成长的烦恼

激情和坚持不足以让创始人成功. Self-reflection and humility are essential, according to these veteran entrepreneurs. 

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新企业失败的原因有很多:缺乏资金, 薄弱的商业计划, 产品不适合市场, 或者缺乏对企业成长的理解, 它的创始人也必须如此.

The transformation of a founder—from someone with an idea to the leader of a business with hundreds of employees, 董事会, and a CEO—requires an inward journey of personal and professional growth. 当创始人的公司规模扩大时, he or she transforms from a doer to manager to leader—each role requiring a very distinct skill set and perspective.

杰夫纽约, a Leeds professor and academic researcher who has published numerous studies on entrepreneurship and also hosts a podcast on the subject, 说, “大多数成功的创业者都非常善于倾听, 非常善于根据反馈发展自己的想法, and extremely good at bringing other stakeholders in to co-create the venture with them.”

这些技能对于度过创业阶段非常有用. 但接下来的阶段往往会带来新的挑战和要求. “很少有人能在每个阶段都表现出色,埃里克·穆勒说, executive director of the 戴明创业中心 and adjunct professor at Leeds. 终身企业家, 他知道他的最佳位置是第一阶段, in which the fast pace and endless possibilities sync perfectly with his strengths.

Mueller 说 it’s uncommon for founders to have the skill set needed for every phase of a company’s growth. 但Uplight前首席执行官阿德里安•塔克是个例外. “He created the last unicorn in 博尔德—he’s brilliant at transitioning through all the stages,穆勒说。.

出色的

Tuck’s journey to becoming a self-proclaimed “servant leader” began at the age of 18 as an officer in the British army, where he received leadership training and acquired skills and experiences informed by the army’s motto, 服务于领导.”

“当兵让我成为了一名卓有成效的企业家. 源自军队, I made a bet on a startup and became employee number five and eventually learned I liked everything about it,他说.

“有一种人只在某个阶段感到快乐. The second type of person is really excited to learn and grow through the phases,塔克说, 我试着成为第三种人, who knows what the next phase looks like and can help everybody get there.”

“I learned that we have to mourn the loss of the things we used to do and be excited about the ways we’re moving forward.”

Adrian Tuck, Uplight前首席执行官

在Uplight的早期阶段, Tuck held weekly in-person pizza meetings—a highlight of the week for employees. 但当公司开始向全国新城市扩张时, 工作人员互动的形式必须改变.

“I learned that we have to mourn the loss of the things we used to do and be excited about the ways we’re moving forward,他说. “My job was to help everybody see the direction and give them the tools they needed—and then get out of the way.”

这就是他试图传授给利兹大学学生企业家的东西. 在过去的十年里, Tuck has been a consistent contributor as an instructor of the New Venture Creation course, 演讲嘉宾和小组成员, 导师和教练, 也是戴明中心的坚定支持者.

“创始人耳语者”

在启动阶段之后, the buildup is considered the most critical time in the life cycle of a business, 解释了纽约. 创始人应该成为成长阶段的领导者, 流程构建器, 一个有情商的代理人, 沟通技巧, 以及对文化和组织动态的把握.

“Founders have the skills to start the company and garner the initial resources, 但他们并不总是具备管理一家成长型公司的技能,约克说。. “这就是为什么你经常会看到, 因为这些公司正在转型, 董事会或投资者会聘请一位职业经理人担任首席执行官.”

他们有时被称为“创始人耳语者”.”

简•米勒, 鲁迪糖果公司现任首席执行官和莉莉糖果公司前任首席执行官, has over 35 years of executive experience in the food industry and has worked extensively with founders.

创始人通常会求助于外部CEO, someone who has a network of people and understands the fast pace of an entrepreneurial environment but also understands how to take a founder’s vision and make it bigger and broader and scale it,米勒说。. 

However, it’s not always a match made in heaven, as founders and operators both want to be in charge. “I think that might be one of the hardest kinds of transitions for founders—going from doing everything by themselves to turning the keys over to an operator.  And the operator may too quickly dismiss the founder with the attitude of ‘Thanks for creating this great brand—I’ve got it from here.’” 

“The most important part is continued evolution in one’s own leadership journey.”

埃里克穆勒, Executive Director of the 戴明创业中心 and Adjunct Professor at Leeds

米勒说，这和婚姻很相似. “It’s about getting two people to really figure out how to work with one another and respect each other’s skills. 博彩app推荐目标的诚实沟通是至关重要的.” 

米勒已经积极参与利兹超过15年, sharing her wealth of experience with both student entrepreneurs and women graduate students. 她还在利兹咨询委员会任职.

创始人领袖

按比例增长的, 定义为后期扩张, 是最后的阶段, making human-centric skills even more important as the founder becomes a leader at scale. 如果管理基础设施和合适的人员到位, 在这个阶段，创始人有发展壮大的潜力. 通过传达清晰的愿景和战略, 他或她可以设定总体方向，带领公司走向成功.

这是一个人的领导风格真正显现的地方.

“我花时间审视自己是哪种类型的领导者, and I thought of myself as a fairly simple leader whose job is to help everybody see the direction and support them,塔克说。. “我喜欢把自己想象成一个善解人意、谦逊的人. 我喜欢“仆人式领导”这个概念,我的想法是，作为领导者，我的工作就是让其他人变得更好.”

当谈到公司的成长, 承认自己的优势和局限的企业家, 已经养成了拒绝独狼思维的谦卑态度, and are willing to partner with others with complementary strengths have done the inner work needed to position themselves for success.

“The most important part,” 说 Mueller, “is continued evolution in one’s own leadership journey.”