Day 21: Teach Your Team To Think Like The CEO

One of the things we have heard many entrepreneurs say is “my employees don’t understand what it takes to run this business”. As a manager it is easy to give out order, delegate tasks or place the blame on employees. The hardest part of the job is giving employees the same decision making tools you use on a daily basis. Many business owners have found great success by teaching employees in clear, simple language what they as the business owner do instinctively and persistently:

1. Understand the fundamentals of cash flow. Lots of employees don’t really understand the concept of cash flow. Take some time to explain your company’s cash flow and how it affects their job and the company’s ability to bring in new resources.
2. Understand the basic building blocks of a business. This means teaching them the basics of how the business makes money, loses money and how you operate as a total company. This can be uncomfortable for a company particularly in a down economy. You may be surprised how much employees can help, even when the news isn’t that great.
3. Cutting through clutter to make decisions. Decision making is what separates the high performers from the pack. Teach employees how to decide what to do, despite the clutter of day-to-day work life.

Many people will go their entire career without learning to pull these pieces together. You can take the mystery out of business and show your employees how to place an intense focus on the fundamentals of business. Business is all about common sense. Alas, it is surprising to find how often this common sense of business is lacking.

Today’s Lesson

Take some time over the next couple days to do the following:

1. Clarify the vision and mission of the company. Vision is the fuel that drives your organization. It’s the ideal that employees are supposed to be working toward bit by bit every day. To be the most powerful employee, you need to know and understand the vision. ‘Go do your job and save money’ isn’t the best mission plan. Take some time to bring your vision to life for employees.
2. Set clear goals and objectives related to the mission. Once the vision is communicated you will need to set clear goals and objectives. These are the baby steps employees can take to move you closer to your goal.
3. Teach the basic metrics you use to determine your results. Helping employees understand the financial measurements that drive a company can produce great results. Taking time to teach them about cash flow, expenses, profit vs. loss, and return on investment can lead to great returns for you and the company.
4. Teach them to really think about customers. The customer doesn’t care how your business is structured. They care about their tasks and achieving their goals. They frequently won’t be concerned about the tangibles of the deal (the product, who decided what, the specs, the actual service rendered). What they care about is the original motive and desire for purchasing the service in the first place and the extent to which those motives/desires are met.

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