Women at work: If you're the boss, be a visionary

Vicki M. James
• December 21, 2010

Likewise,
companies with good managers are not fail-safe, either. They can be
vulnerable because they don't innovate, motivate change or watch for
strategic threats.

What's the difference?

Think
of it like this: You want to manage things and lead people. For
example, businesses manage costs, inventory, cash flow, processes,
information systems, facilities and operations. When it comes to
leadership, great businesses lead their people, drive the company
vision, guide their employee and customer perceptions and ultimately
generate a positive and productive corporate mindset and culture.

As
the business owner, you are responsible for leading your business to
success and getting your people excited about your vision.

Too
often leadership is seen as defining a business strategy and expecting
people to follow or suffer the consequences. This model fails you, your
employees and your business.

Imagine if Bill Gates worked like this. He would arrive at 8 a.m., walk into Microsoft and answer the lobby phone,
interview every candidate for every position available, write copy for
the website, answer all customer calls, develop code for Windows, design
product packaging, write product documentation and empty the trashcans.
By noon, he would be exhausted and, in six months, there would be no
Microsoft.

Many times small business owners take it upon themselves to do all of this, and their businesses suffer as a result.

Your
role as the business owner is to focus constantly in the direction you
want your business to go. Frequently, small businesses suffer from
leaders who are overly tied up in day-to-day operations.

It's
important to seek out qualified and competent people who can manage
daily tasks so that you can look up, set your sights on what you want
and move your organization in that direction.

James is a business development specialist with Thaney & Associates CPAs. E-mail her at vjames@thaneycpa.com.