Your company appears to be doing OK.
Sales are strong, even growing with new accounts.
You have a few rainmakers doing a great job bringing in those new accounts.
The rainmakers are well incentivised; the reward system is working.
Existing customer sales have plateaued, but that’s understandable in the current economic climate.
Your CFO is happy with the figures and he’ll make his bonus.
You are focussed on growth and it’s happening.
You don’t notice the few people who have chosen to leave the business recently.
It’s normal to have people leave these days.
They are always looking for better opportunities, it’s a human thing.
You let them go, it doesn’t matter.
You replace them and keep your attention on the growth.
The trouble with growth, as you know, is that it costs money.
It also takes up huge amounts of your time.
Scaling is always a time, finance and systems challenge.
You need your people to adapt the systems, inventory and distribution to cope with the growth.
You note your people are taking longer to come to terms with the changed systems.
That’s OK, they’ll get there soon enough. The new business gives you leeway.
Your long-time office manager comes to you and says “I’m worried about our team, they are not happy.”
You ask “Why?”
She says “They feel they are just numbers cranking out more work, adding new processes and aren’t sure of where we are going.”
You say “Hell, we are growing, of course it’s going to be tough and busy.”
She says “You need to talk to them and help them to see where we are going.”
You say “OK, I will, but right now I don’t have time.”
A month later your office manager resigns.
At the same time, you get statistics from your CFO that show the new accounts are not yet covering costs. The margins are lower and the rainmaker incentives are adding to the overheads.
You prepare a funding application for your bank, your trusty long term bank.
The bank knocks back your proposal and asks you to reduce your overdraft.
Now you can’t sleep.
You wonder how this could be happening.
Your wife asks you to talk to your former mentor, the one you stopped talking to when everything started getting good.
You have coffee with her, your mentor.
She asks “So how are things going?”
You say “Well, I thought we were going really well. But I’m obviously mistaken.”
You explain what’s happened.
Your mentor asks “How do your people feel about this?”
You say “I don’t know, the people we have now are fairly new. I don’t know them that well.”
Your mentor asks “What would happen if you brought everyone together and explained why and where you are headed?”
You say “I will but right now I don’t have the time to stop everything and do that.”
She asks “How important is it that your people have clarity about why and where you are headed?”
You pause then ask “Are you saying that I’ve kept them out of the loop, how can that matter that much?”
She asks “Do you remember when we first met and you had this vision of growing your business?”
You say “Yes, and that’s what I did.”
“Do you remember me saying that you must keep your people fully abreast of what you are seeking?
How else can you harness their talent?” she said.
You stop and ponder.
You realise you were too focussed on the operation and the growth, without keeping your people informed, included and inspired.
“It’s not too late” she added, “unless you keep doing what you are doing.”
An early sign of failed leadership is when the leader stops informing, including and inspiring the very people who help sustainable success happen.
What do you think?
Photo courtesy of Lucas Sankey
