Should we hire former entrepreneurs?

I often advise job seekers on how to behave in an interview, how to write a resume, and generally how to build their career. And lately, apparently the crisis played a significant role in this, a lot of people have been asking for help from people who had their own small business, but now, for various reasons, have decided to switch to hired work.

And these people, for the most part, are very adequate and lively. Not the stupid office plankton who only knows how to write business plans and drink coffee during coffee breaks, but those who are not afraid to make decisions and bear responsibility for them, those who have a lively mind.

And here’s the problem: the majority of not only managers, but also business owners are afraid to hire such people. Many HR have a strict attitude - just not former businessmen!

So a question was born for those involved in the selection.

1. Do you have similar restrictions?

2. If there are, do you think they are correct? If so, why?

3. Have you ever hired such people and what was the result?

Well, a similar question for managers if they read these materials.

It all depends on the corporate culture of the company. There are entrepreneurial forms of corporate culture; such companies willingly hire individual entrepreneurs and then create adequate working conditions.
In hierarchical cultures, on the contrary, former entrepreneurs feel uncomfortable, which is why they try to get more benefits for themselves and get out.

I came across it. The customer initially set the conditions to exclude individual entrepreneurs. The motive is obvious. His business is not big, it is very easy to copy and leave with clients. This is what he feared.

But in real estate, individual entrepreneurs, both former and current, are welcome

My opinion is that there are no “former entrepreneurs” if we are talking about a real natural (in terms of the totality of qualities) entrepreneur. If such a person tried to start a business and it didn’t work out and he is looking for a place in the company, then if he is a real entrepreneur, then either he will be interested in a share or he goes to the company to study the specifics and subsequently start his own business or support his financial position while simultaneously thinking about a new business.

There is another category of former entrepreneurs - these are precisely those who got involved in the wrong business for various reasons (they read too many books, their parents pressed/imposed, friends, etc., in a word, under the influence of external factors) and naturally failed in practice. Not because they are not experienced (although that too), but because it is not their nature, well, they are not created in order to pull, move the process and people, to take responsibility for other people. They are not passionate about their idea; in the end, they simply do not have enough energy and strength for this. BUT! But this does not mean that such people should not be hired. They may just be excellent specialists in a certain profession or good leaders/managers. There are fewer real entrepreneurs.
HR’s task is to discern a real entrepreneur in this “former” and, depending on the answer to this question, make appropriate decisions in a conversation with the customer.

Thinking out loud:
- it will be difficult to keep the former business owner on the existing motivation system in the company.
- an owner who has “killed” his business (I’m not talking about the crisis) is scared to let him manage a division in the company. This means he doesn’t understand the market or people well.

This is just my negative experience.
I hired an acquaintance, the former owner, as my deputy.
It seems to work, the ideas are brilliant, the efficiency is wow! But in the end the direction died. We have been raising it for more than a year, trying to raise it.

I have a friend. Former head of the space agency. Who is now employed in a fairly good company. So, in reality, a person suffers because he has little independence. Little responsibility for decision making. So, I think that this was a mistake by HR, who took her to the position of performer. This is precisely the main quality of HR, to select the right employee for the right place. For the team to work effectively.

I consider such candidates on an equal basis with others. It all depends on the position, if it is a leadership position to which a former business owner is responding, then this is quite normal, but if it is a sales representative, then you need to understand the motivation. I have examples in my practice where spacecraft owners got jobs in leading international companies in positions from HR BP.

Rather, I check the competencies necessary for the customer; it is necessary to clarify controllability, both work under someone’s leadership, and the understanding that there will not be such freedom of movement (in the literal sense).

I agree with Oleg, people who know how to work independently and be responsible for their work bring much more value, especially at the moment, in times of crisis, when it is very important to have a great team. When selecting, I try to convey to the customer and show the best qualities of a person that will raise his business to a new level. And agree, isn’t this the most important and valuable thing now, when both sides are satisfied?

Oleg, there are different positions and different working conditions; in one position this same independence is necessary, but in another it is not. And managers structure their work differently - some clearly define the task and give free rein to carry it out, the main thing is the result. But there are those who prefer to delve into every stage of work.

If our individual entrepreneur is too freedom-loving and is used to being his own boss, then he will be completely uncomfortable with a manager who delves into all stages. And his work is unlikely to be enjoyable.

