Small Businesses

So, what’s a "small business"? Most of us would probably be inclined to seek a number; of employees or receipts. Numbers do offer some guidance. A Company of 70 employees is clearly "small"; is 700 employees "small"? Here’s a suggestion -- a small business is one in which the CEO personally knows and regularly interacts with all the people who are responsible for producing the essential results needed for the organization to be successful; it has limited resources; its climate/tone is set by a small group.

A small business may use Organization Development in the same way as other organizations while also having some special needs, for example:

• A strategy that is grounded in its own "best" abilities and in an understanding of its context.
• Central management’s ability to give time and attention to several key activities -- establish a sense of direction and navigate toward that direction; stay connected with key employees and the sub-systems of the company; and take time to stay in touch with customer needs, the market, and new technologies related to the business.
• An effective information flow system that gets data to the right people in a timely, accurate and thorough manner. With limited resources the small company needs a system that keeps it aware of cash flow, projected financial needs, the actual performance and satisfaction of employees, etc.

A special category is the family owned business, which in addition to the issues faced by all businesses, often struggle with a special polarity - how to take advantage of the strength present in the owner's sense of integration while also being open to the influence of others that can help the organization adapt to new realities.

With the family business it may be even more important, than with others, to use an appreciative process that draws on the uniqueness present in the family and the enterprise, for example:

• Building on the special gifts of the founder and family that show themselves in the business
• Making use of the special devotion and passion a founder and family members bring to the business
• Shaping an organizational culture that can be replicated (in multiple locations, in a franchise or licensing strategy, etc.) so that core elements are maintained and built on while allowing space for innovation and creative input from others