Holistic approach

English Rock Group, The Beatles was undoubtedly a great success for the work they did in the 1960s and 70s. Their influence on the socio-cultural fabric of the world has been phenomenal. Was there just one factor behind their success? The members of the group complemented one another very well, they had a nice concept that the audience loved and they worked hard to execute the concept well.

In the current times, a business needs to be extremely agile in responding to the needs of their customers, expectations of their employees and partners and deliver results quickly to their shareholders. The CEO has an enviable job at hand to deliver a holistic solution aimed at the good of all stakeholders in the business – customers, employees, business partners, suppliers, government bodies, society and of course, the shareholders.

This is true for all organisations irrespective of their sizes, industry sectors and ownership structures. Focusing on just one of the dimensions or prioritising one over the other is not going to help. We need a holistic approach to deliver results on all 7 counts! How does the top team of an enterprise work on all aspects of the business at the same time?

Strong foundation

An edifice survives the quakes and storms only if the engineers, architects and builders worked in harmony while it was constructed. It is very difficult to harness a building at its foundation. One can make minor changes to its facade, doors and windows or its heating, ventilation and lighting systems so that the structure remains aligned with the contemporary demands from time to time.

Similarly, an organisation’s foundation is its values and beliefs, mission and the problem it solves. There are iconic organisations that have survived for more than 100 years and transformed themselves along the way. They have shut businesses and started new lines of business; merged and acquired other organisations; invested in new ideas and divested some. Sometimes, they have transformed their existing lines of business to address the changes in the market dynamics. They have shifted their headquarters, changed their organisation structure and revamped their business models. In all these examples of transformation, they have kept their core values and beliefs intact. Though they have changed the statements over time to describe the values and beliefs of new people, the essence remains unchanged. The core values and the foundation remain as the guiding principles for the journey ahead!

In the current times, we need this more than ever before because organisations have to deal with many uncertainties and frequent volatilities forcing them to make changes often in their approach. Hence, tomorrow’s organisation has to put a lot of focus on defining the values, the mission and the problems it solves. From time to time, the leadership team across the levels needs to come together to review the alignment or the lack of it during the process of execution.

Need hard work and smart work

Having a strong foundation is not enough; we need the activities to run in harmony. The Beatles were successful not just due to their concept, collaboration, and creation but also due to many other execution factors. They worked hard to practice as a group, played on many concerts in the UK before they played on the big stages, kept on improving continually, planned their expansion in phases. They focused on building popularity in the UK before they ventured out to the US. These steps might have fallen in place for them as coincidences, however, these reflect careful execution that any organisation would dream of.

We have to put the right structure in place, build appropriate systems to facilitate delivery of the products and services our focus customer group is looking for, define the right work processes and execute them rigorously. Given the hyper-competitive world, a business has to succeed in, no amount of slackness in execution can be ignored. We need perfect execution on all aspects – from finance, sales, marketing, design, production, quality, supply chain and human resources to technology. We have to win!

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It was a leisurely lunch meeting with an old colleague who is on an entrepreneurial journey. We chatted about multiple things, market opportunities to organisation design. The discussions were invigorating to say the least. We realised, these on-the-job learnings were contrary to what we learnt in management schools.

Strategy and Structure: what comes first?

In our past experience and days at university, we penned down a vision which led to a strategy and we built a structure to suit the execution of the strategy. But in our experience of building businesses, we walked through our life events over the past few years and concluded that the vision keeps evolving, let alone the strategy.

For us, people were at the heart of the businesses we built, especially because those were in the services sector. As a start-up, we had a business plan that won the confidence of the investors for the seed money.

We did not start with a vision and strategy. Rather, we started with looking for a handful of key people. We as entrepreneurs did not focus on searching for people with high levels of competencies. Rather, we looked for trust and commitment of the individuals and how well we related with them. We thought about the group dynamics of the start-up team. As long as the competencies were at a reasonable level and the other aspects were high, we were certain of a harmonious ride all along the mission.

We built teams around these key people. Structure came into existence. Over time, the ambitions and vision of the team got aligned. The resolve to succeed got stronger and we kept experimenting various formulae for success.

We started with a mission, built a structure and then kept evolving the vision and strategy.

