These are the three skill sets you need in any business. One person can do them all, but it’s very unusual to find someone who has strengths in all of them.
Finders
Are the people who bring in work. In today’s world they often coordinate their work with a Customer Relationship Management tool. The come in two flavours:
- Hunters do New Business Development. They hunt down prospective clients. They are chatty, networking people-people. Great at opening up relationships, they may not be so brilliant at closing sales.
- Farmers do Account Management. They grow paying work based on relationships with existing customers.
Minders
Are the list-keeping managers who make sure stuff gets done, contracts are issued and that the business remembers to invoice for work it has delivered.
Grinders
Are the skilled folk who actually do whatever the business does. They often have a hard time understanding why Finders and Minders are necessary, but they are.