Your First Hire: What Role, How To Test, How To Pay

Running a business alone, especially in the early days, often feels like you’re juggling a dozen different tasks at once. You’re the CEO, the marketer, the customer support, the delivery driver, and often, the cleaner. This can work for a while, but soon you hit a wall. You’re burnt out, growth stalls, and you start missing opportunities because you simply don’t have enough hours in the day.

This is the point where many founders realise they need help. Making your first hire is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. It’s not just about delegating tasks; it’s about buying back your most precious resource – your time – so you can focus on the things only you can do as the founder: setting vision, making strategic decisions, and securing the future of your business.

The core idea here is simple: your first hire should free you up to do what matters most. They are an investment in your time and the business's future, not just an expense. If done right, this hire will amplify your efforts and allow your business to grow beyond what you can achieve alone. Done wrong, and it can become a costly distraction that drains your energy and resources.

What Role Do You Need First?

Before you even think about writing a job description, you need to figure out what problem you’re trying to solve with this hire. Don't just hire a "general assistant"; identify the specific tasks that are draining your time and energy, but don't require your unique founder-level skills.

Here’s a simple way to figure this out:

1. Track Your Time for a Week: For five working days, write down everything you do and how much time it takes. Be honest. This includes answering customer calls, managing social media, running errands, packing orders, handling invoices, or even just clearing your email inbox.
2. Categorise and Rate: Go through your list and categorise tasks into:
   • A: Founder-only tasks: Only you can do these (e.g., fundraising, strategic partnerships, product vision).
   • B: Delegatable but critical: Important tasks that could be done by someone else with training (e.g., customer support, social media posting, basic accounting, order processing).
   • C: Busy work/Non-essential: Tasks that add little value or could be automated/eliminated (e.g., endless email checking, minor administrative tasks).
3. Identify the Biggest Time Sink in Category B: Look for the tasks in category B that consume the most of your time. This is often where your first hire can make the biggest impact.

Many founders find their first hire falls into a few common categories, addressing universal pain points. A Customer Support or Operations Assistant is often the most impactful if you spend hours answering questions, processing orders, or coordinating logistics. This person handles the day-to-day interactions and ensures operations run smoothly. For example, if you run an online store, you might be spending a lot of time responding to order queries, tracking shipments, or helping customers with returns. An operations assistant could manage this, leaving you to focus on sourcing new products or marketing campaigns.

If your desk is piled high with paperwork, or you’re constantly scheduling meetings and managing your calendar, an Administrative Assistant can be a lifesaver, handling the organisational backbone of your business.

For founders who know they need a stronger online presence but lack the time to create content, engage with followers, or run basic campaigns, a Junior Marketer or Social Media Manager can free up significant bandwidth.

Finally, for businesses that involve moving physical goods, managing pickups, deliveries, and routes can be incredibly time-consuming. A dedicated Delivery Rider or Logistics Coordinator can be transformative in this area. From my work, when I built BG Laundry, it had a web app for bookings, a customer app, and a rider app. Even with technology to streamline pickup and delivery routes and earnings, the human element of coordinating with customers and ensuring timely service is critical. A dedicated rider or logistics coordinator can manage this flow, ensuring packages move efficiently.

Your goal is to hire someone who can take on 70-80% of those identified Category B tasks, allowing you to focus on Category A. Don't try to hire someone who can do everything you do; hire someone who can do a few things well, consistently, to free up your bandwidth.

How to Test Candidates Effectively

Once you know what role you need, it's time to find the right person. A CV (Curriculum Vitae) or resume is just a starting point. Many people can talk a good game, but you need to see if they can do the work.

1. Write a Clear Job Description: This isn't just for candidates; it's for you. List the specific responsibilities (e.g., "Respond to customer emails within 2 hours," "Process 50 orders daily," "Manage social media posts on 3 platforms"). Include required skills and what success looks like in the role.
2. The Work Sample Test (Paid): This is the most effective way to test a candidate. Design a small, real-world task that mimics what they’d actually be doing on the job. Crucially, pay them a fair rate for their time if the task takes more than 30 minutes to an hour. This shows respect for their time and commitment.
   • For a customer support role: Give them 2-3 common customer inquiries (e.g., "My order is late," "I received the wrong item," "How do I return something?") and ask them to draft email responses as if they were replying to a real customer.
   • For a logistics coordinator: Give them a list of 5 pickup and 5 delivery addresses in Lagos (hypothetical, of course) and ask them to plan the most efficient route, considering peak traffic times in specific areas (e.g., Ojota, Lekki toll gate). Ask them to explain their reasoning.
   • For a social media manager: Ask them to draft 3 social media posts for your business, based on a hypothetical new product launch or a common customer question. When evaluating the work sample, look for several key attributes: attention to detail (did they follow all instructions?), problem-solving (did they think critically about the task?), communication (is their writing clear, concise, and professional?), and timeliness (did they submit the task when promised?).
3. Structured Interviews: After the work sample test, conduct an interview. Ask every candidate the same set of questions to ensure fairness and allow for direct comparison. Focus on behavioural questions ("Tell me about a time when...") rather than hypothetical ones.
   • Example: "Tell me about a time you had to deal with a difficult customer. What did you do, and what was the outcome?"
   • Example: "Describe a situation where you had to manage multiple tasks with competing deadlines. How did you prioritise?"
4. Reference Checks: Don't skip this. Call their previous employers or supervisors. Ask specific questions about their work ethic, reliability, and how they handle challenges. Focus on questions like: "What was their biggest strength?", "What was an area they needed to develop?", "Would you hire them again?"

