Smart management is the key to business success. From defining clear goals and objectives to engaging and bringing out the best in employees to adapting to changes, many an enterprise have implemented these principles to gain a competitive advantage and boost their bottom line. However, smaller businesses may not have the resources and manpower to leverage these strategies. How can you use a big business management style to lead your small business to success? Discover the ways you can learn from your big box competitors.

Big-Biz Management Style and Small Businesses Success

Communicate Clearly and Often

Communicating and being open to communication is a hallmark of a successful management style. However, communication in large enterprises more often than not comes in the form of mass emails or messages passed across multiple levels of management. While this method may seem efficient, it is also more prone to miscommunication and disconnect between employees and the organization. Small businesses are better structured to address employees directly through face-to-face meetings and organization-wide activities. This helps engage, empower, and unify employees at all levels.

Empower Your Employees

In a competitive market, businesses must be in tune with their customers, able to respond and adapt quickly at all levels of interaction. Smart enterprises train and educate all of their employees from top management down to new hires. With fewer levels of authority, it’s easier for small businesses to teach employees how to manage processes, serve customers, and collaborate with colleagues across departments to drive success. There are many ways to empower your employees: training sessions, webinars, presentations, video tutorials, manuals, etc., and having multiple venues open will help you cater to different learning styles. One thing is certain: knowledgeable, motivated employees are invaluable assets to small business success.

Delegate Key Business Tasks

Top-heavy organizations are often afraid to delegate responsibilities - a key mistake that costs time, money, and even employees. After empowering your employees with knowledge and skills, it's time to trust them and challenge them with higher-level tasks. Schedule meetings to define key goals and objectives including metrics of success. Provide candid feedback and encouragement, but avoid micromanaging. Make yourself accessible to your team and provide them with ongoing opportunities to develop themselves.

Provide Mobility Within the Business

Business needs change constantly, and the ability to adapt is key to driving success. Provide your employees with opportunities to learn about the organization as a whole and interface with teams and departments other than their own. They may discover how to use their skills and interests more effectively in a different role. This mobility results in not only a fitter organization, but fitter, cross-trained employees ready to tackle new challenges.

Keep Your Eyes on the Prize

For small business leaders with countless tasks on their plate, staying focused is a task in itself. Rather than being pulled left and right by emails, meetings, and phone calls, take some time beforehand to examine the day ahead. Prioritize the tasks that support your definition of success and discard activities that pull your focus away from that goal. If you're pursuing too many goals at once, narrow your focus and identify which goals best align with your organization's vision right now. It may take some trial and error to optimize your day, but doing so can help you lead yourself, your employees, and your business to success.

Tapping into big business management styles and shaping some of these techniques to fit the needs of your small business, could be the shift in the right direction towards success!