Unprofessional Management and the Down Fall of Small Business

Small business is the cornerstone of the American economy. While unable to compete with giants like Wal-Mart, Meijer, Target and so on, the small businesses do add so much to the economy and the face of our nation. As I look out my window, I see four abandoned buildings that were not long ago, home to small businesses. It seems like every day another mom and pop operation closes its doors and switches off the lights for a final time. The dream is over for so many so soon.

Asides from the basic facts of life, in this day and age, what is killing small business? Is it Wal-Mart? Is it the unemployment rate? Or is it something that could go unnoticed? Is it employee theft that is causing the doors of so many establishments to close for good?

I think it is something much more common. I know many others would agree with me, it is unprofessional management styles that is the end of so many small operations today. Unprofessional Management Styles? You might ask, how does that affect the bottom line?

Well, for starters, an unsatisfied employee is not going to do a grand job for you. Imagine that you are at work, where you are maybe making one dollar per hour above the minimum wage. Your boss is always looking over your shoulder and criticizing you and your efforts. You try to do things by the book, and still keep the boss happy. After so long of walking on eggshells you see no results. If you are under appreciated, eventually you will begin to care even less about the quality of your work.

Or take the hard working, always punctual employee, who never calls off or leaves early. Day in and out this person does an exceptional job, then you have another employee, who misses work on a regular basis and does not pull his or her weight in terms of the work that needs to be completed. In a moment of frustration, the boss takes out his or her aggression on the model employee, wrongfully. Your model employee is probably going to feel upset, as this is a natural human emotion, in turn the performance and quality of the model employees work will be less than satisfactory, due to anger, humiliation and lack of appreciation from the boss.

You always have to consider how word of mouth can affect your business. Your disgruntled employee will share his or her feelings of your inadequacies with friend, family or neighbors. People talk. Before you know it, so many current or potential customers know all of your dark secrets concerning your business and relationship with your employees. How many customers will return of those who have heard the talk?

I was at one time working at a restaurant with a young single mother. She felt the need for a second job to support her family. She talked to the manager about her situation, and how she would be working in the evenings at a competing restaurant. Within an hour she was told to get her stuff and get out of the restaurant, as she could not be trusted anymore, she was working for a competitor. As she left, she stopped at every table and informed the customers, "Look thru that door... They cook all of the food in a microwave, and they buy it all at Save a Lot..." patrons began glancing in at the microwaves, where all food was prepared. Heads were shaken in disgust. Business severely dropped off in the following weeks, as word spread about the quality of food, and how it was cooked. All it took was that moment of poor judgment on both parts. The owner and manager should have been more sympathetic to this womans needs. They could have said "I can give you ten more hours a week," or maybe " I understand you have a family to feed, sign this confidentiality agreement." Instead the management lost control, treated a valuable employee badly, and terminated her employment because of the tough times Americans are facing. The terminated worker in turn, made bad choices, as her anger seriously affected this struggling business.

It all goes back to unprofessional management styles. With the proper training and experience a small business owner can be an effective and great manager, however that tends to be an issue with most small businesses. We as Americans have this idea that because we own and operate a small business that we are the King of the business. It simply does not work that way. The quality of your management style will reflect on your employees and your customer base.

There are many options for where we can spend our money, and chances are a terrible boss won't see a great return, especially if he or she is unprofessional.