A DEFINING MOMENT IN THE LIFE OF A COMPANY
(2015 text updated) We often hear the expression: “Small business will become big”. In fact, before becoming large, it becomes medium-sized. While becoming a medium-sized company is a necessary step for growth, it is also one of the most critical.
l moments in the life of a company. Many bankers admit that this is the market segment where losses are greatest.
It's not compulsory for a company to grow, but the entrepreneurial spirit often makes it the right choice. Before becoming big, every company goes through an intermediate stage, lasting anywhere from a few months to several years. OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES
The transition from small to medium-sized business is a time full of opportunities, but also of major challenges. The choices made during this period will determine the company's future.
Having accompanied various companies in their growth projects, I've come to realize that the main challenge is to move from a single manager to a management team. This is a unique moment in the company's history, and one that will probably never happen again. Either the company goes beyond the single-manager stage and never returns to it; or it doesn't and stays as it is. Those who don't succeed have suffered and say to themselves: “I'll never do it again”.
Beyond a certain size, it becomes impossible for the owner to manage his business alone. He either delegates, reduces growth or sells. The point at which the business becomes too large for single-owner management cannot be precisely defined.
The number of employees, the quality of the employees, the number of sales, the number of customers, the industry, the type of business and the entrepreneur's management style are all factors that will influence the fateful moment when the company must outgrow the “one-man show”.
HOW TO RECOGNIZE WHEN GROWTH MANAGEMENT BECOMES AN ISSUE
Here are some signs that growth management is becoming an issue:
the owner's working hours are getting longer and he's becoming impatient
mistakes are becoming more frequent
customer complaints increase
delays between delivery of the product/service and the time of the order increases
little time is allocated to planning
team members begin to compare themselves to firefighters. They spend most of their time putting out fires.
people have little time to train new employees or transfer tasks
staff turnover accelerates
THE PREREQUISITE FOR SUCCESS
This condition is simple: it's the manager's willingness to see his role evolve. A bit like in field hockey, he's already gone from player to coach, and now he's become managing director: “You don't see him behind the bench anymore, and he doesn't always accompany the team on the road.”
In fact, his role is becoming more self-effacing; he's no longer the first point of contact for customers, suppliers or employees. For this reason, many managers experience a great moment of solitude at this stage. They go from entrepreneur to manager. From the heart of the company, they become its brain.
The team around the owner becomes the heart of the business. This team will change the face of the company forever. For some owners, this is more difficult than for others. When this happens, the undeniable advantage is that the value of the company increases significantly.
THE MANAGER MUST KNOW HIMSELF
Even more difficult: to succeed, the entrepreneur must know his or her strengths and weaknesses. The key is to surround yourself with people who are stronger than you in the areas where you are most vulnerable. This requires a healthy dose of humility, self-confidence and the ability to trust others.
AND KNOW YOUR TEAM
The same applies to your team. The good salesperson who has been with the company for several years may not be the best sales manager. This is a time when difficult choices must be made and major changes are taking place in the company.
IN CONCLUSION
In our society, success is highly valued, and your company's growth will be an undeniable mark of it. Growth requires profound changes and the delegation of certain responsibilities.
One of the keys to success is to understand your organization's strengths and weaknesses and take advantage of growth to improve where necessary.
More and more people are saying: “Success is based on our ability to surround ourselves with the right people”. This couldn't be truer than when a company's size changes from small to medium.