But with such a manager who has set a task and is waiting for the result, an entrepreneur can be successful.

A short summary of what I read in the responses of colleagues.
“Former entrepreneurs are difficult to manage” But aren’t ordinary employees, not entrepreneurs, easy to manage? And isn’t it easier to use the strong qualities of such people, for example, the ability to work independently and take responsibility for decisions made?

I am wary of such candidates. My company has very strict standards, and initiative in some things is simply not encouraged - you need to complete tasks in accordance with procedures.

Entrepreneurs usually have the personal qualities that I am looking for - leaders, with a clear understanding of how to build relationships in a team and how to create a real team in general. They do a good job of motivating staff.

The main question I ask myself when selecting such a candidate is whether he is ready to work by different rules? And also how subordinate he can be.

I clarify this point with projective questions - for example, I ask you to come up with an idea on how to improve the climate in the team. When a person suggests, I say: “ok, you tried it, 2 weeks have passed, you see - it doesn’t work, what will be your actions?”

Yes, these kinds of questions help us understand whether a person is ready to adjust his behavior and course of action to our requirements. If a person has a truly lively mind, then he will be able to work according to our standards.

The situation when a person leaves his hired job to launch his own project is not uncommon. But it also happens the other way around: a partner abandoned him, the market turned out to be oversaturated, the project failed, and the business simply didn’t work out... And as a result, an entrepreneur who was successful yesterday is already knocking on the doors of recruitment agencies and sending out resumes.

However, employers are in no hurry to hire former businessmen. Moreover, many treat them with caution, considering entrepreneurs to be spoiled free spirits. As a rule, managers are afraid that former free shooters will show excessive initiative and will not be able to work under someone else’s leadership, etc.

The attitude towards ex-entrepreneurs is ambiguous. On the one hand, these are, as a rule, more responsible people and you can expect good work results from them. On the other hand, entrepreneurs are accustomed to working for themselves and it can be difficult for them to integrate into a team where there are strict rules and requirements,” Alexander Mamonov, deputy general director of the City Savings Bank, told RBG. - In each case, they look at a specific person, but we can say for sure that former entrepreneurs are looked at more closely than other applicants.

One of the main concerns is that a former entrepreneur may - even unknowingly - sabotage the work of the company or its department. It is difficult for a person who was a free shooter and accustomed to making decisions and solving problems to obey another. Willy-nilly, he will begin to share his opinion about certain situations with management.

Many large Western companies are wary of people who have run their own businesses. But this is most likely not due to a lack of competencies or knowledge of candidates, but due to a “personal mismatch” with the company’s culture. However, a huge number of companies are calm about the previous experience of candidates. Former entrepreneurs can actually get a job in any field, in any position. “It all depends on the area in which the person had a private business,” believes Konstantin Makarov, executive director of the Bingo-Boom company. - It is unlikely that he will be hired as a top manager in a large company, since the scale of tasks and responsibilities will be very different. Therefore, you must be prepared for a formal demotion. Although in reality the tasks may be even broader. For people who have had their own business, it can be difficult to transition into a corporate setting because they need to follow certain policies and procedures that have already been established. However, there is nothing supernatural or complicated in the adoption of these norms. It all depends on how ready a person is for such changes and for what. There is always a fear in hiring someone with entrepreneurial experience, since building your own business requires a certain character, abilities, and attitude.

If a person has been involved in entrepreneurship for many years, and even more so in different directions (opened and closed companies, rushed around all the time), then companies will most likely refuse to consider such a candidate. If this experience was for a short time or in parallel with hired work, then this will not affect the opinion of the candidate. In general, the attitude of employers towards former entrepreneurs varies depending on the latter's achievements.

If this candidate is an individual entrepreneur or a representative of a small business (and at the same time, the candidate did not work as an employee before his own business), a business that could not be developed and brought to a certain level, and made consistently profitable, then it is more difficult for such applicants to get a job. Companies have a different attitude towards someone who managed to “promote” their business, make it consistently successful, occupy their niche in the market and earn income (a person who parted with his business not because of the “failure” of the business), notes Dmitry Statskevich . - Employers are more willing to invite such candidates for interviews, since these former businessmen were able to realize their ideas, plans, promote their business, they know how to think strategically, are organized, work for results, make informed decisions, assessing upcoming risks and successes. As practice shows, it is more difficult for former entrepreneurs to get a job in a large business. Small businesses have a more positive attitude towards such applicants, especially those who have successfully “started” their business.

