Do startups have office politics? How to get yours right from day one
For micro business owners, fostering a happy and democratic workplace is central to productivity
Running a startup does not mean bosses are free from the chains of office politics. Establishing a democratic and by-the-book environment is even more important for smaller and high-risk businesses.
Micro businesses are an iconic aspect of the British business economy and we shouldnt be surprised about it.After all, 95% of all UK based businesses are micros, and the staggering statistics continue with an estimated 81% of all UK employing businesses being micro businesses. Given the fertile startup economy, it’s no wonder that so many of us are leaving bigger businesses to embrace the creative and strategic freedoms starting a smaller one offers. But being the boss of your own successful startup isnt the final story. To ensure solid brand reputation, recruitment interest, and employee retention, creating a democratic workplace environment is key, and this isnt just about beanbags and cold beers on a friday.Startup bosses must sit down with their senior staff, whether that is one other person, or simply themselves, and set an intention. That intention must be to create a workplace environment that includes all the positive aspects of larger offices including workplace decorum and a safety net for employees including HR support and line management.Read more about UK workplaces:
At their best, startups can be dynamic spaces where employees enact more influence over a business than a role at a larger company could ever allow, but at their worst, they can become sites of unprofessionalism, which can lead to bullying, an unproductive workplace, and high staff turnovers. To make a business succeed, employers must make the ground fertile, and this starts with getting their office politics handbook in order.
Accept flair and difference if it’s producing results
Unless you work solely for yourself, you will have to manage and support at least one other person in your workplace, who will have a different personality and approach tasks in a way that will differ from your own. In a small company, bosses will be directly exposed to how an employee will complete tasks at micro levels. In a small environment, bosses cannot enforce uniform approaches, they must be patient and accept their different methods, as long as the work gets done.
How are you speaking to your employee, and who are you speaking as?
don’t get impatient if you are asked “lower-level” questions about admin or approaches to small tasks at work. Part of the challenge of being a startup boss is having the boss and manager dual-identity. You have to be just as patient, enthusiastic and supportive of employees when they ask mundane questions as when you conduct creative meetings, hold events and meet clients.Being a startup founder and CEO requires a hands-on approach. Being exempt from the “nitty-gritty” of internal business operations is reserved for those in larger, more traditional company formats that have a hierarchical structure.
Being humble boosts productivity and costs nothing
Imagine if a graduate employee approached the founder and CEO of a large company about a minor question. The experience would no doubt irritate the “boss”, because the company has numerous line managers the employee could ask, and intimidate the employee who doesnt usually have much regular contact with the CEO.
Annie May is the Features Editor at Real Business and Business Advice. Following her graduation from LSE, she embarked upon a freelance career in current affairs journalism. Annie has written on subjects varying from African history and contemporary politics to community business and current affairs news in London. At Real Business and Business Advice, Annie is passionate about highlighting inclusive and diverse business disruptors and organisations for our evolving readership. Annie believes in fostering community inclusion and has volunteered for organisations such as Fairfield House, a UK based Rastafari centre and a senior citizen association for ethnic minority men and women.
The Ill Be Watching You report by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) found that 6 in 10 workers think snooped on by their boss fuels distrust and discrimination. Here are the stories of three workers who submitted their own personal experiences to the TUC. more»
Improving company culture is at the top of the agenda for most modern day businesses, as more employers are coming to appreciate the role it plays in attracting prospective employees. more»
Following the publication of Real Business and Breathe HR's SME Culture Leaders list, one of the winning directors gives her top tips for creating a culture that not only attracts new employees but makes existing staff want to stay. more»
For micro business owners, fostering a happy and democratic workplace is central to productivity
Gossip, rumours and cliques: UK employees reveal the root of office conflicts
Friendship cliques and tensions over workplace gossip have been outed among the most common causes of office conflicts in Britain, according to a new study.
__________________________________________________________________________________
