Mike Dwyer, consultant at the Change Factory, says you shouldn’t forget that a large aspect of managing an expanding business involves hiring new talent and even terminating contracts.
“Spend a little bit of extra time getting your recruitment and selection right,” he told SmartCompany. “New people bring new ideas and they aren’t inherently bad, but if those ideas, attitudes and concepts are opposed to how you want to run your business you can chase your tail for days.”
Part of understanding who will be a good fit for your company is knowing what culture you want to promote in the workplace.
“Get your firing and termination right. It’s highly likely you’ll end up with people in the business who aren’t a good fit and that has to be dealt with quickly, because sinking resources into unproductive or inappropriate people is not a good decision for someone with limited resources.”
Gleeson stresses the importance of taking the time to understand your staff.
“Where appropriate empower people along the way,” he said. “Give them the ability to make decisions. I’ve met a lot of small business owners and they’re doing everything. And it grows to 20 or 40 people and they themselves can’t control that.”
Dwyer agrees. He says he’s seen too many small business owners who are used to handling everything, only to have their business grow rapidly to the point where that approach no longer works.
“You absolutely have to give people more autonomy,” he said. “You have to relinquish control and find other methods.”
Winning says having a team that feels valued and inspired really pays off.
“It’s very much about having an engaged workforce that really know what their job is,” he said. “You are all working towards the same common goal.”
Winning says one of his company’s mottos is “own your role”.
“For us that is everything. It’s about knowing how to do your own job better, but also putting your hand up when you think things can be improved.”
Gleeson says communication is the key to making sure everyone in a large team is on the same page. But it’s not enough to just say something – as a leader, you have to practice what you preach.
However, Dwyer says as a business changes, the methods of communication also need to change. All-hands-on-deck meetings might not be as practical anymore.
“The way you communicate with your staff will have to markedly change if you grow quickly,” he said. “You can’t just go around and chat to people anymore.”
Winning says one of the most positive things his business does to promote good communication is to reward his top performers.
“We recognise key staff and middle management are close to the executives,” he says. “At executive meetings we will bring up those who need a pat on the back so they can feel appreciated.”
Broede Carmody is a former senior SmartCompany reporter. Before this, he was a co-editor of RMIT University’s student magazine Catalyst.
