Growth Culture: Planning for Bottlenecks
Last week we discussed how to not only get the right people on the bus but also how to keep them. This week we'll briefly cover how to know when your employees have reached their limit, or even better said-when your company's success merits expanding your workforce.
Aside from Ferriss, we're all used to 'the 40 hour work week.' And when it comes to the 'Givers' of your workforce (as opposed to Adam Grant's Matchers & Takers, more on that in a future series) this 40 hours can easily turn into 50 or 60+.
But you don't want burnt out employees, especially when burn-out is a leading reason for employee churn, and even more so when you've done so much to make sure that your employees are 'the right people on the bus.'
So what is acceptable Stretch, and how do you know what specific responsibilities (assigned to functionally accountable roles) are those which need increased bandwidth? The answer lies within the concept coined by Plato but made famous by Adam Smith, Division of Labor.
This is the practice of assigning each of your employees to tasks that fall within their highest and best use of time. I know what you're thinking, "we're a small startup-we need people to wear multiple hats!" I know-these aren't contrary practices, although they seem to be.
What is gained by taking a measured and data-driven approach to the tasks that your company's resources execute is a clear understanding of what all companies desire to know: What's Best Next. In this case-what position is needed to augment your team.
If there is not a clear Division of Labor, either between people or within the bundle of duties assigned to a specific employee, you will not know when you need to bring on the next right person in order have your valued employees continue to flourish.
To wrap up this rather long intro to a restful weekend, employee flourishing is most often aligned with your company's success. To a Giver employee, stretching into a 50+ hour work week -every so often- is actually invigorating, because she feels that her contribution to the company is needed and valued.
How do you perceive Stretch and plan for it within your company's growth model? Are you well-suited and proactive when it comes to releasing the bottleneck condition that you expect to reach?
We'd love to hear from you!
