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Whether they want to or not, most entrepreneurs start their businesses on their own. Several do want workers but have a difficult time filling open positions.

SCORE’s latest infographic highlights the challenges of entrepreneurs creating the right team in their first year of business.

This infographic highlights the findings of part 3 of The Megaphone of Main Street: Startups report.

Who handled these responsibilities during your company’s first year?

Strategy/Planning:

• 96.6%: Owner
• 0.6%: Employee
• 0.6%: Contractor
• 0.1%: Intern
• 2.1%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

Sales

• 92.9%: Owner
• 3.5%: Employee
• 1.5%: Contractor
• 0.1%: Intern
• 1.8%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

Marketing

• 92.3%: Owner
• 1.5%: Employee
• 2.4%: Contractor
• 0.1%: Intern
• 3.5%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

Logistics/Inventory/Distribution

• 88.9%: Owner
• 5.3%: Employee
• 2.8%: Contractor
• 0.1%: Intern
• 2.8%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

Service delivery or Product creation/Manufacturing

• 82.6%: Owner
• 9.3%: Employee
• 6.1%: Contractor
• 0%: Intern
• 2.0%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

Technology

• 79.1%: Owner
• 2.5%: Employee
• 10.3%: Contractor
• 0.3%: Intern
• 7.8%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

Accounting/Finance

• 76.7%: Owner
• 3.5%: Employee
• 14.3%: Contractor
• 0%: Intern
• 5.4%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

Manufacturing

• 72.7%: Owner
• 6.1%: Employee
• 18.8%: Contractor
• 0.3%: Intern
• 2.0%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

Legal

• 60.5%: Owner
• 1.3%: Employee
• 32.6%: Contractor
• 0.4%: Intern
• 5.1%: Family/Friend (unpaid)

More startups want to hire in the first year than those surveyed in our 2017 Megaphone of Main Street data report:

• 54% sought employees in their first year in 2019, while
• 38% sought employees in our 2017 survey.

Finding qualified people is a bigger struggle in 2019:

• Owners who had difficulty filling job openings: 52% in 2019 and 41% in 2017
• Owners who could not fill job openings: 33% in 2019 and 14% in 2017

Challenges in filling open positions:

• Cannot find qualified applicants (skills/expertise): 75.7%
• Need to raise salary/wages to be competitive: 28.8%
• Do not offer health care benefits: 27%
• Too time-consuming to hire qualified workers: 24.3%
• Company location not desirable to candidates: 7.2%
• Candidates do not pass drug-testing requirements: 6.3%

Whether you’re a startup or an established business, SCORE mentors can help you succeed.