As a new startup founder with a small team, you aren’t likely to have many problems when it comes to organizational structure for your business. It’s probable that you are all working together getting the job done, and edging towards completion and, soon after, launch. But don’t underestimate just how important organization will be in the not too distant future.
From the second your business starts to take off, you will need to hire more staff, sign more contracts, and deal with more problems. And without thorough preparation, you risk being caught off guard. To prevent serious organizational problems further on down the line, make sure you are starting to put things in place right now. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
Create a leadership plan
Right now, you might have a few people working for you. But in the future? You will need to hire – or promote – leaders to run teams. As soon as you start employing extra people, you will need a plan to manage them, too – which is where your management structure will come in.
Get started sooner rather than later, and create a top-down view of how your business will operate. Will you have a CTO, CMO, and a CFO? Or will you just hire team leaders for each area of your business, and do everything yourself?
Establish operating procedures
As a new business, every member of current staff will have their own way of working. But as soon as you start to grow, this will be unacceptable. You need a robust operating procedure in place that gives you a uniformity, outlines your objectives, and can scale over time. Without this plan in place, you will struggle to keep track of work, projects, and all kinds of other business actions.
Start an employee list
By the time you are hiring 40+ people, it will be almost impossible to keep track of your workforce without help. It’s a good idea, then, to invest in a system that allows you to keep tabs on your current staff, and includes all kinds of personal information on them that you can use to everyone’s advantage.
Don’t settle for trying to find employees on your intranet – seek out a better service instead. A system that reminds you to keep track of birthdays, hobbies, likes and interests can help you learn more about your employees and make them feel like they are an integral part of the team.
Cover your legal requirements
There are a lot of regulations to follow when your business grows from a solo operation or a small band of developers. And it’s something you need to plan for now, rather than later. In fact, plenty of evidence states one of your first employees should be a human resources specialist. They will give you the cover you need to ensure you are following regulations, and tick your employer responsibilities off one by one.
Start working on your organizational structure now if you want to give your business a greater chance of success. Not only will it make your startup more robust than before, but it will also create a positive working environment for your employees. Good luck!