Entrepreneurship in Sierra Leone: What You Need To Know About Recruitment, Team Building and Mammy Coker

Discussing local media trends with interns in training under our VRC Marketingedia program

As there are very few resources online about entrepreneurship in Sierra Leone, especially from a woman’s perspective this post is one of four where I share my insights and tips on clients, contracts, recruitment, service delivery, and safeguarding tactics for women. This is part 2

Entrepreneurship in Sierra Leone: What You Need To Know About Recruitment, Team Building and Mammy Coker

Generating leads is easy, finding the right people to work with is not.

Sierra Leonean startups do not attract the most skilled in the workforce. The best talent in SL own their own businesses. They work for multinationals in telecommunications and banking, and NGOs. Some workers prefer the stability of older, bigger companies. That’s the case even if the wages are low. Big companies have rent seeking opportunities that startups lack.

The best way to recruit is through an agency. If you can't afford an agency then post your job on Facebook or LinkedIn. The only problem is that you may not have energy to sort through the  applications.

When recruiting, look beyond certifications and degrees. In my experience only one in ten local graduates are employable. Look for a desire to learn, eloquence, and they are confident to try new things. Fluency in the English language or a foreign accent is not proof of employability. Even the most employable of the lot lack skills, professionalism, and productivity. Be prepared to invest in long term onboarding and training for six months or longer. Include the basic digital and professional communication skills. These include how to send emails for work, Googling, tone in when work phone calls, using cloud services, and office hygiene . Take nothing for granted.

In five years I’ve hired 15 nationals, and 1 expatriate. I’ve fired 10/19. four have resigned. One came to work for a week and never returned. I’ve had a dozen interns also come train with us over the years. Last year we did a digital media internship. 

When we launched in SL, My plan was to live in the diaspora so I still needed someone to run operations in Freetown. After we signed our first contract with Sierra Leone Brewery I flew in a project manager from Ghana. He had led several projects for our clients in Accra. 

Together we hired a local team to support the operation. Once we found the team, I found resistance to expatriate leadership. Beyond that my project manager found the conditions in SL to be an environment harsher than at home.

I understand why company's bring in expatriates but for long term company growth you have to be able to train local talent. He could manage operations but I still needed to be there to convert leads.

To get the best out of your team first be cutthroat about letting people go.  As soon as it becomes obvious that someone is not the right fit, let them go. Don’t waste resources on them.

Also, A flat organisational structure is the best for startup team management in SL. The more hierarchical the organization the higher the risk of exploitation. Managers cheat and exploit team mates when they know the leadership is inaccessible. Exploitation is so much the norm that those who find themselves victims of it, don’t feel empowered to speak up. It is up to you to have a zero tolerance policy for exploitation. Create an environment that is safe and free of exploitation to increase your team’s well being. 

Clients prefer to engage with the founder. You have to show that your team has the skills. You must include the team and be clear about their roles in project delivery. Showcase your staff's talent and always credit their work. It makes the team feel valued. Clients will know that you are not a one woman operation.

Mammy Coker is always a possibility. You can't stop this from happening. Ever so often former clients will contact your staff behind your back to entice them with one-off offers. In my case, each time it happened my team has let me know. 

Continued from Part 1 - What you need to know about entrepreneurship in Sierra Leone: Clients and Contracts 

Continued on Part 3: What you need to know about entrepreneurship in Sierra Leone: Service Delivery, Resistance, and Work Culture