Need a Professional? Who You Gonna Call?

by Carlos Garcia

Hiring Latinos
As the occasional beneficiary of my clients – minority vendor goals, I felt it incumbent on me to do the same – so I made extra efforts to try to hire Hispanic professionals when I could.

I didn’t make that a rule, just a choice. For example, our CPA and our graphic artist were Latinos but our insurance agent and our lawyer were not. My stockbroker was a Latino, our real estate agent was not. You can connect with these folks at Latino business organizations or chambers of commerce or other clubs, groups, etc., or through your friends and networks.

For example, our lawyer introduced me to our CPA, to our graphics guy by my stockbroker. And you won’t necessarily get it right the first time. You do not have to stay loyal to someone who underperforms. Seek excellence in every aspect of your business.

There are other business support areas I did not discuss here because I do not know a lot about them, such as printers (our graphics guys took care of that for me), job placement firms (we couldn-t afford to use them), outside marketing firms (my staff objected but I regret listening to them on this issue), management consultants (again, they-re expensive and we had to muddle through on our own), business appraisal firms (can be very helpful in a sale of assets or the whole firm), etc.

Six Lessons Learned:

  1. In my experience referrals from one professional to the other can be very helpful because the person being hired will feel compelled to perform because their friend’s word is on the line as well as their own.
  2. Be as loyal as you can, but don’t do so the extent that it hurts your business. If you outgrow one of the professionals you work with, so be it.
  3. If a professional you have counted on starts to take your business for granted, talk it out with them and give them a second chance. Bringing them back to the fold can be easier than having to break in a whole new person/team.
  4. If anyone you deal with professionally tries to convince you to cut ethical corners, a) don’t do it and b) fire them.
  5. Stay in touch with your professional team even when you don’t need them – invite them to your holiday parties, chat with them from time to time, etc. Keep them engaged and stay up with developments on their end too.
  6. When someone is doing a great job for you, don’t be shy about communicating this to your fellow entrepreneurs – spreading the word about someone you really trust can help build a network of good will. But don’t do this for someone you don’t know all that well yet – this can get you into trouble if they flake out.

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