How to Pay Your First Hire

Compensation is more than just a number; it's about valuing your team member and ensuring they can focus on their work without financial stress.

1. Research Market Rates: Don't guess. Look up what similar roles (with similar experience levels) are paid in your city or region. Websites like Glassdoor, LinkedIn, or even local recruitment agencies can give you a rough idea. Ask around your network of founders (discreetly, of course).
   • Hypothetical: If a junior operations assistant in Lagos typically earns NGN 70,000 – NGN 120,000 per month, aim for the middle to upper end if you want to attract good talent and reduce turnover.
2. Define the Compensation Structure: Second, define the compensation structure. This includes the base salary, where you should be clear about the gross amount and any deductions. Beyond salary, consider what benefits you can offer. Even small things matter, especially in a challenging economy. These might include a transport allowance, which is essential for many, a lunch allowance, which can be a huge help, or even basic health insurance, which can be a major draw. If their role requires a lot of communication, an airtime or data allowance can be valuable. If applicable, clearly define the metrics for any performance bonuses.
3. Employment vs. Contract: Third, decide between employment and contract. A contract (freelance or gig) arrangement is often preferred by early-stage founders for its flexibility. You pay for specific deliverables or hours, and you typically don't offer benefits or handle payroll taxes in the same way. This model is good for project-based work or if you're uncertain about long-term needs. In contrast, employment (full-time or part-time) offers more stability and commitment from both sides. With employment, you're responsible for payroll, taxes, and potentially benefits. This is often better for roles that require deep integration into your company culture and operations. The trade-off is clear: contracts offer flexibility but less commitment, while employment offers commitment but more responsibility for you. For your first hire, especially for an ongoing operational role, full or part-time employment often makes more sense for consistency and loyalty.
4. Payment Reliability: This cannot be overstated, especially in Nigeria. Pay on time, every single time. Late payments erode trust and create unnecessary stress for your team. Use reliable payment systems that ensure funds are processed efficiently. You should extend that same reliability to your team.

Common Mistakes Founders Make (And How to Avoid Them)

I’ve seen founders make these missteps repeatedly, and they always come back to hurt the business.

One common mistake is hiring too late. Many founders wait until they're completely swamped and burnt out before hiring, which often leads to rushed decisions, hiring out of desperation, and ultimately, bringing on the wrong person. To avoid this, proactively track your time and identify delegatable tasks before you're drowning. Hire when you feel the pinch, not when you're collapsing.

Another pitfall is hiring someone just like you. You might think another "you" will solve everything, but your business needs diverse skills and perspectives. If you're a visionary, you might need someone detail-oriented. If you're operational, you might need someone creative. Avoid this by identifying your own weaknesses and hiring to complement them, looking for skills you lack or tasks you dislike doing.

Founders also often fail at not defining the role clearly. A vague job description leads to confusion, frustration, and an underperforming hire. If you're not clear about what you need, how can anyone deliver it? Spend time on a detailed job description with specific responsibilities, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and expectations to avoid this.

Forgetting to onboard and train is another frequent error. You hired someone, now what? Just throwing them into the deep end without proper training or context is unfair and sets them up for failure. Create a simple onboarding plan that includes introducing them to the team (even if it's just you), explaining your company culture, walking them through processes, and providing necessary tools and access. Plan for regular check-ins during their first few weeks.

Finally, ignoring culture fit can be detrimental. Skills are important, but if someone doesn't align with your values or the way you want to work, it will create friction. Ask behavioural questions during interviews that reveal their work style and values. During the work sample test, observe not just what they do, but how they communicate and approach the task.

Your First Hire Checklist

• Track your time for a week to identify your biggest time sinks.
• List 3-5 specific tasks you need to offload.
• Draft a clear job description based on those tasks, including specific responsibilities and desired outcomes.
• Design a practical work sample test that reflects real job duties.
• Plan to pay candidates for substantial work sample tests.
• Prepare a list of structured interview questions focusing on past behaviour.
• Research market rates for the role in your location.
• Decide on the compensation structure (salary, benefits, allowances).
• Determine if the role will be employment or contract-based.
• Outline a simple onboarding plan for the first week.

What I'd do this week

1. Start your time audit today. For the next five working days, keep a running log of everything you do and how long it takes. Don't skip this; it's the foundation of your hiring strategy.
2. Review your time log and highlight the top three "delegatable but critical" tasks that drain your energy and don't require your unique founder skills. These are the core functions of your first hire.
3. Draft a simple job description for a role that primarily handles those three tasks. Focus on clear, actionable responsibilities and what success in that area looks like.

Bringing in your first team member is a significant step. It means trusting someone else with a piece of what you’ve built, but it’s also how you break free from the daily grind to truly grow your vision. Take your time, be clear, and choose well.

— Samuel