Startup experience will be in demand if companies want to develop new directions, enter new markets, and conquer regions. However, people who have their own business find it difficult to adapt to a strict schedule. This is a big problem for entrepreneurs who are used to managing their time themselves. But you can adapt to anything if a person has the desire and motivation.

There really are such difficulties, although a lot depends on subjective factors. Some candidates need a longer period of adaptation in order to adapt or even adapt to the company’s defined framework, schedule, corporate culture, and get used to it. These new employees (former businessmen) take a long time to get used to the fact that they are now executors, that they do not make many decisions, but simply implement them, report to senior management, etc. This is especially difficult for those candidates who have been entrepreneurs for a long time, developed their business and have not previously worked as employees, says Dmitry Statskevich, leading consultant at Alex Primus Executive Search.

An entrepreneur is not a profession, but a state of mind. This state can change - appear and disappear. All entrepreneurs have different professional skills. There are large entrepreneurs who have several higher educations and work with billion-dollar high-tech businesses. And there are small businesses... Large entrepreneurs are invited to the largest companies for even larger tasks. Small entrepreneurs are employed in small and medium-sized businesses in managerial positions. If an entrepreneur, leaving the business, still retains his professional qualifications, he can return to his previous activity: again become an engineer or a singing teacher, adds Alexey Zakharov, president of the recruiting portal Superjob.ru.

However, if a person was successful in business, this means that he had a strict schedule and worked several times more than a hired manager, and had a hundred times more responsibility. And if the business did not take off, then often precisely because there was no plan and schedule, it was difficult to work in business, and it will be difficult as an employee.

What questions will you find answers to in this article:

• What to watch out for when hiring a former businessman
• How can failed entrepreneurs be better than workers who do not dream of starting their own business?

How to interview an ex-entrepreneur

According to a study by HeadHunter, the majority of hired employees would like to start their own business (see figure). About 15% of workers have already tried themselves as entrepreneurs, but most of them failed. They were hampered either by financial problems (46%) or by administrative and bureaucratic difficulties (22%). The number of entrepreneurs in Russia will most likely increase from year to year, which means that the number of people who were unable to organize their own business and who are again looking for hired work will also increase.

We bring to your attention two opposing views on whether it is worth hiring failed entrepreneurs. We hope that these opinions will help you make the right decision when a former entrepreneur comes for an interview at your company.

Click to enlarge.

Former entrepreneurs can benefit your business

Speaks: Samvel Harutyunyan- General Director and co-owner of the portal ShopAndMall.ru, Moscow

I hired those who created their own business, but for some reason remained out of work. And I didn’t regret it. I believe that such employees have a number of advantages over others and can bring significant benefits to your business.

Personal experience. In 2009, I wanted to rent an apartment and met a realtor. He had a competent speech, a direct gaze, a neat appearance, he behaved politely and showed sincere concern for the client. I offered him a job in my company if things weren't going well for him. The crisis was in full swing, and within a couple of days the realtor came to me for an interview, and a day later he was working on my team. He turned out to be a former entrepreneur: he came to Moscow to earn money after closing his business in his hometown. It was the first partridge breeding farm in the region, and during the crisis it went bankrupt. Within two months, a new employee headed one of the company’s activities. During the entire time we worked together, he never gave me a reason to doubt his professionalism and loyalty. We still keep in touch, and I'm glad that my company was one of the stepping stones in his career.

What are the good things about former entrepreneurs?

A person with business experience usually knows the value of ill-conceived decisions. At the same time, he is result-oriented, ready to take risks and take action - this valuable quality is not distinguished by all employees.

Employers often have two concerns:

• a failed businessman will bring negative business experience to the company;
• a new employee can engage in industrial espionage and make a clone of your business.

These concerns should not influence your hiring decision. After all, other employees can spy. It is important to direct the entrepreneurial activity of employees in a constructive direction. In my company, I encourage my colleagues to start their own business. Now my deputy and I are working on his Internet project, which competes with my main business. The idea seemed simple and successful to me, and I became a co-investor. The fact that the projects will have a common audience will benefit the cause - we will be able to support each other.

