In this ongoing series, we share advice, tips, and insights from real entrepreneurs who battle business challenges every day. (Answers have been edited and condensed for clarity.)
Please tell us your company’s elevator pitch.
I’m John Waldmann, CEO and co-founder of small business team management app Homebase. We’re insanely focused on giving small businesses everything they need to build unstoppable teams: scheduling, time tracking, payroll, financial services, communications, hiring, onboarding and compliance. We are used by over 100,000 companies, employing over 2 million people.
How is it different from other payroll platforms?
We are designed for local businesses, a very important part of our economy. So these are the cafes, restaurants and retail stores in your neighborhood. You are dealing with a very different and unique work environment than companies. It is layer based. There is rarely any overlap between workers and their managers, leading to communication problems. There is a high turnover, which puts additional strain on onboarding and training. Many different languages are spoken. That’s why we’re designed to address all of these specific challenges and more.
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What inspired you to start this company?
My co-founder and I both have very good childhood friends who own and manage restaurants. Some of my friends were in Seattle and opened a salad restaurant. They value healthy eating and care about providing their team with a great work experience. But they had no experience leading a team and no tools to help them. At the same time, my sister worked in restaurants and was a fantastic employee who picked up shifts but had no easy way to track whether she was being paid correctly. That’s why we created Homebase – it’s designed to help our friends and family.
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Having worked with so many small businesses over the last decade, what do you think are the hallmarks of successful businesses?
I think small businesses are incredibly resilient and great employers. We know from our data that employees in small companies are generally happier than employees in larger companies. That’s why I advise small businesses to focus on the things that make them great.
We conducted a study, the Homebase Small Business Fulfillment Index 2024, and found many interesting points. The study showed that 86 percent of wage workers enjoy their work more when they are recognized, but only 66 percent of wage workers reported receiving a compliment at work in the past year. So there is a simple lever of recognition that every small business owner can use. Additionally, the types of benefits that hourly workers in small businesses care about are different than what many small business owners think. 56 percent of owners believe that pay is the most important priority for the team, but in fact 86 percent of employees wanted more flexibility in their work schedules. It wasn’t about the dollar amount. It was about being able to adapt the work to the needs of the family, school attendance and the like.
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What do you say to small business owners who have been doing things their own way for decades and are wary of “complicating” things with new technology?
We can serve so many different types of entrepreneurs – new business owners trying to figure out how to do everything and also people who have been doing it for 30 years. And the reality applies to both: running a small business is incredibly hard and the stress is enormous. Run payroll, look for time cards, and make sure people show up. And the companies that have been doing this for 30 years know that it’s getting harder because they have to deal with more compliance. You are dealing with more sales. So our suggestion is pretty simple: even if you use the free version of Homebase, you’ll probably save five hours a week. And no matter who you are, gaining five hours of your time will be of great benefit to you.
What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
My advice to aspiring and current entrepreneurs is almost always the same: Find a problem that you’re passionate about solving and that’s bigger than your business. And as your business grows, you need to realize that you’ll face a fundamental small business problem: The reason you started your business is almost certainly not the reason you’ll be spending your time on it. For me, even after ten years, the best part of my job is still getting to talk to local businesses. Then I’m at my best, that’s what drives me. So my advice is to know the part of the business that energizes you and make sure you make time for it.