Wellington - Full of genuises

On Friday I was sitting have a beer in 3C' listening to one of the founders of company who has been going for 13 years, listening to how a great partner relationship saved them one on occasion when things got a bit tight. The afternoon beer and chat got me thinking about:

- how talented some people are, to have done what they have done
- but also with some additional focus and investment (whether funding or tax incentives) how good we can really be when it comes to software or product development?

What I was most impressed by was the lack of ego and the passion these guys have for what they do. I could easily see how they have grown from three guys to over one hundred staff (but they do have some good war stories to tell).

Now there are many stories like this I am sure (just look at Xero, Starnow, Kitomba etc) but do we, the general public or the politicians know about them, especially those that are between one and two years of age where the acid really comes on small start-up companies?

I am sure talking to people inside the likes of Starnow and Kitomba they would have a few suggestions for the politicians on what else could be done for small entities, that can ship product off-shore or have the ability to capture an international audience based on their product / software to enhance there chances of succeeding.

Or is it as simple as going to the bank or going to angel investors asking for funding? Possibly, but I think there is still more the government can do as there are many, many geniuses in our city.

How powerful is Twitter?

People probably don't need me to tell them, but I was told a story yesterday which rammed it home for me about how powerful Twitter can be.

I was talking to a couple of guys from Trade Me regarding twitter and unfortunately for them the Trade Me site went down earlier this year (which is probably the worst thing that can happen to Trade Me). Anyway within a matter of minutes someone who was on the site 'tweeted' that 'the Trade Me website is down'. Someone from www.stuff.co.nz site was following that person and had the story up on the front page of the Stuff website - this meant that some Trade Me employees found out via Stuff that their own website was down - this is how quickly news can travel via Twitter!

It's the quick and the dead!!

I am noticing that organisations are getting frustrated by not being able to secure people that they want to secure, simply because they are to slow in:

• making a decision on wanting to see a person
• arranging interviews
• giving feedback after the interviews
• not having the correct approvals in place in the first place

In some instances where there might be an over supply of candidates (Helpdesk or Systems Engineers) they can possibly afford to take their time, but when it comes to Business Analysts, Software Developers, Software / Solution Architects and Test Analysts be prepared to lose candidates if you don't move quickly on someone you like!

I would encourage line managers / clients to ensure they have approval to recruit, ensure that if an exceptional candidates comes out of the woodwork, you can make yourself available to see that person, ensure that the people you want involved in the process are available and that you can turn around an offer quickly - all these things show candidates that you are serious, that you can be nimble and juggle things to accommodate them - those first impressions are critical.

I can't see the demand or the competitive nature of the current Wellington marketplace going away - in fact I can see it getting even tighter - especially when the demand from Australia is picking up.