Your Business Can Run Without You. Here's How

If you ask any entrepreneur why they started their business, you are likely to hear the same reasons over and over again- wanting to be their own boss, a need to control their own time, passion, meeting a need in the marketplace… They essentially want the freedom to do things and solve problems their own way.?

Many founders are shocked at what it takes to get their business idea from their heads and turn it into an actual business that makes money and delivers what they envisioned for the community and themselves.

Translating a vision into reality is no mean feat as exhibited by the 90% failure rate by startups in their first year. Founder entrepreneurs play multiple roles in the business- from customer care to closing sales, leading production on the factory floor, receptionist, and debt collector. This state of being called upon to play and be knowledgeable in multiple roles in your startup is not only overwhelming for one person but also drains a founder making them ineffective.

The consequence is unhappy customers due to delayed orders or inconsistent quality, which can cost your business money. Focusing too much on one area, like the production on the factory floor, can lead to neglect of other vital areas, like sales or debt collection.?Suffice it to say, most founders end up getting bogged down by operational issues that easily lead them to fail in providing strategic direction to the business in its entirety.

So, what does it take for your business to move from ‘all over the place’ to an entity that makes you money even in your absence?

1: Have a plan

For the most part, founders have a pretty good idea of what they intend to do, what service or product they are offering to the market place and what success looks like. But rarely do they put such good business ideas down in writing. Writing down your plan also allows you to measure success or tell when you are veering off your set course.

On the other hand, you could have a written plan but it’s poorly thought-through, not backed by market research, not executed well, or not executed at all. This brings me to my next point.

2: Set up a way to be accountable

One of the things I have come to appreciate most as a real value add to a founder entrepreneur is having an element of accountability. This could be either in the form of a mentor/coach or an expanded team of a few trusted people to serve as a sounding board for your business.

This team of advisors brings a fresh perspective on the issues you are wrestling with by sharing their experience and how they were able to overcome the same challenges you face. Such a team is also able to open up its network to provide solutions for your business if they are in a complementary line of business. And finally, a team of advisors to your business can check in and hold you accountable for what you set out to do.

Although you may have started your business to experience the freedom of pursuing your passion and dreams on your own terms, having an accountability group will help you significantly increase your chance of success rather than curtail such freedoms.

3: Document your processes

You now have your plan and you’re executing it. You’re closing deals, selling, and making money but things are not moving as smoothly as you expected. Among other things, customers are complaining about late deliveries, you’re forgetting to follow up with people who owe you money, and you keep getting caught by surprise every time your meetings with your accountability partners come up. That’s where standard operating procedures come in.

Every single activity in your business has a process, whether it’s in your mind, written down, or keeps changing. It’s there. What you need to do is take note of all the processes that come up in your business - how do you engage with customers from the time you meet them until after they buy from you? How do your customers pay you? How do your customers give your feedback? How do you follow up on debtors? How do you decide which supplier to buy from? How do you set up and carry out meetings with your business coach or advisory board?

Actively noting down and standardizing your processes will take you from constantly putting out fires to thinking strategically about your business. You’ll be able to see what can be automated, what can be delegated, and what you need to do to replicate yourself.

4: Build your team

A lack of a clear plan and processes can make it hard to recruit key employees to help you. First, it will be difficult for them to execute a plan you have not clearly articulated and also because you cannot effectively delegate what you don’t understand.

Once you have your plan and processes, you will know which positions are key to hire (including a person who can replicate you when you’re not around) and how the people you hire will work at the standard you have set for your company. Having a good team means that your business will eventually be able to run in your absence without you losing sleep over day-to-day matters. This will free you up to build other businesses, take a holiday, help other businesses grow, or do anything else you feel like you can’t do right now because of your business.

At Founders Freedom, we work with founders to build businesses that can run in their absence and last generations. The process will not happen suddenly and requires a commitment to make gradual changes until you are finally comfortable stepping away from your business.

We will be here whenever you are ready to start working towards freedom.

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