What you need to find out at the interview. It is important to listen to the former entrepreneur and understand whether he can work for the benefit of someone else's business. Unfortunately, such candidates often remain silent. Firstly, there are many stereotypes in society, and those who have never taken risks do not miss the opportunity to mock a failed businessman. Secondly, talking openly about your failures is unpleasant. For me, it is important not so much to bring a person to clean water, but to understand whether he understands the industry, whether unprofessionalism was the only reason for his failure. If an employee is competent, his past failures are not a barrier for me.

Failed businessmen are often lousy professionals

Speaks: Maxim Sorokin- General Director and co-founder of the marketing communications agency “Trump MaSt”, Vologda

Former design entrepreneurs often express a desire to work in our company. However, I stopped seeing them as serious candidates: in most cases, they really don’t know how to do anything. At least, none of them have ever passed the competitive selection process that we organize for all potential employees.

Personal experience. Once we were looking for an employee for the position of designer. Several candidates were selected, among whom was a former entrepreneur. His resume indicated two years of experience as a designer, and he also reported taking additional courses. The applicant explained his search for work as a desire to learn something new; material reward was not important to him. This alarmed us. Despite our suspicions, we decided to ask the candidate to complete the competition task, but he failed.

Why are former entrepreneurs bad? The motives for which former businessmen seek employment often do not bode well for the employer. The following fears are quite justified:

• a former entrepreneur does not know how to solve management problems (such applicants, if they wish, are better considered for the position of an ordinary employee who needs to perform several clearly regulated operations);
• he wants to learn the secrets of business so that he can then open his own business and lure clients;
• the employee may turn out to be uncontrollable, will ignore tasks and do everything as he sees fit.

What to find out at the interview. It is very important to understand the true reasons that pushed the former entrepreneur to look for paid work. If he is driven by one of the following motives, then, in my opinion, he should not be offered a job.

• Bored with previous classes, he wants to try himself in other industries. Such an employee will not stay in the company for long.
• My business has collapsed, but I need to feed my family. If you are unable to resolve management issues on your own (calculate taxes, pay salaries, undergo inspections, be responsible for the dishonest work of contractors, etc.), then the person is unlikely to be useful to you. Most likely, he will turn to his manager for every decision.

Employment is a respite while waiting for better times. Perhaps the employee wants to learn from the experience of successful companies and then use it to his advantage. Such an employee will leave the company at the first opportunity, without thinking that this could let you down.

Did not work out. The business had to close down and you want to return to employment. In a short period of time, you have delved into many processes: you want to realize diverse experience, albeit within the framework of someone else’s company. How to convince employers that you are not a failure, but a candidate with rare experience in various fields?

Former entrepreneurs are treated with caution: there is almost always a risk that they will not be loyal to the company and will return to their business. As a rule, such employees have much higher ambitions and not everyone is able to work under someone else’s leadership. All these are risks for the employer, which he diligently avoids. Service expert Anastasia Zhukova shared tips on how to look for work for former entrepreneurs.

Evaluate the offer soberly

Former entrepreneurs are not liked in companies with well-established processes: after returning from “free floating”, people feel uncomfortable within the confines of job descriptions and strict work mechanisms. But in places where determined, responsible and independent employees are needed, former businessmen and start-ups are really welcome. This is confirmed by the story of one of the applicants whom I hired.

His transportation business went bankrupt, and he had to sell off a significant part of his property to cover his debts. He decided to get a job as a driver to feed his family. Our manufacturing company just needed an employee with a machine. During the interview, it turned out that he was well versed in procurement, and we offered to do this as well.

The employee performed well, and was gradually entrusted with carrying out large transactions. And after some time, the position of head of the production and economic department became vacant in the company. The owner carefully selected people for this position: not everyone could cope with the large amount of work, and the search for a suitable person took a long time.

By that time, our candidate had been working in the company for about six months. Everyone agreed that he should be given the opportunity to show his skills and abilities in this position. Now he heads the logistics, procurement and production unit, having taken the position of deputy director.

Conclusion: do not lose faith in your strengths and skills. You have a significant advantage over other candidates: you look at processes and the work itself differently, since entrepreneurship experience expands consciousness and perception. This is your strength: you know what it's like to make decisions, right or wrong, and take responsibility for them.

