Entrepreneur’s 6 Surefire Growth Tips Applied to Workforce Management

The more memorable recent IPOs of tech juggernauts like Facebook, Twitter, and Etsy have prompted the workforce management experts at nextSource to contemplate the ramifications of radical growth on labor strategies. Clearly, wildly successful companies like Facebook and others that have grown from humble dorm room or garage-based origins into publicly traded economic powerhouses are doing plenty right. We will not need to tell them about how to achieve success. But, we are subject matter experts in workforce planning, deployment, and management and we have unique insights to share, borne of our experience helping organizations navigate the challenges of radical growth as it relates to their labor force. What follows is some advice we feel is pertinent to any organization grappling with growing pains.

Our editorial team came across this fantastic piece in Entrepreneur magazine titled, “6 Surefire Ways to Prepare Your Business for Growth This Year”.  The article was spot on in its assessments and was just as relevant for the mid-sized company as it was for the Twitters of the world. We took the opportunity to examine the 6 recommendations made by the Entrepreneur piece through the prism of workforce management.

The first of 6 surefire ways was so well suited to workforce management concerns we’ve reprinted it here verbatim.

“1. Take a look at your team and make adjustments as needed.
Success comes down to people. You need to have the best people in the right positions equipped with the necessary resources to excel in business. Get your arms around who is on your team and how they are performing. Assess strengths while also addressing weaknesses.

If you’re preparing for growth, where do you need additional talent? Who do you need to promote or manage out? Where is your team stressed? What skills are lacking and what training might benefit employees?

People are your greatest asset. Build a team empowered to deliver greatness.”

Next, the piece urges growing companies to evaluate and enhance their infrastructure.  From a workforce management and optimization standpoint, this means ensuring any automation technologies like VMS or ATS systems are scalable to meet with rapidly increasing demand.

Other “surefire ways to prepare” include refreshing social-media accounts and strategy which is particularly useful for organizations that rely on social strategies to drive recruitment and burnish their brands as recruiting outfits; polling key advisors to share growth plans and projections for next year ensuring positioning is proper to support stated goals; planning for funding to support growth by negotiating with sources where the organization spends a lot (like top staffing suppliers) and; ensuring a meeting of the minds, getting all stakeholders aligned with the company’s mission, brand and goals.