I strongly urge management from first line managers to CEOs to read this timeless article published in the Harvard Business Review. This is also a great read for anyone leading or working at a company in transition.
Here is the trick in my opinion. As your company gets bigger, you need to let go of some of the control that likely facilitated your growth but not disconnect. Some thoughts:
1. Hire people that will fiercely protect the culture you created.
2. Hire people that will be brutally honest with you.
3. Let go of the world that you knew to allow you to bring that world into a new reality. Note: this will happen many times as your company grows and evolves.
4. Understand that there are many ways to solves problems.
As you let go of some day-to-day operations, things will not always be handles exactly as you would do them. That’s ok! People solve problems, in part, based on their own experiences. Since those are likely different than yours, their approach will also vary.
Chris O’Connor
Read here the HBR article by Julie Zhuo
Summary.
When Julie Zhuo, Facebook’s vice president of design, first began managing a team, it consisted of just a handful of people. And then it doubled. Every few years, it doubled again. At each of these points, Zhuo felt like she had an entirely different job. While the core principles of management stayed the same, the day-to-day changed significantly. People often ask her what’s different about her job now than when she started. Looking back, she describes the five most striking contrasts between managing small and large teams: You Shift from Direct to Indirect Management, People Treat You Differently, You Context Shift All Day Long, You Learn to Pick Your Battles, and People-Centric Skills Matter Most
Leadership Company Culture Supply Chain Board Director Strategy Signitt C-Suite
