By Dennis Powell, e-Management
Building a company with great culture is one way to help your small business thrive. What other tips do you have for small business success?
It seems like we blog about everything under the sun…the best food, great travel destinations, social media, government agencies, and we can go on and on. We, however, haven’t focused on small businesses or entrepreneurs in a while. So, we wanted to share four tips that every small business and entrepreneur should consider for success.
- Build a company with great culture. In an article on Monster.com, Michael Burchell, author of The Great Workplace—How to Build It, How to Keep It, And Why It Matters, gives a number of reasons why organizational culture can mean success for small businesses. At e-Management, our CEO strongly believes that culture starts at the top and makes it a priority for the company’s leadership to model the culture we want employees to experience and promote. Great work culture can reduce staff turnover. In addition, employees tend to be happier at companies with great culture and their happiness can mean customer care that stands out from the competition. Not to mention, great workplaces are oftentimes centers for creation and innovation. So, don’t underestimate the value of culture taking your business to the next level.
- Reward your staff. A recent report from Bersin by Deloitte (formerly Bersin & Associates), The State of Employee Recognition in 2012, suggests that rewards programs have “a much more measurable role in business performance than previously believed.” Specifically, the research indicates businesses with defined recognition programs see a 14% improvement in “employee engagement, productivity and customer service” over organizations without formal staff acknowledgements. Employee recognition works at e-Management and is a key component of our management philosophy. We highlight staff achievement in a variety of ways. At our All-Hands Meetings held quarterly, we present awards to employees who have received commendations from clients and their peers. Award recipients are treated to a special awards dinner and other perks. In 2014, e-Management handed out more than 90 awards to staff.
- Take risks! But, you have to be smart about it. Drew Hendricks, a contributor to Inc.com provides tips for knowing the difference between good risks and foolhardy endeavors. Hendricks asserts that all “successful business owners must learn the art of taking calculated (i.e. “good”) risks. Calculated risks come with identifying risks, anticipating risks, having mitigation plans in place, and having a strategic vision that includes financing, marketing, and sales among other components. Remember, when it comes to growing your business: No calculated risk. No glory.
- Take cybersecurity seriously! Cybersecurity is a buzz word in business and in the news. Why? Well, it’s a big deal. The average cost of a targeted cyber-attack to a small business is $188,242, according to a 2010 survey from Symantec. And according to the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), 60% of small companies go out of business within 6 months of a major cyber breach. Yet, many entrepreneurs and business owners don’t know what their exposure is or don’t have a response plan in place in the event that they are targets of hackers. At the very least, small businesses should learn about the new Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity Framework from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and find products like CyberRx that help to simplify and automate the framework for small business success.
Your Success in Business
Those are our tips. Now it’s time for you to sound off: (1) How important do you think organizational culture is to the success of businesses? (2) Do you think small business owners and their staff should be concerned about internet hackers? (3) What tips do you have for small business success?
Tags: CyberRx, cybersecurity, Dennis Powell, , entrepreneur, great place to work, Leadership, NCSA, NIST, Ola Sage, Small Business, smallbiz
From my basic knowledge of organizational culture, I feel that if you are trying to be successful and reach a diverse customer base, I think it is very important. Even most modern Social groups alone have people from different backgrounds, cultures, ethnicities, etc.
As technology advances, so does cyber-crimes, unfortunately, so small businesses need to take the steps needed to protect themselves and by doing so will effectively protect their client/customer base.
From a consumer’s perspective, a few tips I can pass along are
1. Make sound judgement when hiring, these are the people who represent your company
2. Make policies that are in the best interests of clients and employees
3. Be mindful of the communities you serve in regards to products and marketing.
@Ronald J. Winfield , Thank you for taking the time to stop by and add your tips “four-success.” Great points!
The number one advice treat customers/clients number one. If you do they will return they will tell others and your company will grow.
Workplace culture is KEY! As you said, it helps with morale and reduces job turnover. Leaders who establish a great workplace culture create workers who WANT to work. And those workers also recruit like-minded individuals to the company. Clear expectations, accountability, flexibility and positive reinforcement should all be a part of work culture. And yes, it starts at the top. As I often tell my colleagues, “Whatever starts at the head flows through the rest of the body.”
