I like listening to How I Built This, the NPR podcast with Guy Raz: this past week he interviewed Roxanne Quimby, the woman who founded Burt’s Bees. Like all the entrepreneurs on this show, she had a great idea and stayed true to her ideals as she built the business. When asked, Quimby said the toughest part was managing employees: I’ve heard similar complaints from lots of business owners. It takes a lot more time and effort to recruit, train, manage, and retain employees than most think; they often are confounded by the fact that not everyone is as dedicated and driven as they are. They, like all businesspeople, must learn to create an organization and infrastructure capable of managing lots of employees and that means committing the resources and funding to do it right. It’s an expense, for sure, but one that if spent wisely can pay dividends. And while many businesses claim their employees are their most important assets, many, unfortunately, really mean “most costly”. But if they take the time to tell employees exactly what’s expected and give them the training, tools, and resources to perform effectively, there can be an excellent return on that investment in terms of productivity, customer satisfaction, and profitability. That’s one of the most important lessons any leader can learn today.
Randall David Johnson (born 1963): American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball
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