MicroBrewr 075: Recruit the right people for the right job
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Mark Doble opened Aviator Brewing Company, Fuquay Varina, North Carolina, in November 2008. In less than 7 years he has started a brewery, a trucking company, a restaurant, two bars, and soon a new brewery with a distillery. All of these business are still operating.
“Not having to work at a corporate job anymore, that’s one of my favorite things about the brewery.” [Tweet This]
With over 100 employees total, Mark says hiring the wrong person is one of the biggest mistakes he has made in the past. He recommends spending time to recruit the right person for the right job.
“Sometimes we get the wrong people in the wrong job,” says Mark, “and that ends up costing us in the long term.”
Hear another brewer’s perspective on this: MicroBrewr 037: A forty-year career at the epicenter of craft beer, MicroBrewr, November 25, 2014.
Mark’s tips for hiring the right person:
- Get people to talk about themselves.
- Get to know them and their work ethic, to decide whether the job is a good fit for them.
- If you have an employee in the wrong position, move her right away to a better-suited position.
Click the player above to listen to the full interview podcast for more tips and advice.
Brewery specs:
Kettle size: 30-BBL.
Size and quantity of fermentation tanks: 10, 100-BBL and 3, 60-BBL fermenters. 2, 30-BBL foeders.
Size and quantity of bright tanks: 2, 100-BBL brite tanks.
Annual brewing capacity/last year’s production: Brewed 10,000 BBL last year. Probably will brew 14,000 BBL this year.
Square footage: 23,000 sq. ft.
Years in operation: 6.5 years (opened November 2008).
Listener question:
From Adam Shay: When did you know that starting a real brewery, as a business was the right move? Do you wish you would’ve done it sooner/later?
Can’t-go-without tool:
Keg cleaner, Premier Stainless.
Book recommendation:
- The Complete Joy of Homebrewing Fourth Edition: Fully Revised and Updated by Charlie Papazian.
Check out the entire list of recommended books, click here.
An upcoming beer style:
Sour beer
Other resources:
- Tampa Bay Brewing Company, Tampa, Florida.
- Devil’s Canyon Brewing Company, San Carlos, California.
- The Flying Lady Restaurant, Pro Aerial Photographers Assn, on Vimeo.
- KeyKeg: One-way disposable keg.
- Seven Stills of S.F., Whiskey inspired by craft beer.
- Foeder (FOOD-er) For Thought!, Deschutes Brewery, March 19, 2015.
- 61 Brewers Speak Out: What I Wish I’d Know Before Starting a Brewery, MicroBrewr, February 9, 2014.
You can reach Mark Doble and Aviator Brewing at:
Sponsors:
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This is a very interesting one man,
Indeed, one of the worst mistake any startup will make is to hire the wrong people for a particular job.
This is only kill your business which is why its always good to be very careful when hiring.
You need to have a particular standard that you follow to ensure you’re not making a mistake.
Thanks for sharing
Thanks for the insight Theodore.
Interesting story- Mark does so many things! Interestingly he never partnered or had investors and still happened to start and run multiple businesses. The passion for doing thing just for its own end makes you survive through real intense moments and this passion shows in him amply as he not only made but sold his own beer carrying them in his truck!
Yes, Akhil! Mark’s story is super inspirational, no? I can’t imagine how he accomplishes so much!