Measuring business success by employee count is misleading; hiring often reduces profit margins and adds unnecessary stress. Use associates for flexibility and only hire when absolutely essential.
There are some terrific reasons to hire employees if you are really running a consulting firm. This is a crucial decision in designing your business model. If one has a compelling vision for their business that is attractive to employees you get a completely different calibre of talent. One needs to understand and value these differences. Employees have some profound economic ramifications as well, one on cashflow, and the other on profit. These also need to be understood. These also need to be understood , preferably in the readiness, preparation and design part of going into your own business.
There are some terrific reasons to hire employees if you are really running a consulting firm. This is a crucial decision in designing your business model. If one has a compelling vision for their business that is attractive to employees you get a completely different calibre of talent. One needs to understand and value these differences. Employees have some profound economic ramifications as well, one on cashflow, and the other on profit. These also need to be understood. These also need to be understood , preferably in the readiness, preparation and design part of going into your own business.