J.C. Ruffalo: Team Chemistry Either Attracts or Repels Investors, Customers and Top Talent

Today we are talking about the chemistry of your team! Look, you can have the greatest product in the world but without a strong team chemistry, your company will ultimately fail.

Today's Quote:

"Skills are Cheap. Chemistry is expensive" ― Mal Pancoast

Show highlights:

• Why chemistry is so important
• How to Monitor your team chemistry
• What to do to encourage or change the chemistry 

Elements of good team chemistry:

• Constructive Chemistry
• *Good chemistry, Your brains produce more Oxytocin, which is the hormone that helps us feel more connected to other people. Higher levels of Oxytocin produce more pleasure, deeper trust, and stronger intimacy.

Warning signs of bad chemistry:

• Destructive Chemistry
• Identify bad chemistry early on… disrespectful, not being productive, dropping the ball, personal issues.
• Adding value or afraid of adding value
• Lieing,  false information or not saying anything.
• Personal Issues- ie: How do you deal with someone involved with drugs? (JC’s Story)

Monitoring your chemistry:

• Proactive, Honest
• Best Monitor: Praise is the most important element of a team. People will give more because they feel valued
• checks and balances, always questioning

Interviewing to uncover chemistry:

• Understanding Yourself & Your business needs…. Vision - opposing working styles
• How to identify in the interview - Wound, Desire, Accomplishment
• Best job in vetting people. Honesty is not that common. People can turn in a heartbeat
• Optimistic pessimism 
• Behavioral Questions - Evidence & Knockouts!

Ways to omit bad chemistry:

• Communicate
• Identify & change with minimum impact to the organization
• Hire slow, fire quickly 

J.C. Ruffalo joined the OCTANe OC team in June 2014 and is the Director of LaunchPad SBDC and Investor Relations. JC Mentor's hundreds of companies each year and has assisted LaunchPad companies to achieve over $750 million in capital infusion and, as a result, create over 3,500 new jobs in Southern California.  

Prior to Octane, JC co-founded a small startup (Double Splash Media), which was involved with email marketing. He also worked for LKQ, a large corporation that is the world’s largest supplier of automotive replacement parts, as a buyer and general manager.