By taking advantage of good problem solving and decision making techniques it will allow an entrepreneur to effectively carryout most of the duties that are required to be a good business leader.
In order to be a good business leader, an entrepreneur must have good communication skills. This will allow he or she to effectively convey the organization’s viewpoints, thoughts, and goals with others. It is important to practice good communication skills not only the employees, but also to customers, suppliers, and other stakeholders. People who have good communication skills, relay ideas well in person and in writing. (Sherblom) They are willing to ask questions to gain useful information or insight that may be beneficial to the organization. They share information well, and contribute ideas in a positive manner. They also provide constructive feedback when employees make mistakes. (Alis) Some keys to good leadership communication skills are:
Watch your language. Sometimes people may use jargon that not all listeners would understand. Many times business leaders use metaphors to try and create a common thought or feeling. Often times these metaphors come from sports terms such as “lets hit a home run with this”, or of a violent nature such as “lets kill the competition.” These metaphores are used to motivate employees to get the job done better than the competitors, but it is most important that everyone fosters a shared understanding.
The second key to good leadership communication is to follow through with what the organization has promised. Failure to follow through could easily allow growing cynicism in the workplace. If the organization makes a promise, it should follow through with action, even if the action ends up being an explanation of why the promise can't be kept.
Thirdly, deal with uncertainty. An entreprenuer should talk about failure, adjustments to the business strategy, or problems that the organization must work through. This will demonstrate to all employees that not everything goes exactly as planned, but it is not going to be detrimental to the organization.
The fourth key to good business communication is to be an active listener. Good listening is an art that is not always easy to master. A good communicater concentrates on the speaker's message, resists distractions, and doesn’t tune out if they disagree. It is important to make certain that the message is understood correctly.
The fifth key to good leadership communication is to connect personally with employees. Create opportunities for all employees to have contact with the entreprenuer or other ranking business officials. Face-to-face interaction makes employees feel that their voice is being heard. This will invite participation between the differnet levels of employees. Many succesful businesses have found that bottom/up information flow is just as important as top/down information flow.
Finally, an entrepreneur should take advantage of communication resources. Studies show that the most successful entrepreneurs and leaders know their limitations and seek outside counsel and resources. (Fenson)
Representing is also another function that is important to a business. Without the proper communication skills it will make representing the business appropriately a daunting task. Representing is being a liaison for the organization to outside groups or individuals. Improper representation could be damaging to a business. (Resources)
With good communication skills a leader can also be en effective motivator. Motivating is an important function of any entrepreneur. It is important for a business leader to ddiscuss the link between attitude and job performance. As a motivator, identifying strategies that will improve job performance can be very beneficial. There are two forms of motivation, negative and positive. Positive motivation that yields a positive outcome is always a win-win situation. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen. Sometimes people will only react positively to negative motivation. This is generally an employee trying to avoid a situation that they will not like. It is important to remember that negative motivation does not always yield a negative outcome. However, whether an employee does a great job or has made a mistake, sometimes positive motivation can encourage an employee to achieve the organization’s goals or objectives. Also a good business leader recognizes and sometimes rewards good effort as well as results.
After the tool of motivation is used, it is important for a business leader to measure the progress towards the organization’s goals. He must take on the role of evaluator. An entrepreneur must frequently analyze the progress made, and where the business is meeting its goals and where it has experienced shortcomings. This will allow he or she to decide if any modifications need to be made with the business strategy. (Motivation)
After the evaluations have been made the entrepreneur should provide meaningful feedback or analysis regarding the goals to the employees. Reporting allows the employees a chance to know where they stand. Furthermore, it lets the managers know what changes need to be made in order to reach the organizations goals.
Efficient organizing is important to a business. The formal structure of the establishment could mean the difference in an organization becoming successful or not. When the entrepreneur is addressing the structure of the organization he must state a definition of organization. Then state why organization is important in their work environment. State ways they can modify their environment to meet their organization needs. Finally identify and explain the strategies that will improve organization.
It is instrumental to have the right people in the right position. This will ensure that the staffing of the organization will be handled in the proper fashion. Staffing refers to the selection, assignment, training and retention of the workers. It is important to have employees that are willing to undergo the necessary training and then carryout their assigned tasks. (Gomez)
Delegating is a method of getting work done, with each employee taking a role in the process. In this process, part of the overall workload is distributed to the employees. In delegation it is important to keep the employees interested and invested in the task that they have been assigned. Furthermore, delegation helps develop the organization’s future leaders. Some keys to delegating that a good business leader may use are:
Clearly define the task. The desired results should be stated; many times it is better to let the individual or group use their creative ideas to reach them.
Define the accountability involved. The employees must be held accountable for their actions. Successful delegation involves defining the responsibilities and expectations associated with carrying out the task.
Give guidelines to begin. Many people need to be given a starting point. Providing guidelines on how to begin will increase the risk that the task will be completed successfully.
Monitor the tasks. It is important not to suffocate the individual or group. Establish a way to communicate progress which allows the task to be monitored.
Give feedback along the way. The feedback must be sincere, and be used as a source of motivation. Feedback allows the employees to know that their work is worthwhile. (Clary)
There are many roles that the entrepreneur must take on when operating a small business. Without a doubt role is more important as being a good leader. When an entrepreneur can make good decisions and communicate well with others the business stands a good chance of being successful. With this great task comes the freedom of owning your own small business.
Works Cited
Alis. Employment Tips. 2 October 2003.
Bridges, Stephen. Problem Solving Techniques. 30 September 2003.
Clary, Benjamin. Delegating Tasks. 30 September 2003.
Damron, Gerald. Telephone Interview. 3 October 2003.
Fenson, Sara. Do as I say. Quick Tips for Masterful Communication. 2 October 2003.
Functions of Business. Roles of an Entrepreneur. 2 October 2003.
http:/webpages.shepherd.edu/adevito/Management
Gomez, Luis R., Caroy, Robert L., and Balkin, David B. Managing Human Relations. 3rd ed. New York. Prentice Hall. 2001.
Johnson, Steve. Personal Interview. 2 October 2003.
Mindtools. Essential Skills for an Entrepreneur. 1 October 2003.
Motivation123. Motivation for Happiness and Success. 1 October 2003.
Resources Agency. Resources Agency Small Business Liaison. 3 October 2003.
Sherbloom, John C. and Harris, Thomas E. Small Group and Team Communication, 2nd ed. Boston, MA. Ally and Bacon.2001.
