Managers need to do things that don’t scale
“That isn’t scalable.”
Ahhh. That is a phrase I hear far too often. I have an entrepreneurial partner, an entrepreneurial CEO and a lot of my social life revolves around people who are, or who are aiming to become, successful entrepreneurs. Not a week goes by where I don’t hear the above phrase. They don’t just talk about scaling in relation to business concepts, but it is in relation to how they operate, how they treat certain elements of the business and how their day-to-day life should be run.
No matter the business, no matter the success, there is always a fear that ‘it’s just not scalable enough’.
While focusing on how un-scalable their business is, Founders and CEO’s tend to forget that business is not just an idea, it is an eco-system comprised of real people and real creativity. It is in everyone’s interest for managers to keep employees engaged and foster a team of passionate and driven intrapreneurers.
If the CEO’s used 30% of the time they spend talking about scaling doing the below, I’m near certain that not only would team morale improve, but so too would productivity, and therefore revenue.
Hold meaningful conversations
It isn’t enough to say that staff are the backbone of a good organisation; they probably spend more hours at work than they do at home and without them, you really couldn’t function. I’ve heard the ‘everyone is replaceable’ mantra touted around, but it may take you an awful long time to replace them.
“I saw my employees as more important than even the product I was selling.” — Dal LaMagna
If more people prescribed to the view of Dal LaMagna, then I dare say the products would start getting better and the employees would start getting happier.
What better way to show your employees that you care than by asking how their weekend was and not walking away while they are mid-sentence? Bonus points if you know the names of their pets. I called work one day as I was running late and had to take my cat to the vet. The response I got was ‘I hope Daisy feels better soon!’ Well done, Boss.
Celebrate the victories
We are what people encourage us to be.
If you have just hit a milestone, tell your employees that before you tell your shareholders. Truth be told, they are probably the reason you reached that milestone.
The best managers won’t just celebrate the victories in the workplace, they will know when it is apt to celebrate personal victories too.
Train your staff at their speed
The best Project Manager I ever had hated negotiating fees for the first 6 months she was with us, and she is now the best damn hustler that I know.
For those of you that have worked at a startup, you probably didn’t have a binder full of guidelines and best practices. You were probably thrown in at the deep end and told to swim. For some people, this works fabulously and you learn through doing.
However, not all people learn by doing. Don’t give up on a staff member if they haven’t learned the ins and outs of the business in two weeks. Some will and some won’t. It doesn’t mean that they won’t be a great investment 6 months down the track. If they show potential and learn by doing, let them do. If they learn by watching, let them watch. If they learn by asking questions and keeping a notebook, let them do that too. A staff member who hits the ground running is good, but when there is no guidebook, it is the exception, not the rule.
Don’t stop learning
You’ve just turned over your first $10m. You’ve gone public. Your staff numbers have just hit double digits. Great — now what? You keep learning, keep reading and keep growing.
There is always something more to learn.
It might be formal education such as going and getting your Masters or doing that summer school program that you have always been interested in. I don’t care if you’re a lawyer and want to take an astronomy class. It might be a little less formal; putting a paper together and looking for somewhere to publish it. It could be as simple as picking up a book and getting all the way to the end. The moment you stop seeking new knowledge is the moment your business begins to plateau.
Buy those damn cupcakes
Is it someone’ birthday? Did someone just get engaged? Has everyone had a really rough week? Did your team stay back past dinner time? Do something to show them you appreciate them. Let them know that you know that they are working hard and giving their all to the company.
