Shailesh aims to revolutionize the start-up ecosystem by working on highly scalable ideas and inspire other young entrepreneurs with great ideas to help them solve, scale and strategize.

Entrepreneurship has come a long way from the days it started its journey in India. Back then, it was a niche concept. Job security was the common reason for avoiding the entrepreneurial path. The idea of trying something on your own without any ready financial backup would not get weightage. Fast forward to today and the scenario has completely changed. Entrepreneurship, now, has become mainstream. Even students have the opportunity to start up. It has become a means to create overall value and wealth, earning the reputation of livelihood boosters.

So how do entrepreneurs ensure that this engine keeps moving? For one, by placing a solid hiring strategy based on strong ethos, leadership and economics. It is a root and long term outlook that creates a strong culture and a resilient team. And the power of such a team goes beyond the obvious. This is especially visible in the time of crisis when good hiring creates all the difference in the world.

So What Is Good Hiring?
In a world full of opportunities, people look deeper into the culture of a workplace before joining. They evaluate its cultural environment and how people treat each other. They care about the kind of work offered – is it exciting? Is it challenging? Is there scope to learn? Do the founders believe in building and inspiring an environment of transparent communications?

I believe open communications unfold a world of opportunities and you can solve anything with open communication. At Yolobus, our ethos includes freedom, responsibility and curiosity. We believe that people can make wise judgements, despite ambiguity. I spend a lot of my time learning on a daily basis and so does my team. Curiosity helps us learn more and therefore grow. When you consistently ask the why of things around, even those that have been accepted, you start unwrapping new perspectives for better solutions. That’s how Yolobus was born. We questioned the mass acceptance of dilapidated bus travel conditions and committed to solve the problem. We, at Yolobus, share a common pride in our ethos.

Cultivating a leadership team is a critical part of building that ace team an entrepreneur always dreams of. In the early stages, a Founder must give that extra focus on spending equal time in hiring the right people and developing the product and strategy. It enables him or her to pump in the vision, let them develop the game plan and take the company forward. Post Product Market fit, your job as a founder should always be to hire for the leadership and get out of their way. In my scheme of things, I always look for two key qualities – attitude and aptitude. The right attitude fetches a sense of responsibility, strength to make mistakes but learn from them and an elevated sense of self awareness. Aptitude, of course, is about the hard skills required to get the job done. There is no substitute for these two. Great leaders possess both in platitude and do what is right for a company.

Fundamentally, entrepreneurs have always been at the forefront of creating economic value. They create business success at a disproportionate rate. This, in turn, accelerates chances of better livelihoods. A start-up’s economic performance, both as a business success and as a reliable livelihood generator, is critical to attracting people.

Cultivating a leadership team is a critical part of building that ace team an entrepreneur always dreams of

Any Tips for Sustainable Hiring?
An entrepreneur always looks for the best of the talent because that gives great results in the long term. The reverse is also true. When great talent meets great opportunities, they stay and keep delivering impact. I am fortunate that I work with some of the best talent in the industry. We have a shared vision which spurs a relation of trust and credibility. At Yolobus, we have the people who joined us on Day 1. While building a team, an entrepreneur must think of sustainability because there are families and their livelihoods involved. Falling into the trap of hiring in bulk quantities might lead to excess or a wrong set of people. This is a toxic behaviour where subsistence is lost. Therefore, hire with discipline. Hire for what you need today and maintain a healthy balance between present and future. Most importantly, start hiring after you have achieved product market fit. Until then, it’s the founder’s job to find product-market fit and no amount of hiring can solve that!