Great article!
@LaTanya Sothern, I completely agree with your assessment on workplace culture and its effect on morale and productivity. Thank you for stopping and sharing your experiences with us.
@Dilworth E Daley, I agree with you completely. You might want to check out an an article I read in Forbes last year that reminded entrepreneurs that “the customer is at the center of the customer’s universe.” The article had a lot of good common sense points. Thank you for stopping by and sharing your thoughts.
I also agree. Workplace culture is the difference between loving your job or hating it.
@Malandela Zulu, It wished ALL employers understood that basic concept.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
This was an ideal article for me especially given the fact I’m about to launch . The last part about cyber security was troubling to read given the nature of Onneyx but much needed knowledge. Note to self: backup Onneyx EVERYDAY! lol
You cannot treat your staff like dirt! In general, people want to be treated fairly and recognized for achievements. Little things such as acknowledgment for a job well done can go a long way. The work culture that is created will influence employees greatly–one place I used to work had such a poor work environment that every week we would bet how many people were going to be posted on the intranet for leaving. As an employee, we started calling the work place “Survivor.” Sounds funny, but it really doesn’t help with work morale.
Cybersecurity protection? YES, YES, YES! As a brand, you just have to protect yourself, your brand, and your customers. Or else, you may end up being like Target. It was reported today that they have to shell out close to $10M for the credit card data security breach they had in 2013.
Also, small businesses should stop hiring inexperienced individuals to handle their digital and online presence. They should learn how to incorporate that into budget. I’ve seen many small businesses bring on individuals because they are good at it in their personal lives only to find that those efforts were ineffective. The digital side of branding has grown to be a very influential part of a consumer’s decision process. Just make the investment to have a polished and consistent presence!
Also I will be the only employee of Onneyx for quite some time but I already have a workplace culture structure in mind and the philosophy is simple: hire a concentrated workforce to give them a sense of importance and make the workplace fun. It’s better in my opinion to have a concentrated group of employees that you can treat well and give personal attention to rather than farming for lots of employees and treating them mediocre.
@Zurrell Loriez, looks like you have a plan in place to foster a strong workplace environment. Good luck with your social media launch AND thank you for sharing your perspective.
@Jamie Triplin, a Suvivor-like workplace does NOT seem ideal. I hope your current environment is a world apart. Great points. Thank you for returning to our blog and sharing your thoughts “four-success.”
Great Article.
I think the importance of workplace culture and employee engagement and its impact on organizational outcomes is way underestimated, and particularly here in the U.S. where we typically ‘live to work’ and not the other way around. We spend so much time at work, why should it be a miserable experience? But it is for millions of Americans–stats on the rates of heart attacks on Monday morning are not coincidences. Even if one isn’t concerned with the engagement and morale of a workforce, they had better be concerned about the bottom line. Too often though, so called managers fail to realize that in no way is a low morale culture as productive as it could be–yet they keep imposing more misery. Baffling to me, really, and certainly not good for business.
I like your take on calculated risk taking as well. So often management and labor alike are very risk averse due to fear of failure, or not hitting that quarterly target. I’ve often heard it said in various places where I’ve work, “failure is not an option.” But if failure is not an option, then neither is progress and innovation.
@Joshua Price, thank you for adding your voice to this conversation. I especially liked this: “…if failure is not an option, then neither is progress and innovation.” Well said!
Entrepreneurs have a great opportunity to lead change in how business operates. The tips listed are beneficial to those leading or managing small business. A great reminder on success measures OUTSIDE of those listed in a business plan/financial projection. Nice work.
I believe that some of the fundamental issues plaguing companies’ success is the lack of empathy and unawareness of what happens at the non-management levels. A great atmosphere is one in which management allows and respects and encourages the opinions of all in a non-punitive atmosphere. It makes all feel an integral part of the whole organization. thanks for this.
I think #passion is the key. Create a ‘culture’ where people genuinely love whatever the business they are in and that will be telegraphed to the consumer. “Love what you do, do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.” I recommend Malcolm Gladwell’s #.