Describe your entrepreneurial experience

There are several tips that will help you not scare off the recruiter at the first stage.

In the employer's account, responses are displayed in a list with a short excerpt from the resume. Recruiters set up the list type themselves - usually the work experience, desired salary and names of the companies where the candidate worked are left there. If this information interests the employer, he opens the resume and looks through it in full.

Therefore, if you had an individual entrepreneur, in your last place of work it is better to write not “Ivanov Stepan Semenovich”, but simply “Entrepreneurial activity” - this sounds better and is easier to perceive. Be sure to indicate the industry and direction of your activity.

Unless you are applying for a management position, avoid the words “owner” or “proprietor”: they may suggest that a former businessman is difficult to work under another manager.

Think carefully about the position you choose, especially if your business direction and previous experience are at odds. You can develop further in a new industry or return to your profession: both are absolutely acceptable.

If the business has not existed for long, apply for the position level that was before it opened, or a little higher. A common problem is inflated expectations: former businessmen hope to get a management position, although in their previous place of work they did not rise above an ordinary specialist. It will be difficult to move straight into a leadership position. But rapid career growth in this situation is also possible.

Describe responsibilities based on the job requirements. Place relevant functions at the beginning of the description. Formulate everything in detail: brevity is not helpful here. Check the number of company employees, if any, especially if you have not previously held management positions.

The most common mistake I have seen in a resume is a short list of responsibilities: “Company management, procurement, customer service, development, market promotion.” Everything was put in a couple of lines, without details. It is clear that absolutely everything had to be done, but the details are important here.

For example:

• management of the company, development of strategy and setting tasks for employees (subordinate to 10 people);
• working with suppliers (you can name key ones if they are large and well-known, or list product groups);
• negotiating with key clients (again, if there were large ones, name them); development of a strategy for promoting products/services/services and so on.

Do not forget about the results of work during the period of entrepreneurship. If your business's financials weren't impressive, just don't list them. But information about establishing connections, receiving even small discounts on purchases, and successful experience in finding partners is worth mentioning.

Prepare for your interview

In addition to standard questions, former entrepreneurs like to ask the following during interviews.

“Why did you decide to return to hiring?”

Don't take this as an attempt to humiliate or insult you. It is really important for an employer to know what your motivation is.

The answer must be honest. A completely acceptable option is this: “I decided that I was ready to start my own business because I did not see any prospects for growth at my previous job. Gathered the necessary information and chose a direction of activity (explain why this is the case). Organized the work process. But at a certain moment difficulties arose,” and tell what exactly went wrong.

Your task is to convince the employer that you have not come to gain the missing experience or temporarily wait out an unsuccessful period in the country’s economy, but are ready to develop within the framework of a new company and use all the acquired experience for its benefit.

“Are you planning to return to business?”

You came to get a job, and your goal is growth within the new company. This is exactly how it should be answered.

“You haven’t succeeded in your business. Why do you think things will be better in the new place?”

Honestly describe the situation, tell us about the reasons why the business “didn’t take off.” Emphasize that you gained this experience in your own company and will be able to prevent similar mistakes in another organization. Indicate that you can implement complex tasks and hope to become part of a successful team - of course, if you really want it.

For those who doubt that they have described their entrepreneurial experience correctly, there is the “Successful Resume” service. Experts from HR and recruitment will look at your resume through the eyes of the employer and help you make it more attractive to your dream company.

Many employers treat former individual entrepreneurs with special attention and even wariness, consider them “spoiled”, perhaps they are afraid that they will show excessive initiative, will not be able to work under someone else’s supervision, etc. And therefore they are in no hurry hire them. And yet, experience of independent work is often irreplaceable.

Why do problems arise?

To the question “Why did you decide to become an employee again,” most former entrepreneurs answer this way: the business did not take off, the project failed. However, it should be remembered that they did not create their business by chance. Most likely, they were driven by the desire to organize an effective business in accordance with their own ideas; be responsible for all areas of work, and not for a specific segment; have absolute authority; manage your time; finally, receive a higher income and move to a new social level.

The motives behind such a decision often lie in underlying dissatisfaction with the organization of business in the employing company (usually more than one), and a feeling of incomplete realization of one’s strengths and talents. A person who once set out “on a free voyage” is characterized by such personal qualities as ambition, determination, enterprise, initiative, independence, and often authoritarianism.

