Greetings - An excellent question as we head into a new year

Posted by admin on December 17, 2009 under Uncategorized |

QUESTION, LEADING TO CONSULTATION:  “Dr. Norm, I just learned that one of our best and brightest internal sales people, I’ll call him Sean, is working with some of his friends to start a business on the side.  It is an Information Technology business, including computer services and a social networking venture.  This business doesn not compete with our manufacturing business, but I’m afraid it will compete for his time and attention.

“I’ve met with him once, and he tells me he has always wanted to be aan entrepreneur and run his own business.  This is not unlike myself around 10 years ago.  His benture looks promising, but right now, is only a cash drain.

“He’s been involved in this side business for 6 months, and as far as I can tell, his dedication and performance for us have been tremendous.

“What should I do?”

 

RESPONSE:  First of all, you and Sean need to continueyour dialog about what his plans and intentions are.  If you trust him I would suggest that you or his immediate leader meet with him to see how things are going every few weeks.

He needs to know that expectations of him will continue to be the same as they have been.  I think he also needs to knowthat starting his own business can impact how he is viewed internally, particularly with regard to future career growth.

Conceptually, compensation rewards performance and potential.  Someone like Sean, who has “one foot in and one foot out” of the company cannot be considered as a high potential person in your talent management discussions.  It sounds as though if his business “takes off”, he’ll leave.

Another consideration for you is how to manage the news internally.  There may be a variety of reactions by employees as they learn of his activities on the side.  It reminds me of how professional athletes react to a teammate who lets it be known that he wants to be traded.

Again, the best thing Sean can do to retain his position–and also to maintain reasonably good relations with fellow employees–is to demonstrate hard work, dedication and excellent results. (Sounds like a good formula for all employees, doesn’t it?)

One other thought:  assuming that Sean continues to demonstrate hard work, dedication and excellent results, you may want to at least think about the possibility of his relationship with the company changing in the future.  Probably not right away, but it may be a long, long time–if ever–before his company generates enough momentum to support his and his partners.  An option worth thinking about is that of contract employee.  This arrangement could provide short term focus on accountability, allow you to react quickly if need be, and enable the two of you to reduce his work hours if desired.

Once again, keep the conversation with Sean open and ongoing, so that you are up to date on how things are going.  It’s not too soon to start thinking about what your back-up plans for Sean would be in case he leaves.