The Question: As my business grows, how can I make sure it can run day to day without me making most decisions?
The Advice: On the surface there doesn’t seem to be much in common between running a business and great love stories. But the old saying ‘if you love something, let it go’ applies to every entrepreneur that has witnessed growth within his or her business.
When a small business begins its journey, it’s not unusual to see hands-on leaders complete various financial, purchasing, data management, sales, and administrative tasks on a daily basis. Running a small business is certainly a labor of love for any entrepreneur!
However, as an organization begins to grow and recruit more staff, there comes a time when small business owners have to let go. It’s impossible to manage every task within an organization when orders start rolling in. Nobody has that sort of bandwidth. But as long as your recruitment is good, small business owners shouldn’t resist change. After all, you’re hiring people who are more equipped with skills to manage these tasks than you are.
I’ve found that leadership is all about welcoming new ideas and effectively communicating your requirements while passing on knowledge – and being a mentor throughout the whole process! It’s important to create an environment of empowerment and accountability in business. That generates autonomy in an organization.
Clear lines of communication are essential for CEOs to gain a high-level overview of what’s going on within different departments. But by creating autonomous teams, you will not only gain buy-in from your staff but you’ll also improve employee retention. There are other benefits as well to handing over responsibility to staff.
Allowing staff to make their own choices on decisions will in the long-run improve productivity and the generation of new ideas. Organizations should promote a culture where individuals feel comfortable to suggest new ideas. A new idea is at the heart of any innovative product.
Letting go isn’t easy, but it’s essential to help your business grow and become a long-term success.
The Small Business Coach
This week’s Small Business Coach is Morgan Browne, the Chief Executive at the IIS Group – one of Europe’s leading SAP Business One partners. Since 2008, Morgan has led the company to become one of the most innovative SAP Gold Partners. Follow Morgan: @morgankbrowne.
Today’s question on The Small Business Coach is based on a common business dilemma. If you have a question about how to run your small business better, smarter, and faster – send it in to The Small Business Coach using the form below or email it to newsroom@sap.com. Be sure to follow SAP’s latest news and events for small business on Facebook and Twitter @SAP4SmallBiz.
Read more from The Small Business Coach series.
Top image: Shutterstock