When such a person sends a resume to a company for the position of an ordinary employee, employers are wary. They believe that managing someone who has had experience running their own business is not easy. Building a relationship on the principle of “boss - subordinate” with someone who recently stood “at the helm” is a difficult task, the solution of which requires certain sacrifices on both sides.

An individual entrepreneur often has no one to delegate authority to, so he can do a little of everything. As a rule, he understands a wide range of issues, such as personnel selection, management and accounting, planning, understands cost structures and financial management, and knows how to organize a sales and supply system. Hiring such a person to work in a small company sometimes means getting someone who will constantly evaluate and possibly criticize your work.

Employers are also worried that, after working in their company, the former self-employed worker will return to entrepreneurship and create a competing company, where he will attract clients and the best employees.

How to motivate?

It is possible to influence the loyalty of such a person, but it is expensive. In order for a former entrepreneur to stay with the company after he understands what mistakes he made in the past and how he could avoid them, he needs to be paid as much as he would never earn working alone. And this is expensive. Or he should admire your team and see himself as an indispensable member. And this is also rare.

At the same time, among former individual entrepreneurs there are also candidates who have lost heart, broken morally by their “failure.” They may never risk repeating their experience. Perhaps such a person will avoid responsibility - he was too nervous when running his business, and now he will only do what he is told.

Possible benefits

And yet you should not refuse a person who has experience in running his own business. If he was unable to start his own business, this does not mean that he is not talented.

There was simply a lack of organizational skills, financial resources, business knowledge, and may have suffered due to external factors and government intervention (introduction of licenses, changes in sanitary and fire regulations). In these cases, he can become a good ordinary employee of your company. And employers should not refuse such people. A person who knows how to admit to himself that independent business is not for him will no longer take risks.

A former entrepreneur can be indispensable in those areas of work where complete independence of action is required. He is determined to make money, which means he may be of interest to companies that need employees focused on results rather than process. He can set goals himself and will effectively achieve them. Such experience may be of interest to employers looking for specialists in business development, attracting clients, and conducting project work.

A person is happy to get involved in work where he needs to use all his organizational skills and prove to himself that if “then and there” you did not achieve success, here is a second chance - to rehabilitate yourself in your own eyes and become successful.

Former self-employed individuals may be in demand in occupations such as sales representative or procurement, where the ability to work in an autonomous environment is required. The former individual entrepreneur has accumulated enormous experience as a specialist in a specific field and therefore will be highly desirable in specialized companies. For example, a former individual entrepreneur supplied small stalls and shops with dairy products. This means that they are always ready to talk to him about working on the staff of large dealers who supply chains with products. Also, this person will be in great demand as an account manager (sales manager) in this area. After all, he had to negotiate every day with both buyers and suppliers. A former individual entrepreneur will feel good in the consulting field. And, of course, a former entrepreneur who had several employees will most likely become a good head of a small department.

Advice for former entrepreneurs

In any case, it is necessary for the applicant to note the fact of running his own business; this will help attract potential employers from those areas where such experience is interesting for the company and will indicate the openness and honesty of the candidate.

Another thing is the ability to present information about yourself. The applicant should highlight the benefits of his entrepreneurial experience, highlighting the achievements and challenges he has encountered. It will also be useful to talk about the mistakes he made and the conclusions he made for himself.

To successfully pass an interview, such an applicant must clearly formulate the reason why he wants to work in the company in the position in question, how he sees his further development, and what goals he strives to achieve when joining the company. Understand himself: will he be able to obey the instructions of other people, especially if he does not agree with them? Is he able to adapt and work as a team? And the main question is how long does he plan to be an ordinary soldier?

If in doubt, it is better to try to restart your business, raise funds, find opportunities, attract sponsors or go to business education, than to expose your employer.

If there is no doubt, you need to justify the employer’s expectations. During the probationary period and beyond, the employee must moderate his desire to “steer himself,” actively study working methods, organizational structure, forms of interaction within the company, and be part of a single and coherent mechanism to achieve common goals.

It is very important to understand and accept the fact that no matter what complex and responsible area you are entrusted with, no matter what powers you are given, management is responsible for developing the overall strategy, and you implement it at a high professional level.