The good, the bad and the entrepreneurial

I have a lot of admiration for entrepreneurs.  It can be tough and stressful road creating a business that will grow and last.

Over the last 18 years I've worked for both small entrepreneurial businesses and large established organisations.  Small entrepreneurial businesses are one of the most exciting to be involved with despite being hugely challenging.  Fresh and innovative ideas are often brought to life in a free spirited and flexible environment. 

If you look at the table at the side you'll see typical key areas listed that are associated with an entrepreneurial business, but are they all good and are some downright bad?

The answer to the above is actually quite simple.  The truth is that it depends where the business is in its life.  For new small entrepreneurial businesses the above list is common, but as the company grows it needs to develop and change.  For example, with 3 employees the above list is just fine.  Multiple the employees by a hundred to 300 and with the above list melt down will result unless there is swift change in key areas.  Here is the rub of course.  As the business grows it needs to develop and change, but making change is a painful process and gets avoided.  However, you just cannot avoid change if you want your business to grow and there are methods to make it less painful.