The inner workings of a small business are very different from that of a large one. Transitioning can take time, patience and a lot of extra help. A good leader knows when and where to delegate, or seek outside expertise. In which areas should you do so?
Data Management
No matter what type of company you run, the larger it gets, the more data you accumulate. Storing, organizing and analyzing that data will also become a much bigger job. That’s when you need to start thinking about forming your own databases, learning SQL and hiring a dedicated staff. If you don’t want to house your own hardware, some of this work can be outsourced to a data warehousing firm- this is a good idea if you aren’t in expert in this type of management. Outsourcing will also give you room to continually grow without having to rework your entire system.
Accounting
The more employees you have, the more salaries you have to pay, the more expenses there are to count up. This means you’ll need a competent accounting team with the appropriate tools. Many businesses have custom accounting software tailored to their specific needs, even including point of sale systems if they are necessary. These same software companies can then train your employees to use the system, or send over one of their own to stay with you permanently. You will also want to streamline your payroll procedures, so that you aren’t constantly working through a mountain of punch cards and self reported hours.
Social Media
If your business is expanding, it probably means your client base is, too. With more territory comes more responsibility towards outreach and marketing. These days, social media is a large component of that, if not the most important. You may even want to hire someone to be in charge of your company’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn accounts, among others. All that posting can get overwhelming, not to mention all the customer interaction you are likely to get on those posts. A social media position is like a specialized customer service, marketing and IT position all rolled into one.
The rat race doesn’t let up for anyone, so you need to learn to roll with the punches and keep up. One good way to do that is to bring in more employees or vendors in order to break up your increasing work load. Don’t let a little more management responsibility deter you from growing as much as you can!