Delegate the Pace for Smarter Business Management

…And I will give you a clue, it is not you!

Lots of conversations over the last few weeks with our founders on the subject of ideal growth rates and sustainable pace. The re-realisation I have come to is that founders are seldom the best person to set the organsational pace for a number of reasons

You work in sprints, you work irregular hours, and you push harder as you have more to gain and more to lose.

For these reasons you aren’t going to be the ideal pace setter for the wider team, as a pace setter needs to be consistent, to be predictable and metronomic around the level of input.

Reframe: Frog boiling

Remember the way to boil a frog is to gradually turn up the heat. Too much heat too early and they jump out. Likewise you need to think about the slowest pace acceptable, that will achieve the desired outcome, in the time frame you require.

Most elite races - whether we are talking 100m or marathons - are won not by the person with the highest top speed but by the athlete that slows down the least.

Setting the expectations slightly ahead of the current capacity and previous outputs is a good baseline to work from here.

Rethink:

The ideal pace setters will have a proven track record of achieving deadlines and delivering on outcomes. They will be the person that others can rely upon, they will have respect within the team and they are an excellent motivator..

Who fits those criteria in your team?

Some of our clients bring an MD in to be the pace setter as part of their role, so will allocate this accountability to their lead operations person and someone will use a project manager/scrum master. It’s more about their attributes and ability to influence.

This is the person that runs the daily stand ups, the weekly check-ins and monthly review meetings.

Refocus: Brief them well and
then get out of their way

Your role here is simple. Let them know your expectations, listen to their counter suggestions, and then agree on a level which works enough for all.

Agree what the minimum level of acceptable outputs (client hours, sales, turnover, new leads, etc) and then let them work with the team on the best way to achieve this in a sustainable way.

Yes there will be periods during the year where they will need to work above the agreed pace and there will also be periods for other reasons where they will operate at a lower level, the key is the average over a given period. Consistency of inputs is what generates the desired outputs.

Your role then becomes part mentor, part sounding-board and part solution generator (but only on request).

Handing over accountability for being the pace setter / company metronome, enables you more space and time to be the creative builder that you love to be, and the company needs you to be.

It’s time to build a leadership team that doesn’t just support your business — they lead it.

Ready to take the first step? Start here →