising on either one of them may not yield the best results.
This investment in building the team encompasses various aspects – culture, people, trust, relationship, communication must be seen over a long term horizon.
In the short term, these might appear to be unnecessary, and one might be tempted to skip these steps and jump into the day-to-day operations and delivery. This is unavoidable, especially in lean teams.
However, I strongly believe in “Better late than never”.
This diversity is crucial for building trust and relationships, setting a strong foundation for when the going gets tough
It is never too late to carve out the time for a streamlined onboarding and orientation.
Each individual you invest in acts like a building block that goes on to create a sense of community.
The individuals in this community give generously because they experienced the same when they joined the community. It organically develops the culture of giving back.
This generous sharing, ample patience and investment of time unlocks the doorway to a strong, committed and close knit and inclusive team. Think of it as the preparation for a marathon, not a sprint.
Talent in the social impact space, and specifically in impact incubation is an ongoing challenge.
The people that are in it now, most likely stumbled upon it.
At the same time, there are several talented, passionate, highly motivated and driven, skilled people who are looking for a meaningful career – one with a purpose and a paycheck.
Just as we benefit from drawing inspiration from best practices and processes in other industries, so can we leverage the passion and expertise from committed individuals from these industries.
So it falls upon us, who have already discovered this path, albeit circuitously, to make it more accessible and straightforward for others to experience and contribute to the field. This is our way of being inclusive – embracing people of all backgrounds, educational qualifications, experience and age.
This is directly linked to the perception we want to create of the impact incubation industry.
If we want to attract new and fresh talent into the industry, we, the people in this industry, have the onus of shining a guiding light for others and to create inclusive teams.
So here are my 5 tips to fostering an inclusive and welcoming environment for new team members!
- Be intentional and have an open mind during your recruitment process – recognize great talent when you come across one and give them a chance
- Have a structured onboarding process with three components –
- Introduction to the Sector
- Introduction to your organization
- Introduction to their role and responsibilities
- Provide a welcoming environment and an open culture, encourage questions and be open to new perspectives
- Be patient as the new member finds their groove
- And most importantly, enjoy the ride!
One of Pollinate Impact’s foundational pillars is Talent for Incubators and Accelerators.
While we work collaboratively to develop clear career paths for individuals in this sector, we shouldn’t wait for these paths to be perfectly laid out.
Take the leap!
When you find someone with the right attitude and skills, even if they come from a different sector, or don’t have relevant experience, take a chance on them.
You might be pleasantly surprised.
More importantly, you’ll be broadening the entry funnel for passionate individuals to contribute meaningfully.
Shami Rao
Shami Rao is the Network Catalyst at Pollinate Impact. She is passionate about fostering connections amongst people and finding ways to bring them together. She brings 10 years experience in software development, project management, and process quality assurance and 3 years in supporting impact incubators and accelerators. Leveraging insights from her previous career and learnings from parenting, volunteering, and simply being a compassionate human being, she incorporates her experiences to nurture a global network of impact incubators!
