Managing Growth
Becoming a Manager
Interestingly, the successful growth of a business is generally reflected in the personal growth of the entrepreneur. It's not just "yours" any more, but you still have a huge influence on company performance through the team you build. The ultimate achievement: true leadership.
Undertaking a significant growth strategy often projects an owner into an entirely new orientation. The focus is on what's best for the business, not what the owner wants to do next.
The qualities that make entrepreneurs successful - determination, independence and individualism - can become liabilities. Bigger companies require different management skills, especially delegation, teamwork and co-operation.
To become a manager:
Separate yourself from the business:
- Treat yourself as an employee and take a vacation each year.
- Establish separate credit cards, accounts and phone lines.
- Strive for balance: Learn to pace yourself and become selective about what you do yourself. Time on one project is time away from another.
- Revisit goals regularly: Keep your eye on the target. Write down long-term business goals and review regularly. Don't get lost in detail.
When businesses grow, the stakes become higher. Investors, employees, lenders and suppliers are often taking a considerable risk along with the owner.
- The owner therefore begins to act more like a manager.
- The focus of attention shifts to the business.
- Business objectives are strategic goals, not personal ones.
- Problem-solving is a controlled team decision, not an immediate directive.
- Decisions are researched and proactive, not intuitive and reactive.
- Managers ask how the business can work best, not what work needs to be done.
- Planning occurs backward from the future goal, not by projecting the present forward.
- Results are measured based on how well the customer is satisfied, not how best to produce things.
