Hiring employees

[skala67]

im sure there have been threads about this, but I havent seen any in a while so i figured we could get a discussion going again.

 

I own a visualization company that is about 1 year old exactly. work has been steadily increasing and increasing at a good rate. Just recently I have started to land larger development clients in Vegas and Phoenix which include animations and VR's along with still renders. Along with about 8-10 steady clients from whom i get 1-2 multiple still render projects a month, it is really starting to seem overwhelming. The company up until now has only been supporting itself (and me minimally) and the tip in $$$ has not started yet, because the larger projects are just beginning.

 

My question is, when should I start seriously considering hiring employees, and are there any alternative plans of action that I should look into, such as outsourcing smaller jobs to freelancers...and if it is time to start looking, what are the experiences of those who have gone through this..

 

thanks in advance and look forward to hearing...

[vizwhiz]

TJ

 

use etc freelancers per project

 

you might want to closely exam your workflow

which software(s) do you use is very important

 

i live in Mesa AZ, i could do 3d modeling but in autocad solids

This may or may NOT work for you even Tho i am in close approximity

 

with Internet anything goes

 

my method would be To contract out the modeling

and Then do the rendering in-house, that way it is your final Touch

 

To maintain consistency of look-feel and presentation quality

 

just some ideas

 

say, Thursday is my 1st day self-employed (again)

i already got some serious workload lined up and growing

 

i will give you a call sometime soon

 

Thanks

 

Randy

[Tim Saunders]

Basing my thoughts on the experience of a friend of mine who went down a similar road as you. When he first started, it was just him modeling and rendering for several years. He got more and more business around as he marketted himself pretty heavily. He tried freelancers here and there, but he was too picky about how he wanted things done. Finally he couldn't cary the load any more so he hired someone to model full time for him. The same growth and need for more employees has followed in the past 2 years. I think his best dicission was to wait until it was absolutely mandatory for hiring new employees. He trains his employees to model exactly how he wants them to, while giving them cool perks along the way. And like Randy said, this way you can render it the way you want. But like I said, he made sure he was busy enough to keep the rest of the studio plus one guy busy. It is a hard price to pay to wait (18 hour days on a regular basis), but his clients knew they would get the products delivered on time, and they kept coming back for more. He has 3 guys with him full time now and he really needs more. Good luck.

[Ernest Burden III]

Taking on employees is a big responsibility. They are placing a lot of trust in you. You need to be sure you can reasonably support the payroll, even in some down times. I don't know what the 'standard' time would be--a month? four months? That's hard to do. Hopefully there won't be that problem, but you have to be ready for it should it ever come.

[Tim Saunders]

Ernest,

(if you check this thread again)

Did you decide to go work for any of the other studios you were talking with?

[Ernest Burden III]

Ernest,

(if you check this thread again)

Did you decide to go work for any of the other studios you were talking with?

 

Those discussions were very general, but have continued. The point was I was looking at what new things the future would offer. So while I do not have any news one way or the other, it is still possible I will be hired, hiring, or both in the not-too-distant future.

 

Change can be fun when you're ready for it.

[moshenko]

You need to be sure you can reasonably support the payroll, even in some down times. I don't know what the 'standard' time would be--a month? four months?

 

Along the lines of Ernest's comments:

 

If you are seriously going to take on employees, I think your first step should be to talk with your bank. Arrange a decent line of credit so that you can handle "lag" times: those times when you have finished a massive amount of work but have not yet been paid. The larger the projects you work on, the more consequences that can happen when (not "if") a project is delayed in either payment or completion. I would recommend having three months of support funds on hand, either in the form of cash in your accounts or as an operating line of credit.

 

Growing a business can be both exhilarating and terrifying. Best of luck to you!

[skala67]

Thanks for all the suggestions and support. I am not ready now to make the decision, but just wanted to start the wheels turning for when I am. These suggestions have helped alot and have gotten me thinking in the right direction. I'll let you all know how things go.

 

and as terrifying as it is, I wouldnt trade it for the world,

 

Thanks again,