Even though most people dream about setting-up and running their own business at one point in their lives, not so many of them actually get to accomplish this dream. For most people with these dreams, the development sale and eventual use of a certain product or service that is to be used and enjoyed by customers all over the world is one of the most satisfying feelings, giving them a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. Normally, this is a feeling that cannot be gotten from working in a normal job, where they would have to undergo a great deal of supervision and control. However, starting the business involves more than the need for independence and takes far more than the concoction of an idea to do so. It takes the help and assistance of other people and a great deal of planning (Dunne and Lusch 304). The business being setup should not just be about earning a living but a means to learn self-independence, self-actualization, and self-awareness.
The story of Communication Services Inc. as told by the CEO, Dale Gray, is one such of starting a successful business. Set up in 1983, at the front bedroom of Dale’s house, the company has grown to become one of the top twenty telecommunications company in the country offering utility construction and maintenance of wireless networks in more than ten states (Pahl and Richter 21). For more than twenty years now, the company has grown in leaps and bounds to becoming one of the leading telecommunications company providing its customers with cutting edge communications infrastructure solutions for cellular, radio and other wireless electronic devices. In this regard, the CEO has been quoted in one of his press releases as saying that “In today’s increasingly competitive environment, not only should a company distinguish themselves by the value of their products, but also by the way that they do business” (Pahl and Richter 23).
In terms of management, it is important to ensure that people who out-produce other are utilized more in the company as they have the capability to be more creatively dynamic in their thinking and general way of looking at things. According to Dale, the utilization of these people is beneficial to the company as well as to themselves as it keeps them from straying to other non-organization related affairs together with allowing them the freedom to exercise their creativity. In this light, it is important for the management team to be one that posses a strong desire and passion to work, relishing those moments spent in the office as they share the same goals and objectives as those set by the organization’s stakeholders. The identification of these qualities should begin during the initial phases of employment, thoroughly carrying out and investing time and money on interview and initial encounter consultations.
The goal of any business venture is to make a profit. No matter how fun or challenging running a personal business might be, it has to eventually be economically worthwhile. According to statistics, about 10 percent of businesses that do not succeed within five years after being setup fail as a result of their inability to rake in profits (James 4). As an entrepreneur and a manager of a certain business organization, the more you know about the commodity and the tricks of the trade the better. Knowledge about a certain field of interest will help in gaining more profit. Increased knowledge also helps to increase the levels of confidence in the product and in one’s self, effectively increasing the levels of confidence that the customers have in the company. A confidence belief that you cannot fail and that you are the best in the chosen field, rubs off on the employees increasing their motivation and desire for work. This confidence in one’s self and the product also becomes evident to customers and investors, making them more comfortable to give you their hard earned money.
As Dale Gray argues, every business day is different from the other. Just because the business is making a profit today does not mean that it will continue to do so indefinitely. It is thus important to set up a clear business plan to act as the road map guiding every action all the stakeholders wish to make. This is done by first understanding how a business organization is supposed to work and the effects of making certain decisions. By “taking the guess out of the equation,” the management team can thus be able to predict the future of the organization, setting up achievable goal, vision and mission statements. After these goals have been achieved, management should sit down and come up with more goals, ever giving themselves and the other employees “a reason to come to work every morning” (Dunne and Lusch 324).
An important part of a business is the staffing and the amount of contribution they give to the organization. Running a successful business, especially one that is large enough to employ more than twenty people in several locations, is not a one man’s job. As a manager it is important to realize that you cannot do it alone. Teamwork is thus necessary in order to share ideas and to pull each other through the hard, difficult times when one feels like giving up. Before hiring a person, it is important to ask yourself “how much is the person is this person worth and how important is it that they be hired” (The Exceptional entrepreneur: The Dale Gray story). As a manager, it is important to bring in people who will not irritate the business process, and yourself, shortly after they have been hired and trained. Spending time and money resources on interviewing and training is necessary so as to ensure that the right person for the job is chosen. In this regard, the person selected should be one that shares the management’s vision and passion for upward growth. According to George Green, a leading entrepreneur and author of the book “Training and development,” training the new recruits should be seen as an investment, in the same light as the organization views the procurement of new machinery and equipments (Green 45). It shows the management’s commitment to the employees, organization and the industry, increasing their drive to achieve the set goals and objectives.
Works cited
Dunne, Patrick M., and Lusch, Robert F. Setting up a business. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 2007.
Green, George. Training and development. Massachusetts, MA: Harvard business Press, 2002. Print.
Pahl, Nadine and Richter, Anne. Business Analysis – Idea, Methodology And A Practical Approach. Boston, New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2009.Print.
The Exceptional entrepreneur: The Dale Gray story. By Dale Gray. McGraw-Hill Irwin, 2010.