Growth in business is such a powerful and inspiring word! I don’t know about you, but it embodies the aura of increased revenue, a bustling business, brilliant people hustling around an office or successfully working remotely around the world… and with this movie-style picture in your head; it also comes with no dysfunction. You… as the Leader, always know what to do, your People are OK with all necessary and unexpected changes, new employees coming in and being able to successfully decipher what the culture of the company is, and everyone has seamlessly moved up the corporate ladder; not only excelling at their craft but just so happens to also be terrific with people! Does this sound about right? Of course it doesn’t and the truth of growth is quite the opposite!
As great as growth can be; it poses its issues, pain, and adjustments. I experienced the paradox of growth early in my employee career and into my first Leadership Position. In 2001, I was hired as a Mental Health Therapist at an Alternative School. It was the perfect job… a small school of three classrooms, a small but tight-knit and willing staff, with a start time of 8:00am – 2:30pm, and everyone was passionate about their work and the impact we were making… We were a “Family”! Fast forward to 2005, we relocated to a new building, we’d gone from 30 students to 100, 12 staff to 30 staff, the paperwork had quadrupled, it was still fun, we’re still “Family”. However, the professional disconnection had started; the not knowing everyone and the “Busy” was starting to set in. By 2012, I officially entered burnout mode, connections with core employees were still there but no longer enough to recreate the passion or even a smile, “Busy” had definitely won, new Leaders entered with new visions I didn’t agree with… and wanted to implement them the way things were done at their “old job”, and new Employees starting without benefiting from any of the previous culture I cared about. In short… I was done! However, what a blessing; as I learned so much from that phase of my professional career and have gotten to experience G.R.O.W.T.H several times since in my own business… and have been better for it!
The good news is, this has happened to every company! Amazon started in a garage; I’m sure the growing pains, processes, and system of Jeff Bezos burning the midnight oil by himself until 1:30am attempting in attempts to sell books changed as he went from 1 Employee to 10, from 10 to 50, from 50 to 200, and from 200 to today’s number of 1.6 million people worldwide. So, give yourself some grace; however great Leaders and great companies recognize problems faster, solve problems faster, and meet the needs of their People and their Customers/Clients faster. So, how do you Lead through organizational growth like a Leader!
G. – Going from “Family” to Organization!
You may be asking yourself why I keep putting the word Family in quotation marks. The reason is, it’s a powerful word that elicits a powerful reaction! However, it’s unrealistic for the growth of your organization and for new potentially harmful to your new employees coming in! It may sound odd to some; as “Family” represents a strong bond we desire to achieve or your organization may wish to portray… especially then you’re the Founder! When you’re the Leader who started the company, it’s easy to feel like the Mom or Dad and all of your employees are your children.
When the company starts, Yes.. it can be that way; as everyone is ALL IN, the company may be everyone’s baby, everyone sacrifices all their time, energy, and effort to make it work, and Leaders and Employees can bicker, fight, cuss, etc., and its all OK because it’s “Family” and that’s what families do! Parents have their favorites, get frustrated, discipline due to the emotion-of-the-minute, expect total allegiance… and brothers and sisters (in this case, employees) fight and are expected to make-up, forgive, and get back to being “Family” and get back to work… because that’s what family does; right? Does this sound like a professional organization to you?
Now, let’s consider company growth. A Leadership Rule I have is A Leader’s Algebra, never add to your dysfunction and be willing to subtract before you add! In the chaos I described above, can you imagine what new Employees or new Leaders see, hear, and must think entering most companies that operate in this “Family-Style”; as Mom and Dad are brainstorming ideas off the cuff, walking down the hallway giving their new idea and tasks to just anyone that’s in eye-sight… and why not; your “Family” and everyone is expected to pitch in on anything and everything with no clear division of labor!
What must a new Employee or Leader think when mom and dad (The Leaders) argue with each other in the Board Room like they’re at the kitchen table in their home? Or, when a “New Family” (newer employees) doesn’t have enough time vested to intervene or have their own opinion yet? I could go on, but you get the point! It’s not a family, it’s an organization. Yes, everyone can care for, support, positively influence, impact, protect, and maintain high standards… but it’s not family! The truth is, you tolerate things from your family you’d NEVER tolerate from an employee, coworker, or boss… would you really want that going on at work, Lol?
R. – Reveal!
This Key is simple, short, and sweet, but not always easy! At some point through organizational growth, you’ll have to gather your company, Team/s, or an individual and reveal it’s a NEW DAY! Most people don’t like change; they may understand it, but rarely do they like it. Growth equals change… and change may start grumblings of, “We didn’t use to do it this way”, “We never did it this way before”, and I could go on, but again… you get my point!
The Reveal may sound like, “I would like to thank everyone for your hard work, dedication, and effort to get us to where we are today. It could not have been done without each and every one of you! It’s a NEW DAY for us as an organization! Our success has led to growth and our growth requires evolution and changes to our processes, systems, and some of the ways we must do things to stay great and efficient with each other and for who we serve. I understand many of you will transition easily; others may struggle. The train is leaving the station! That we stay great is not an option, how we stay great is. Some changes must happen and others I or your Leaders will discuss with you. When or if you have questions or concerns, please… instead of venting and gossiping with someone who can’t help you, share them with me or someone who can; and we’ll be happy to explain the vision and reasoning. Thank You and I/we look forward to discussing more in our Team Meetings and 1-on-1’s! Feel free to make this your own and add more specifics when necessary.
