Rapid revenue growth is the dream of any startup, but sometimes the dream can turn into a nightmare. I’ve seen companies keel under the burden of hiring, and training, while executing in full force. If you are thinking to yourself: “Let me first get there and then I will be happy to deal with it,” – think again. You need to wear your life vest before you jump into the water. Moreover, laying the groundwork now will help you start your growth spurt sooner.

One of the biggest challenges with  growth is the need to do significant hiring. In a company I encountered last year, some  of the top engineering leaders shared with me how overwhelmed they were:

• • Onboarding and training new engineers took away from the development time of existing staff. This created a vicious cycle, as the more new engineers who were hired, the less time there was to train them, which led to more errors and defects.

• • With such a large proportion of people who didn’t know the product, the amount of errors and defects went up, requiring more work and more hiring, exacerbating the problem. This lack of product knowledge led to misunderstandings, more defects, and missed delivery dates.

• • Lack of coordination between different departments resulted in misunderstandings, more defects, missed delivery dates, and duplicate work. This siloed approach to work led to inefficiencies and a lack of communication, which further exacerbated the problems caused by rapid growth.

These challenges are common to many startups that experience strong growth. Here are 5 ways to address them:

• 1. Create simple, effective processes to ensure quality and consistency
  2. Partner with outsourcing vendors for quick access to qualified candidates and for surge staffing needs
  3. Define a central streamlined hiring, onboarding, and training process and have each department add unique modules.
  4. Appoint mentors and sponsors for new employees to ensure faster integration and lessen the pressure on managers
  5. Share resources between different departments whenever possible.

By following these steps, you can not only survive but thrive in the face of rapid revenue growth. You can reduce errors, increase productivity, improve customer satisfaction, and grow your revenue even more. You can also create a positive and healthy work environment for yourself and your team, where everyone feels valued, engaged, and empowered.

If you want to learn more about how to manage growth, feel free to reach out to me. I would love to hear from you and help you achieve your goals.