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How to Hire the Right People

Published: November 24, 2025

Suppose a customer asks to pay for a $200 order with cryptocurrency. Can you accept it? How would you know you’ve been paid? And would $200 still be $200 by the time the money reaches your business account?

You don’t need to know how to buy Bitcoin to ask those questions.

They’re the same questions you probably asked when you first signed on with Stripe or any of those new payment methods: What does it cost, when do I get paid, and what happens if something goes wrong?

But if you’re scratching your head wondering who’s paying in crypto and how, it’s not as far away as you think.

What in the World Is Cryptocurrency?

Crypto is a broad term for digital assets that can be transferred through a computer network called a blockchain. Think of a blockchain as a shared record of transactions. Instead of a bank maintaining the only record of a payment, the network records it according to its own rules.

A business can use a payment service to handle much of the technical work, just as it uses a processor to accept credit cards.

There’s a distinction worth knowing: Bitcoin and stablecoins serve different purposes. Bitcoin’s price can change substantially. A stablecoin, like the name suggests, is designed to maintain a steadier value, commonly by tracking the U.S. dollar. “Designed to” is the kicker. A stablecoin still depends on the company issuing it and the arrangements behind it. It isn’t the same as having dollars in your bank account. 

That difference helps explain why digital payments have entered the small business and government conversation. At a September 2026 House Small Business subcommittee hearing, lawmakers examined whether these tools could lower payment costs, help businesses get paid sooner, and make transactions with customers or suppliers in other countries easier. The hearing also raised the questions owners need answered about conversion, taxes, and fraud. 

Where Could Crypto Payments Help?

Before you start writing this off as science fiction, there might be some real advantages to at least entertaining the possibilities of alternative payment methods. These include:

Payment costs. If you make hundreds of small sales, processing fees add up. A digital payment option might cost less for certain transactions. Compare the full cost, though, including the provider’s fees, conversion rate, and any charge to move money into your bank account. The lowest advertised fee may not be the lowest final cost.

Payment timing. Some digital asset networks operate around the clock. That could be useful if your business routinely waits for funds, particularly from international buyers. But the network’s speed is only part of the story. A payment provider may have its own processing or withdrawal schedule. Ask when the dollars will be available for payroll, inventory, or bills.

Customer choice. If customers have asked to pay this way, offering the option might remove a barrier to a sale. If no one has asked and your current methods work well, the added setup may bring little benefit.

Cash flow makes the timing question an important one. In the Federal Reserve Banks’ 2025 report on employer firms, 51% of respondents identified uneven cash flow as a financial challenge. Faster access to a particular payment could help some businesses, though it won’t solve the larger causes of uneven revenue or late invoices. 

Just like other payment methods, the decision of whether to accept crypto as payment is up to you. If you’re considering it, you should understand next steps.

What Happens After a Customer Pays?

What happens depends on the service you choose. One provider may convert the digital asset to dollars and send a deposit to your bank account. Another arrangement may leave your business holding the asset until you decide to convert it. Those are different decisions with different risks and recordkeeping needs.

Before signing up, walk through one ordinary sale and one refund.

Ask the provider:

  • What will the customer send and what will my business receive?
  • What’s the total cost on a sale at my typical price?
  • When will funds reach my bank account?
  • How are refunds handled if the asset’s price changes?
  • What records will I receive for bookkeeping and taxes?

Tax implication note: The IRS says businesses must account for the U.S. dollar value of digital assets received as payment. Selling or exchanging assets later can bring further tax reporting requirements, so review the proposed setup with your accountant before using it for regular sales. 

Take security seriously, too. Crypto payments generally don’t offer the familiar reversal process of a credit card payment. The FTC also warns that scammers may impersonate a supplier or other trusted contact and demand payment in cryptocurrency. Verify any unexpected request to send funds using a phone number or contact method you already know. 

Your Experience Belongs in the Policy Conversation

This is an ongoing conversation. Federal rules for digital assets continue to develop, including rules related to payment stablecoins. Small business owners should have a say in whether those rules are understandable and workable for a company without a compliance department.

That’s where your chamber can help. Tell your chamber what you’d need before considering a digital payment option. Is your concern the cost of accepting payments, the time it takes to receive them, fraud protection, or the work of keeping tax records? If you’ve tried one of these services, share what happened in practice.

Your chamber can bring those examples to lawmakers and help members get straightforward answers as the rules take shape. You don’t have to be ready to accept crypto to have a useful voice in the conversation. You already know what a payment system needs to do for your business.