O. – Org. Chart & Chain of Command!
As your organization grows; not only may new hires not know who’s who or who to go to for what… neither may you! When I first started my business… it was ALL me, solo. I then grew to 12 staff… not Amazon’s 1.6 million, but big for me. I then rebranded and went back to me, solo. Depending on when you’re reading this, now have a 7-Person All-Star Team. The truth is, 7 People is not a lot, but there are times when I don’t know who to go to for what and my Team redirects me, Lol… and I’m glad they do; so I’m not simply doling out tasks and they feel the need to do them just because I asked.
Therefore, an Org Chart for you and everyone, where you can share names, titles, and tasks, can prove to be monumentally helpful! Especially in cases of hybrid and remote work. Our people really may not know YOU are, who other Leaders are, hierarchy, or chain of command. They didn’t mean to ignore your title or status by emailing you a task more suited for their coworker. They also didn’t mean to go over your head; they simply didn’t know… Be Mindful!
That takes us to the second point of, Chain of Command! Nichole, The World’s Best Executive Assistant, is now working on becoming The World’s Best Marketing Director. This can only happen when I have set a clear vision for what the Marketing Team will be, allow them to add their expertise, identify what a win is, a plan for us to get there, and a chain of command.
Through G.R.O.W.T.H., can you imagine every issue, problem, or conversation coming your way, landing on your desk, email, phone, or doorway? How could you ever get anything done, direct the ship, have an updated vision for company success, expand your professional network, or simply breathe… not to mention, build Leaders under you! Remember, Leaders build other Leaders. Nowadays, The World’s Best Web Team and The World’s Best Social Media Specialist contact Nichole with their positives, ideas, and concerns. She has an authority span to utilize her creativity and marry it with what she knows about my method of thinking. There’s always room from refinement and evolution during our 1-on-1’s and Quarterly Team Meeting. Remember, as a Leader… it’s your job to make your “Yes’s” powerful and your “No’s” meaningful”. When you say “Yes” you’re giving someone in your company POWER to make an impact. When we say “No” let’s explain their idea doesn’t fit inside the 3-5 things that will make the Vision of the company or Team come true; allowing them to fine-tune their idea or scrap it. Remember… it’s equally important to help make The “Yes’s” the Leaders under you give powerful “Yes’s” and meaningful “No’s”.
W. – Winning?
When a Team or organization is small, it’s easier to know what a win is… keeping the lights on, making sure bills are paid, and payroll is made, Lol! However, the universal idea of what winning is can easily be lost through growth. One of the growth-dangers is everyone running around doing their own thing based off their definition of a win. If this is happening, that’s poor Leadership and we have to be willing to eat that!
Do your People and Team/s know what a win is for them today, this week, quarter, or year? Without a definition of “A Win”, busy will always win! You’ll see people working, you’ll see the onslaught of emails coming in, they’ll be tons of fires to put out, but is “The Work” yielding the success you desire? Vision matters, but so do goals; therefore marry your vision, your goals, and how you define winning… Be Mindful!
T. – Time & Training Matters!
I’ve always said, the smaller the company or Team.. the better the Leadership needs to be! Some companies are too big to fail. Let’s face it, Nike isn’t going anywhere! As a Leader in a smaller company, you were EVERYWHERE and EVERYTHING to EVERYONE. Through growth, you now have less time and cannot be intimately involved in everything for a variety of reasons. Therefore, Time Matters and since you have less of it; how you spend it matters!
As a Leader experiencing a growing staff, are you conscious of having a designated walking path as you enter your building and walk to your office; allowing you to greet, meet, and be accessible to others? Do you schedule and KEEP your Team Meetings and 1-on-1’s? Do you randomly attend Department Meetings to gain information, insight, and gain a different perspective of your Leaders… as your Direct Report may be great in front of you for their 1-on-1’s, but the complete opposite running their Team Meeting… or not confident in front of you and leading the heck out of their Team in Team Meetings!
Secondly, and as important… through growth, people are coming, going, and may be getting promoted for all the wrong reasons. They’ve been at the company the longest and it’s finally their turn or they’re the best at their job… It doesn’t mean they’re good at People or want the promotion for any of “The Right Reasons”. Growth also doesn’t mean Leaders and Employees have the knowledge or experience to deal with new issues growth and success will inevitably bring. When they don’t know what to do, do you? Will you conduct a training? Will you record it, put it in your LMS to ensure everyone watches it? Will it be included in the new company handbook or noted as a new standard operating procedure?
If you don’t know what to do or when another voice will be beneficial, will you invest in a Trainer or Consultant? Will you allow your People to attend an outside Training? Will they be responsible to share and teach what they learned upon their return? How will you ensure specific lessons are applied and maintained post-training?
H. – Hiccups!
The last key is frustrating, but inevitable! There will be hiccups through growth. Mistakes are going to occur on your part, below you, and above you. I recently emailed our Marketing Director and said, “Now that we know how to do this bad; it’ll make next time so much easier, Lol!”. I’m not proud of our number of mistakes on a current project. However, through growth Leaders understand hiccups are inevitable and must be seen as opportunities, not casualties!
You now have the basics on how to Lead through organizational G.R.O.W.T.H. What was your biggest takeaway? What homework are you giving yourself to implement in your Leadership and with your Team?
“Great Leaders and great companies recognize problems faster, solve problems faster, and meet the needs of their People and their Customers/Clients faster… Be Mindful!” – Andre Young
Written by: Andre Young
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