Liam Dickerson, CEO of Housekeep, explains why Avin Rabheru should win the Leader of the Year category of the Guardian Small Business Showcase competition:
After 10 years investing in young, fast-growing businesses, Avin decided to switch side to start his own business. He founded Housekeep.com in 2014, which now serves 1000s of customers and 100s of cleaners across London.
He knew that the key to scaling fast was to find and motivate top quality talent. Today, the Housekeep team comprises a mix of consumer and technology experts from the BBC, Addison Lee and Barclays, with 50+ years’ combined experience. Top people is core to Housekeep’s business for both the management team and the cleaners.
While Avin started out getting his hands dirty, cleaning 100+ homes himself when we launched, his approach has switched to trusting his team. This means everyone has clear targets, with lots of support to hit them, which are reviewed weekly and monthly. There’s also a weekly team meeting where everyone has a say in shaping how Housekeep evolves.
Of course startup life often involves long hours with little immediate financial reward. Avin is open about this and clear with new recruits. While we can’t pay the most, it’s a place to learn fast and take ownership. One of our interns has progressed to running operations in just 18 months. The entire team also own shares in Housekeep, so have that motivation too.
Alvin’s approach is paying off, with Housekeep recently being named London’s top house cleaner provider.
All entries which meet the competition criteria are published and our judging panel select a shortlist of the top three for each category. Winners are announced at an awards ceremony in summer 2016.