@Michael Smith, thank you for stopping by and adding your thoughts. I agree that entrepreneurs are leaders in innovation; I see their innovations in driving new technologies AND creating new ways to work/ work environments.
@K. Lawson Wellington, Great recommendation (Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell). Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
@Keith Yearwood, No thank you for sharing your thoughts. I agree that organizations that operate in non-punitive ways stand to gain so much in terms of productivity, creativity, and staff loyalty.
A very interesting article, thank you Dennis. I don’t have a Business background but working for the Local Authority am aware that the ethos is on a Business Model with targets for performance. This does not however translate well within the Public Sector, where outcomes are not always measurable or results available immediately. I know that such scrutiny and management models have impacted negatively upon Staff recruitment & retention. Also I am of the opinion that Government Agencies & Service Providers have yet to utilise technology and advances within their full capacity as have private businesses. The current financial climate has however opened up potential opportunities for alternative Service Providers to tender bids so this could enhance more Community initiatives. I would like to see fair, just and ethical Services develop from a local grassroots level. To be of benefit to local people eg Co operatives, Community Schemes and business accessibility/development across the board. Could be an exciting venture !
Another GREAT article. As an individual with a business background who has opened SEVERAL successful businesses, I am pleased to read your article with some great tips/advice for individuals who are interested in taking a leap of faith and thinking about taking ownership of their dreams/ambitions to own their own business. The best advice that I can offer is ALWAYS consider your audience whether it be your customers and/or your employees as they can make or break you and the success of your business. Your employees must feel like valuable assets if they are to impress your clients with a single understanding that they are in support of your ultimate goal to provide excellent customer service, quality ideas, and the best of the best when it comes to business practice and ethics. They are the front line of your organization and are the entryway and the exit point of keeping your clients/customers happy. Equally, it is important to impress upon your clients your necessity to be flexible while providing employees with the latitude to use the thing that that we all are counting on them to use (their brains and ideas). All things being equal, this push pull will work out splendidly if both client and employee can remain satisfied with the business and have trust in the leadership to deliver for both!
Thanks for sharing such great tips. It’s so important to find and build your organization based on your own organizational culture for your staff. One of the best investment that I believe organizations whether small or large should always do, is invest in its people. If you provide for example pay or offer or provide tuition reimbursement, why not spend the time to retain those folks you help and invest to educate. Company/Industries today don’t think about those factors.
by Jim Collins and “EntreLeadership” by Dave Ramsey” are two amazing great investment tools and books every organization should invest in and have their staff read.
Executives need to put in that time to know their bottom level folks, they are the ones that runs the company, at least once a month, make house calls. I do believe it’s so important to be well rounded if and when you do decide to open or run your own organization. Take a finance class, take a HR workshop/class, educate yourself on the skills necessary to be successful and most importantly take a psychology class with a focus on behavioral studies. Understand that if someone is not skilled in one department, rather than the quick firing, find their strength and move them to an area where they can succeed and help your organization to grow (another thing most industries miss).
Great article!
Very good points here. I think rewarding staff is especially important. The model you described makes for a win-win scenario for the company and employees.
Cyber security is key for small business, and often overlooked. Thanks for sharing some stats on the negative impact of Internet attackers.
Tip:
1. Attack problems and issues when they come up.
@Fauzia B Karim, I do agree that financial/economic landscapes are affecting the way many governmental organizations are conducting business. Thank you for bringing your public sector perspective to this conversation AND for once again supporting our blog.
@Tyrone Spencer, I agree that treating staff and customers as valuable components of a business is a recipe “four-success.” Thank you for offering your perspective as an entrepreneur AND for once again supporting our blog.
@Tamara Hamil, Great points! I agree that organizations should make an effort to put people roles that play to employees’ strengths. Thank you for sharing your thoughts AND for once again supporting our blog.
@Anika Moore, yes cybersecurity attacks are happening all the time…and small businesses are the No. 1 targets. Unfortunately, many small business owners are unaware of the threat. Also, thank you for sharing your tips “four-success.”