Growth is a good thing in business, right? It’s what you work so hard to achieve. But there’s a common obstacle that arises as this happens—growing pains.
If you remember what growing pains felt like as a child, you know just how difficult they can be to deal with. As much as you wished the pain would stop, it’s leading to something better. You were getting bigger and stronger. The same is true in business.
The difference in business is you will continue to experience growing pains over and over again every time your company is getting ready to level up and reach the next stage. Thankfully, there are some strategies you can use to minimize the pain you and your team feel within your business.
Here are a few tips to help you overcome the common challenges of business growing pains:
1. Make the right hires at the right time
Most businesses hit this awkward stage of growth in the beginning when there is too much work and not enough employees. It seems like the simple solution would be to just hire more employees, but it’s not that simple in reality. There is a careful balancing act, much like a tightrope walker experiences, of balancing the budget. You can’t afford to take on more work until you have more employees but you can’t hire more employees without knowing you have more work.
This means you need to be strategic about when the right time to hire employees is. You also need to think carefully about the order that you hire each position.
2. Put systems in place
It’s much easier to stay out ahead of issues when you have documented systems in place. This also makes it easier to train new employees as they join your company. When you document your processes, it helps everyone stay on the same page. It also helps you identify where problems or occurring, which assists you in finding the correct solutions faster.
3. Keep the lines of communication open
Avoid having silos within your organization. Things run smoother when there is clear and frequent communication happening between team members and departments.
This will look different based on the size of your company but look for solutions that help get and keep everyone on the same page. Using task management apps or the SPEARity app can help everyone have a clear understanding of where projects are in the process and who is working on what.
4. Put goals in place
When you have company goals, department goals, and employee goals, everyone is doing their part to move the needle forward. Each employee is able to see how the work they do influences the outcome of the company. This helps everyone have a purpose in their work, but more importantly, it assures everyone has a good understanding of the priorities.
5. Identify and fix any gaps
There are lots of knowledge gaps that will continue to pop up as your company grows. You may find that you need training to better understand the numbers and financials of your business. Or, you may identify that you have key employees that could benefit from skills training.
SPEARity business coaches can help you identify any gaps in your company and provide the necessary training to keep you moving forward.
Don’t forget about mental health
A growing company can put added stress on owners and managers as well as the rest of your team. Make sure that your company creates a culture that focuses on employee wellness. Burnt out and overwhelmed individuals are less productive and tend to make more mistakes in their work.
If you notice the quality of work is starting to decline in your company, it could indicate that your employees are feeling the strain.
How SPEARity helps businesses overcome growing pains
SPEARity business coaches in Milwaukee work with companies and leaders to help them identify the obstacles and challenges in the growth of their business. Then they work with you to create a plan to move from where you are to where you want to go. In addition, the SPEARity app adds in a key piece of technology that helps businesses continue to move the needle forward on all fronts. Schedule your app demo and talk to a business coach today.
