If you’re managing a team and feel it’s time you hired more staff, all you need is a green light from your boss.
And that’s hard to get sometimes. If you want to expand your team but senior management resists the idea, you need to build a strong business case to convince them.
Here are 7 steps to help you persuade your boss to expand your team.
1. Pay attention to timing
If your organization is in the middle of cost-cutting, now probably isn’t the time to make that type of request. Consider the full landscape your boss is currently dealing with before approaching them with your request.
2. Make it hard to say ‘no’
If you fail to present any evidence to back up your claim, your boss won’t think twice before saying ‘no.’ Hiring new staff is an extra cost for the company. That’s why you need to show solid proof that hiring new employees will bring tangible benefits. Develop a supported proposal to persuade executives that hiring new people is the best solution for your team and organization.
3. Audit the current work of your staff
The reason for starting out with an audit is that it enables you to show how much work your team is carrying out right now. Your boss will want to assess your team’s current performance and determine whether each team member is working at full capacity.
Talk with team members and ask them how much time it takes them to complete tasks. Map out their weekly tasks on a spreadsheet and highlight the amount of time each of them takes to demonstrate that your team is working at their full capacity and scaling is the best option.
4. Show the consequences of not hiring more staff
Explain to your boss what will happen if they prevent you from hiring more people. Indicate problems such as missed deadlines or dropping customer satisfaction using solid proof to show that your team is struggling to keep up with the workload.
For example, the best way to back up a claim about a reduction in customer satisfaction is showing customer testimonials or responses from customer surveys. That type of evidence will impact the decision of your boss more than repeating something you’ve heard from someone else.
5. Explain the benefits of adding new staff
Show your boss how your team and organization will benefit from the expertise brought in by new employees. A larger workforce enables teams to take on more work, dedicate more resources to time-sensitive projects, and avoid the hassle of hiring freelance contractors who are a significant and recurring cost. Demonstrate the value of in-house employees. Remind your boss that growing internal teams project an image of success to clients and customers.
6. Be clear about the staff you need
To get your boss on board with your idea, explain to them what type of staff you’d like to hire. Decide how many people you want to hire, what roles they would fill, what skills and experience they will bring to your team, and what salary would they need. All this will give your boss a clear indication of the how much it will cost to hire them.
7. Offer an alternative
Hiring on the local market can be expensive. That’s why it’s smart to present your boss with alternative solutions such as nearshoring. If your boss hesitates to agree on such an alternative, ask for a limited-time experiment instead of a permanent change.
Take advantage of these 7 strategies to convince your boss that hiring new staff will bring immense benefits to your organization.
