4 Reasons Your Small Business Won’t Survive Without You

Many small businesses do not survive the death of their owners.

It’s an unfortunate truth that many small businesses suffer from.

There are countless stories of successful and highly profitable businesses that suddenly collapsed after the death of their owners/founders.

Or the many small business owners that cannot afford to take a break from their business, because it needs them to survive.

Here are 4 reasons your small business may not survive without you:

1. Poor People System

Your small business cannot survive in your absence because it lacks an essential ingredient to function – A people system.

I know you might say, “we have employees”, but the question is, can they contribute their skills to the business without your supervision? Can your employees (managers) identify a talent gap and hire qualified talent in your absence?

Your business requires the right talent to be able to execute its goals and vision. To do that sustainably and efficiently also requires a people system. This is even when you’re on holiday, or you sell the company or in the event of your demise.

So, one reason your business cannot survive without you is that it lacks a people system.

2. Lack of a Succession Plan

Many business owners fail to plan for their absence. Their assumption is that they would always be available to run their businesses.

But unless you never plan to take a break, sell your company or die, then it’s fine.

We know you can’t control when you fall ill or die, so you have to plan for it.

The majority of small businesses in Nigeria today don’t have a succession plan, and that’s another reason they don’t survive the exit (especially death) of their owners.

A succession plan makes it easy for your business to transfer management from you to the next team. It avoids unnecessary chaos and loss of revenue in the process.

It is a simple document that contains the steps necessary for transition, ideal roles to be replaced and recommendations for candidates, etc.

3. Poor Business System

Many businesses operate without a system.

By business system I mean – a collection of processes, tools and resources that work together to achieve a specified end goal.

For them, business activities and processes are dependent on the founder or owners.

Every action or transaction has to pass through the owner’s table for approval because there is no structure that employees can follow in his/her absence.

This is why such a business would collapse when the owner is absent.

Every business needs a system that is clear and realistic enough to ensure that the business can produce consistent results and run smoothly with little or no supervision.

4. Poorly Defined Rules & Regulations

A business needs clearly defined rules of engagement in order to exist independently of its owner or founder. The rules govern the actions of everyone who is involved in the business.

Having too few rules makes it difficult for the business to self-manage and function properly without you.

This is not to say you should make so many policies that it stifles productivity or innovation. Instead, when your company operates on scant rules, conflict and chaos are bound to happen in your absence which may lead to its collapse.

Can your business survive in your absence?

PLUS: Whenever you’re ready, here are ways you can work with us in starting, growing and scaling your business:

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