Often, before hiring managers or directors, small business owners have built up their team of employees, perhaps in admin positions, accounts, tech, or within manufacturing roles. You may have also used the services of contractors and freelancers to manage elements of work in the past, but now it is time to introduce a full-time manager to your organisation.
Of course, relinquishing personal control over your own business can be an intimidating prospect, particularly if you are currently a one-person limited company. Perhaps you have had the final say over everything, from the design of your logo to the make and model of your office furniture, and all of the daily operations, until now, and handing over significant responsibility to somebody else can feel daunting.
However, when the time is right to start hiring managers to work with you, it is actually an indication that your business is doing well and is likely proof of significant growth. You should feel confident, then, that the decisions you have made so far have been successful for your company’s progress, and so your decision to implement a new structural system is likely to be a good one too.
Signs that you need to hire a manager for your business
There are a range of indicators that your business is ready for some kind of managerial structure. Perhaps you have had a significant influx of work recently and you and your team are overwhelmed with the volume of work and could use an additional person to manage the workload. Or maybe your employees could use the input of another senior role to help direct their workflow and increase productivity.
Another good indicator that it may be time to get an additional managerial employee in is if your own workload is becoming repetitive. Breaking free of the routine and delegating these tasks to another person will free you up to focus on the big picture, and perhaps pursue new business. This will be of particular importance if you have big plans to expand your business in the near future.
Hiring a manager will allow you to delegate a range of tasks, from the mundane to those where you know you do not personally excel; perhaps you are great at networking and sales but your product development or people management skills are lacking. In that case, you could hire someone who complements your skills and excels in the areas that need attention. It will also allow you to give your current employees the attention and support they need, as your, and their, time will be somewhat freed up.
Options for hiring a manager
There are two main possibilities when you are recruiting a manager for your business: you could move an existing employee into a management position, or you could hire somebody new to the business. There are certainly benefits to each of these options. If you hire from within your company, the new manager will already be familiar with your business and how it works, as well as knowing the wider team and their individual strengths, and you can feel confident in their abilities in managing your company. However, an external candidate could bring new life and new ideas to your existing processes and make improvements in ways that internal candidates may overlook.
In either case, whether you promote internally or source an external manager to welcome into the team, introducing your new manager to their work should be done gradually — particularly if the new manager is completely new to the company and its processes. Rather than overwhelming them by outlining their responsibilities on day one and leaving them to it, undergo an incremental process to allow them to familiarise themselves with the job, and the company, and let them gain confidence and knowledge over time. Offering mentoring and support to the new hire from you or other senior partners is also a highly effective approach, and will ensure a smooth transition, and confidence in everyone’s role in the company.
While hiring your first business manager can be a daunting task, if you do it with care and thought, there is plenty you can do to make sure your business is in the right hands. Investing time in this process in the short term is sure to pay dividends in the longer term as the brand continues to grow.
If you’re looking for more information on when and how to take on new hires, you can find this in our Help Centre, where there is plenty of advice on handling your business’ growth.
As a limited company grows, it may become time to introduce a tiered management structure. Understand your options and figure out what’s best for your business.