There’s a lot of advice out there about how to hire. Clearly you need people who are smart, proactive, self-starters, team players and have the right skills. The list goes on and on. But if you’re running a small, growing company and you want to find people who will stick with you for the long term, it’s not just enough to hire skill sets. Tip: You need to hire people who can grow and scale with your company. This is particularly important not only for key positions but I’d argue also for more junior positions as well. They are the ones who are going to be moving up the ranks.

If a candidate is too experienced, they probably won’t stay long. Not experienced enough, and you’ll quickly leave them behind. In hiring, probe a candidate’s perspective on career trajectory and professional development. Where have they been? Where are they going? Do they think of their career as a trajectory? Can you see them scaling with your company and taking on more responsibility? How about a leadership role as you grow? If yes, they have a good shot of being with you for the long term.