Small businesses, in particular, can quickly become bogged down in their own organizational structure and fail to meet either their own or their customers’ expectations. Taking proactive steps, delegating effectively, and honestly assessing how you manage your time can help you overcome these challenges.
For many, being on the job around the clock—both for customers and the business—is simply part of being an entrepreneur. Especially since customers today expect a completely different level of service. Katja Hobler of Natursteine Glöckner sums it up: “Today’s expectations are set by Amazon.” The list of operational requirements is long. Small businesses, in particular, often find themselves bogged down by their own organizational structures when it comes to meeting current customer needs. A lack of employee involvement, unclear or outdated processes and structures are the main reasons for owners’ overload, team dissatisfaction, or a lack of customer focus. “I really need to make some changes, but I don’t have the resources to do so.”
If this thought plagues you often, you should pull the ripcord. At any rate, that’s what organizational expert Cordula Nussbaum recommends to avoid becoming a slave to your own business. Companies must renegotiate who does what, for what purpose, and why when they themselves or the market changes. Often, the rules and processes of collaboration no longer match the volume, scope, or nature of the orders. Customer preferences are changing, too.
New business areas emerge, employees go on vacation or are sick—not to mention your own need for rest. Added to this is the generational transition, which is far from being satisfactorily resolved everywhere. The potential for growth, customer focus, and personal freedom comes from within and cannot be bought. When bosses are considered irreplaceable and can barely find a moment’s peace even on vacation, this often has a lot to do with them personally.
Experienced leaders understand the value of having breathing room, which allows them to reflect on the future and let innovations mature. Glöckner Natursteine is a prime example of what future-oriented business leadership in the skilled trades looks like—and how the leadership team can remain relaxed. We spoke with Katja Hobler, who runs the company together with her husband Markus Glöckner, about their multi-award-winning approach to sustainable resource and time management.
One skill that by no means everyone has mastered is the art of delegation. Many people find it difficult to hand off certain tasks to others. However, when too many decisions are made and driven forward by a single person, the rat race is inevitable. Management legend Stephen R. Covey (“The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”) writes: “Delegating effectively to others is probably the activity that has the greatest impact on your personal and professional success. It pays off when you entrust responsibility to other well-trained and capable people. Delegating means growing. This applies not only to every individual but also to all organizations.”
Those who can delegate well always make the success of the work a collaborative effort. Delegation distinguishes managers from doers. When customers want to speak only with the boss—and vice versa—they’re speaking with a successful doer. If a company has numerous competent points of contact for customer projects, the company is being managed successfully. Often, delegation is limited to assigning individual steps. However, the faster companies need to react, and the more complex and uncertain the information situation is, the more important it becomes to distribute not only the work but also the responsibility among several people. Natursteine Glöckner also closely involves the entire team in the company’s decision-making processes. This approach significantly lightens the load on management, as Katja Hobler confirms in an interview with STEIN.
Read more in the February 2020 issue of STEIN.