 

Christina Metcalf is a writer and women’s speaker who believes in the power of story. She works with small businesses, chambers of commerce, and business professionals who want to make an impression and grow a loyal customer/member base. She is the author of The Glinda Principle, rediscovering the magic within.

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Medium: @christinametcalf

Facebook: @tellyourstorygetemtalking

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LinkedIn: @christinagsmith

By monday.com

When you lead a team, you know the daily pressures of managing leadership goals, prioritizing the right initiatives, and keeping your team members motivated and engaged. But today, more than ever, the success of your efforts hinges on one crucial factor: your people.

Hiring the right talent isn't just about filling a vacancy – it's about building a foundation for a thriving team. A bad hire can cost your company significantly more than that employee's annual salary, according to a study by the Society for Human Resource Management, translating to wasted resources, lost productivity, and a potential domino effect on team morale. 

And even more concerning is the fact that today, employees with less than six months of tenure have the lowest intent to stay at their organization, per a new Qualtrics report. The cost of losing recent joiners is high, given that in addition to recruitment and hiring expenses, you haven’t even had time to recoup any of their value yet. And with employees 9.1% more likely to leave a company following a resignation on their team, per a recent report from the people analytics company visier, the costs can become even more serious. 

All this said, hiring the right person from the start is crucial to your team's – and your own – long-term success. So, how can you make sure you get it right?

Create clear job descriptions

Forget generic templates and try to craft job descriptions that truly resonate with your ideal candidate. Instead of simply listing out responsibilities, give candidates a taste of your company culture and the impact this role will have, both on your team and within the larger company. By highlighting the specific skills and experiences needed as well as explaining what the day-to-day role will generally entail, you'll attract qualified individuals who are genuinely interested in the position – saving you time and effort in the long run by weeding out irrelevant applications and setting the stage for successful interviews.

Construct thorough interviews

87% of candidates said a positive interview experience can change their minds about a role or company they once doubted, and 83% said a negative interview experience can change their minds about a role or company they once liked, according to a LinkedIn Business study. These numbers highlight the reality that interviews carry tremendous weight and are crucial to assessing candidates' skills, experiences, and fit for the role and the company culture. So, use these conversations to tell the candidate about the company, align job expectations, fill in resume gaps, and even practice giving some feedback to gauge how they respond. 

And remember, an interview between a candidate and a hiring manager is a two-way street – in order to move forward, both of you need to walk away from the conversation feeling positive and interested. So, encourage the candidate to ask questions to ensure they fully understand the role and company culture. This way, if they ultimately receive an offer and choose to accept it, nothing will come as a shock later on that could lead to quick turnover.

Prioritize cultural fit

When hiring new candidates to join your team, be sure to take their people skills into account, and consider how they would fit into your current team dynamics. Remember that while hard skills can be taught and developed, innate social skills and positive energy are much harder to impart. So, during the interview process, try to gauge candidates' personalities and enthusiasm about collaborating with others. Ask yourself questions like, “Could I actually picture this person on my team?” and “Does this person match our team culture?” Be honest when answering these internal questions, regardless of how much technical talent they have, because disrupting healthy team dynamics can have ripple effects on your current employees as well.

Consider potential

Don't just focus on past experience – prioritize future potential! Keep an eye out for candidates who may not come with the exact background or expertise that you were looking for but who clearly demonstrate a strong learning mindset and a potential to grow. While they may not possess years of experience, by assessing their adaptability, motivation to learn and develop, and long-term career goals, you can uncover incredible talent that have a real drive to excel at your company.

Loop in your team

Once you’re at a stage where you’re feeling pretty confident about a candidate, you can try scheduling a brief interview with one or more of your team members who will be working closely with the new hire. It can be a casual conversation – simply a chance for them to chat and get valuable insights on personality and communication styles – to help ensure that the candidate is a good fit for the team dynamics. This way, you can foster greater buy-in from your current team members and create a more familiar and welcoming environment for the new hires when they start.

Make them feel welcome

Before their first day, reach out to new hires to let them know that everyone is excited for them to join and to outline what they can expect on their first day. Additionally, set them up for success by designating a team member to be their peer mentor or buddy. This can help make the transition smoother, build quicker connections between your team members, and ensure that the new employee has a contact to turn to for guidance and support. 

And on that note, recognize that onboarding doesn’t end on the first week – set up recurring check-ins as the team member gets settled and organize team lunches or activities for everyone to develop more meaningful connections.
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