Starting and building a business is never easy. A lot of variables determine which businesses will be successful and which ones will fail. The Small Business Administration figures show that 80% of new business will fail in the first year. Of those that do survive SBA figures show 80% will be gone in five years.

As your business grows it will move through several stages. At each stage there will be specific challenges you and your leadership team will need to overcome in order for your business to thrive and move to the next stage. The majority of your challenges will come as you add people to the organization. As you add people there is more chaos. Keeping this in mind as the business owner or CEO you have the ability to advance or damage your organization.

Did you know that a business owner or CEO leader can increase a company’s ultimate business performance by a 20-30% advantage if you understand your leadership style AND you adjust your style so that it resonates with the stage of growth your company is in?

In a growing company there will be some hidden drivers that fall under the category of Leadership Effectiveness. These cover things such as your leadership style, leadership mode, the leadership face you show to the business at various times, your leadership competencies and your leadership learning style.

Leadership Style – Being aware of your leadership style will help manage the environment your people operate in. If you can adjust and maximize your style to fit the needs of the company (not your comfort zone) then you have the opportunity to increase your company’s financial performance by 20-30% more.

Leadership Mode – If you miss judge the degree of direct or indirect involvement you apply to manifest your company’s goals the outcome can be disastrous if left unaddressed for an extended period of time. Depending on the stage of growth your company is in, you should be operating from a dominant, supportive or facilitative mode.

Leadership Face – Every business owner or CEO will need to operate as a visionary, manager or specialist all at the same time. Depending on your company’s stage of growth will depend how much face time in each role you show to the organization.

Leadership Competencies – If you intentionally develop competencies that are based in self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and relationship management these will strengthen your leadership effectiveness within the organization. Research shows that effective leaders exhibit half a dozen or so competencies. Never stop learning just because you sit at the top of the organization.

Learning Style – Leveraging your current learning style will enhance your ability to make better decisions. If you can understand and adapt other learning styles you will become more effective in certain situations and accelerate the ability to recognize the truth of a situation and narrow the choices.

Leaders have the ability to advance or damage the organization and the people within the organization.  What’s your legacy going to be – Advance or Damage?

For more practical development tips, contact us. You can also try out our Leadership Assessment to find out more about your own leadership style.