This week I read the transcript of an interview with the CEO of Uni-lever which quite insightful. He is one of the few CEO’s of MNC’s that interviews entry level candidates. This showed the level of importance that is given to hiring at the company. During the interview he mentioned the one thing that he looks out for during interviews is the an alignment with company values.

Purpose and values go hand-in-hand. One states what you want to achieve, and the latter defines how you want to achieve it. Together they form the foundation on which a company is built. In the early days of a business, values are overlooked as a “nice to have”. They are left to be dealt with once the company grows to a certain size. This creates a large disconnect between the founders and employees as the business starts to grow. Primarily due to a mismatch in expectations between the founders values and those of the new hires. Whether values are formally expressed or not, they are at play from the first day a business is started. Setting them early pays huge dividends in the future.

The tao of Paul Polman Interview transcript with the CEO of Uni-lever. This article has some great insights on recruiting and managing growing workforces. The interview includes good advice on how to stay relevant in a rapidly changing world.

Why we should aim to build a forever company, not just a unicorn Everywhere we turn these days, someone is discussing the rise of unicorns. With a staggering amount of companies raising funding at valuations past $1bn, this article puts it into perspective. While increasing the value of your company is beneficial, it should not become the only focus. Our goal is to create a company that creates sustainable value and makes the world a better place. Article is filled with great quotes and references on the topic.

A Different Take on Talent Acquisition This was an interesting read. The author was asked the question about passion and talent by her daughter. The posts discusses her answer and how she thinks about the word talent and what it means. The article ends with an interesting reference to Greek mythology and the history of the world talent.

How to Fire Someone: How to Decide, When to do it, and How to be Guilt-free I still remember the first time I had to fire someone, it was very painful. I don’t think it ever gets easier, however I wish I had read this article before I did. Like all the Evergreen articles it goes into detail about the process and how to approach it. Something every entrepreneur should be familiar with.

Kevin Rose’s top advice for founders I am a big Kevin Rose fan. He has done a set of awesome interviews at foundation.kr. If you haven’t checked this out you should. In this article he discusses the five pieces of advice he gives to all founders. He made a point that entrepreneurs tend to take on too much at once, something I have been guilt of many times. This is a great short read with links to his other shows.

Wishing everyone a great week ahead!