So it's time to expand your business. You're seriously considering adding multiple locations but likely feel a bit of apprehension. Feeling nervous when making this type of decision is a normal reaction and is often felt by small business owners across the United States.
When opening new locations, most business owners find it very difficult to manage them all at the same time. The following tips will help you better manage your new business locations without dealing with a significant amount of stress.
Create structure for yourself and for your employees. Determine when and how often you need to visit the other location (normally once a week) and what you must accomplish during these visits.
Structure for your employees should include a small management team at each location. Figure out who will manage the location, who they report to and how often you need to communicate with them.
Above all else, setting a strict schedule is very important.
Like any other aspect of business, developing reachable goals is essential to success. Each location should have a specific set of goals that must be met on a regular basis, and a checks and balances system should be used to determine whether or not a particular location needs improvement.
Each goal should fit in to the overall goals of the company. Meet regularly with site management teams to reiterate how important it is to motivate employees.
One of the most difficult things that business owners have to deal with is managing locations in different time zones, especially if these time zones are international.
When managing teams in various time zones, set strict schedules for meeting times. Always be prepared to have meetings at all hours of the day, especially for time zones that are hours ahead or behind of your zone. In most cases, business owners should never require employees to have meetings outside their regularly scheduled working hours.
One of the best ways to manage employees in multiple locations is to use online collaboration tools.
There are a variety of tools that are available to use online. Most include email, shared calendars, word processing documents and spreadsheets that can be shared and edited by approved members of your team. These types of tools are essential because multiple employees can access, edit and share information on one platform at any time of the day.
Collaboration software can be expensive and Advance Funds Network is ready to fund businesses that are ready to expand but need help managing different locations. Advance Funds Network gives businesses up to $10,000 in cash advances that can be used to help a company see its full potential.
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