Episode 158: Dealing with Common Problems for Fast-Growing Companies, with Tim Fulton

Tim Fulton is a serial entrepreneur turned small business consultant and executive coach, an award-winning author, and a nationally recognized advocate for small business.

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Do you feel like your business has stalled out after years of successful growth? Are you struggling to hire talented people that will stay with the company for years?

This week I spoke on these issues with the accomplished Tim Fulton, author of Small Business Matters. Tim currently services as a Vistage Group Chair. Vistage is an international membership organization for CEOs and Presidents that encourages them to learn from each other.

One of the fascinating things we discussed was the growth barrier that many businesses – including successful businesses – face after several years in operation. Many owners and entrepreneurs find that around this time their growth suddenly stalls out. It’s no surprise that many panic!

But experienced business owners know that this is common, especially as company reach a certain point of growth. A time comes when the business owner has too many balls in the air and has to stop juggling: In other words, the business needs to shift to focus more on teams and an organization system. The owner must learn to delegate, too!

Alongside this is the problem of hiring talented employees. As Tim advises, hire early and expect turnover (as much as 75% turnover in many cases) to find the right talent for your business. It’s alright to let people go if, after a month, you are sure they aren’t a good fit. Don’t be afraid to put in time and effort to create a good team!

This period of growth also means that owners need to start thinking about the company culture: Will bringing in so many new people threaten the work relationship of those who have been there since the beginning? How can you encourage a healthy culture during these times of expansion?

If you’d like to learn more about our interesting conversation, listen to the full episode!

Thanks for listening today! I appreciate your time so very much.

Ways to contact Tim: Website: Smallbusinessmattersonline.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/timcfulton