Read also: Captivate your audience

Straddling multiple boats or focus on few

During the first few formative years or months, the leader continues to straddle multiple boats, right from being the telephone operator, customer service agent, salesperson, production executive to warehouse manager, finance manager, IT analyst and strategist. As the business starts growing and attracting more investments, specialists get hired to carry out specific jobs and draw up function-specific plans. Yet the top team has to keep carrying out tasks hands-on and guiding the team along the core beliefs of the company.

People get used to a certain way of life depending upon the work environment they come from. They develop an idea of their comfort zone over a period of time. They join a start-up because the challenges it offers and hence, the opportunities to grow in their career. However, many of them forget the reality of a start-up which is a lot more dynamic, volatile and hands-on compared to an established organisation.

Common wisdom says that leaders must delegate tasks appropriately and carry out the tasks that need to be done only by them. However, in a start-up, they straddle multiple boats and seamlessly move across them. Focus on a few tasks is for leaders in well-oiled companies with a stable work environment.

Read also: HR for the next decade

Dynamics vs Mechanics

We learnt in our B-schools and reputed organisations with strong management practices that a leader must strengthen the team, encourage them to work together, hold open and honest conversations to manage conflicts, keep biases away in decision making and make sure that the processes are run coherently and rigorously. We were trained that mechanics are the hallmarks of execution and team dynamics are to be managed without diluting any of these. Do these principles work well all the time?

In our experience of building businesses, the leaders have to let go some of these principles in exceptional situations. There is no scientific formula to say when issues of team dynamics, internal environment and individual eccentricities must be given priority over operational mechanics. A leader in his or her experience has to decide when and how much to loosen the grip of process rigour and rational approach. They have to let the creative minds blossom in spite of their rough edges, decide when to offer negative feedback, nudge them to align with company’s practices and beliefs. This is a passing phase for the organisation where the leader has to change gears as the organisation matures into a larger entity over time and mechanics gets priority over dynamics.

It was an interesting luncheon at the end of which we discovered certain nuances of leadership excellence in a start-up vs an established organisation. Our experiences only validated our new-found theories which were contrary to what we were taught at B-schools.

Read also: Talent Brand : Build and Leverage

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The problem for new entrepreneurs is knowing what the best tips to take on-board are when starting a new business. We will assume you have done the basics of researching the market and confirming there is a gap to fill or room for you to enter. But what else do you need to be doing?

Hire the right people

Many business experts highlight the staff you hire as crucial to your success, and with good reason. Hiring the best talent available will mean your customers get the best service and will be more likely to return. In addition, top-class staff will help to drive the business forward with passion and new ideas. To give your new startup every chance of succeeding, you need to employ people who are committed to your vision and willing to work hard for you.

Get your marketing plan in order

Marketing is another key area to focus on – if no-one knows who you are, what you do or where they can find you then you will not last for long! Even the smallest local business now needs a digital marketing plan to maximise their online presence. This could be as simple as developing your own website, getting involved with email marketing and being active on the social media accounts your customers use. Doing this will help your company reach far more people and also spread the word about your small business more effectively.

Make use of online marketplaces

It is not just marketing that you should be doing online. E-commerce is massive now, with 2018 seeing $2.86 trillion spent online by consumers. This is only expected to rise again in 2019, and you simply cannot afford to miss out on such a lucrative sales channel.

The great news is that online marketplaces exist which make this simple to do. Amazon is one of the best to partner with and has literally millions of users who you can sell your goods too. In only its first month, Amazon received orders from 45 countries worldwide and is now the 10th most popular website in existence. This means it offers potential sales that cannot be ignored.

Make online security a top concern

Having an online presence is key in the modern business world but it can also bring security concerns. Online cyber-crime is a constant danger to all businesses and could be particularly disastrous for smaller ones. With this in mind, you should make sure your IT security is top-notch. From robust firewalls to server security and network protection, it is worth investing in.

Keep an eye on your cash flow

While there are certain areas that you will have to spend money on, it is always wise to keep a close eye on your finances. Too many startups spend lavish amounts on luxury items only to run out of money soon after! Always keep a close check on what you spend and make sure you chase any outstanding invoices.

Find the best talent for your small business today

If you are looking to hire the very best people to help you succeed, get in touch with Ciel HR today at info@cielhrconsulting.online. Our recruitment experts will be able to find the perfect people to help your new business grow.

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