When the Growing gets Tough
Periods of growth are often thought of as a positive change for a company. However, growth can cause some internal issues within a small company. Adding one person to a group of 500 may not make as much of a difference as adding one to a 20-person company.
Here’s how to make sure growth periods go smoothly in companies:
Have Specific goals for your New Hires
Bringing new people on without specific goals for a position could lead to overlap or gaps in the process. Adding to your business should help streamline and increase production. If a hire is made in the wrong department, that can lead a growing company with too many cooks in the kitchen and not enough waiters or vice versa.
Ask yourself:
What do you need from a hire?
What gaps do you and your team see in the process?
Is there a department that runs slower than the rest?
Do your current employees have a clear description of their daily duties?
Are there set goals for the departments or job titles?
After you’ve done an audit of your needs, it will be easy to identify where to look for the extra hands.
Update your Handbooks
Sometimes adding an employee can change the legal requirements of your business. For example, once a business hits 20 employees in the US, COBRA is legally required.
Outside of legalities, sometimes when a business grows, the needs change. When hiring a person to fill a gap isn’t a viable option, it might be time to reassess the responsibilities of the departments and teams. This could mean reallocating, adding, or even nixing tasks.
All changes should be in writing and made known to your teams, whether in a handbook re-launch or just a meeting. This is important to ensure that the team remains a team and the new guy isn’t taxed with more or less work than the vets.
Hire an HR Team
Small companies do not often hire an onsite HR person. There are options to outsource, like SRS, or look to hire one. If you are seeing rapid growth in your company, it’s good business practice to get HR in the building sooner. This allows them time to learn and grow with the company, as well as make sure your policies are compliant with the law.
HR can also help with future hiring decisions. That way the hiring process is taken off of your plate. They can handle the paperwork and back end of growing your company. All so you can focus on meeting your clients’ needs.
If your small company is booming and you are looking for some help, contact us with your questions below