Situation: Sales at a small company have grown rapidly. They need to expand staff to keep up with demand and fulfillment. There are two options: expanding current functional teams in sales and service or adding a back office operations function. Based on your experience, which of these two options makes more sense for a company of fewer than 20 people?
Advice from the CEOs:
- Since the company is planning to grow from 10 to 20 people, create an organizational chart for what the company will look like with 20 people. From this back into what it looks like with 15, and then 10 people.
- Look at how the positions work, and what talents you want to see in each position. Assess how well your current staff fills both current and anticipated talent needs.
- The company’s key market differentiation is and will continue to be exceptional client service. Here are some of the questions to ask:
- Are the back office needs of the sales and service teams similar or different?
- If there is enough overlap, can one person, and eventually a team, supply the operational needs of both your client services and sales functions?
- If there is little overlap, what specific needs are currently unfulfilled by each team? Is there enough work to justify adding more than one person so that each team manages their own operations?
- One option is a matrix organizational structure which can work well in a firm of 10 to 20 people. Key factors include:
- Establishing a company culture to compliment your strategy and objectives.
- Establishing clear expectations of accountability and expectations to govern the model.
- Matrix structures don’t always succeed. Ask whether your current people and culture are suited to a matrix organization.
Key Words: Growth, Staff, Demand, Function, Team, Sales, Customer Service, Organizational Chart, Talent, Matrix, Culture, Objectives, Accountability, People Skills