Let Go To Grow

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(No Transcript)
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Riverside Manufacturing
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Riverside Manufacturing

• In 1989, George Carson began making cabinets for
  friends in his basement.
• His costs were low.So were his prices. There
  was no overhead.
• Word spread. Business flooded in.
• George dropped his day job to make Riverside
  Manufacturing a real business.
• He hired a helper and moved to rented space.
• George had a micro business!

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Riverside Manufacturing

• George was a hands on owner. He
• Made every hiring decision.
• Managed all employees.
• Made every important decision.
• Knew the intricate details of the business.
• Didnt need metrics, reports or documented
  processes.
• But, with all the work,
• George was stretched thin.

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Riverside Manufacturing
Before George knew it, Riverside Manufacturing
grew to 40 employees!

• The employees
• Produced installed the cabinets
• Made sales calls
• Resolved customer issues
• Shipped product
• Handled administrative tasks
• Overhead remained low there were no managers.
• We have good people. We just get it done.
• -George Carson

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Riverside Manufacturing

• Vacations were scarce and time off was at a
  premium.
• George worked 75 hours per week and didnt see
  much of his family.
• Worse, business began to stagnate

• Sales growth stopped
• Profits evaporated
• The shop and inventory became unorganized
• Work was always behind
• The lack of processes led to constant fire drills
• There were never enough hours in the day or days
  in the week!

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Riverside Manufacturing

• George was at a loss.
• What happened to his growing business?

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What Happened?

• Riverside was growing.
• Profits were good.
• Then
• Things began to go wrong.
• George wouldnt let go.
• He was drowning.
• He couldnt keep up with the work.
• The business was suffering.
• Without knowing it,
• George was the constraint to growth!

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Questions

• What challenges do principals face as their
  businesses grow?
• Where are the transition points?
• Does classifying a business based on sales and
  number of employees work?
• We need a new way to classify businesses!

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A New Way to Classify Businesses

• Do the work

Micro

• Manage the workers

Small
Midsize

• Manage the managers

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The Principals Role

• Do the work

Micro
Small

• Manage the workers

Midsize

• Manage the managers

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The Principals Role

• Do the work

Micro

• Make tactical decisions

• Develop strategy

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The Principals Role

• Develop strategy

Micro

• Make tactical decisions

Small

• Get the right workersin the right jobs

• Manage the workers

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The Principals Role

• Develop strategy

• Delegate authority hold accountable

Small

• Hire the right managers

Midsize

• Document process

Midsize

• Develop robust metrics

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What We Learned
Principals must Let Go To Grow

• Doing the primary work of the business
• Making tactical decisions
• Hiring and managing workers

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What We Learned
Principals must Let Go To Grow The principals
skill set must change dramatically as the
business grows

• Doing the primary work of the business
• Managing those who do the work
• Managing the managers, overseeing the enterprise

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What Does This Mean for Me?
In what stage is your business? In what stage
should it be?

• Micro
• Small
• Midsize

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If You Run a Micro Business

• Are you successfully doing the primary work of
  the business?
• Are you making good tactical decisions?
• Do you have a good strategy for your business?

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If You Run a Small Business

• Have you let go of doing the primary work of the
  business?
• Are you hiring the right people?
• Do your people deliver the results you want?

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If You Run a Midsize Business
Have you delegated Tactical decision
making? Hiring of the workers? Management of the
workers? Do you have effective managers? Do you
have documented processes? Do you have the right
metrics?
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What Now?

• Weve told you what you need to do.
• We havent said a word about how to do it.
• Thats a problem with a lot of business books!
• Good to Great Get the right people on the bus.
• How do you get the right people on the bus?
• How do you do the things we have been discussing
  today?

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Buy the book!
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What are People Saying About Let Go To Grow?

• The insights documented in Let Go to Grow are
  valuable lessons for anyone looking to increase
  his or her management effectiveness.
• -Douglas P. Gernert, CEO, Totes Isotoner
  Corporation
• Doug and Polly White have written an
  extremely well researched and helpful guide for
  CEOs who want their small companies to grow into
  larger ones.
• -Kim A. Lopdrup, President, Red Lobster
• Let Go to Grow is the road map for entrepreneurs
  who seek to achieve that elusive next level in
  their business.
• -Gerardo I. Lopez, President and CEO, AMC
  Entertainment

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Helping principals manage the transitions from
Micro to Midsize.
Doug Polly White Whitestone Partners,
Inc. [phone] WhitestonePartnersInc.com
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