Business metamorphoses: the Enterpriser and the Manager

1. Giving birth to an idea – putting it into practice – developing the idea – then moving on to something new – this is the way the Enterpriser lives. Being a risky, active and open to new ideas person who quickly catches on fresh conceptions, the Enterpriser is able to generate any, impossible at first sight, ideas and make a reality of them.
2. Structure or chaos – understanding of the situation – management – augmenting – these things make up the life of the waged Manager, who is also an active but cautious person, and whose efforts are mainly aimed at the stabilization of the existing business rather than at creating something new.

On the face of it, these two strategies or approaches are absolutely different. However, at a certain time point it is very important that they should meet and work together for the mutual cause and benefit.

When a new business or company is formed, the Enterpriser’s approach is focused on giving the ripe idea a “new life”, on putting into practice what was previously on paper, on organizing a team of people who would have common interest in their business and belief in its success. It is necessary for the Enterpriser to “launch the mechanism” and to get real results which would provide the company’s well-being. Suppose everything goes well, the company grows, there is an increase in turnover, and part of the business becomes quite stable, well-established and predictable. At that moment the Enterpriser with his or her desire of novelty, competitive spirit and adventurism starts to feel constrained. It is time now not only to develop the business relying on intuition, but also to hold the achieved positions, to take into consideration market tendencies, and to possess the sort of knowledge and experience which would be indispensable for managing the “big and serious machine” that the business has become.

Who is needed now is an expert in business, a person able to maintain the work of the company at a high level and increase the turnover without taking unnecessary risks – in other words, the Manager. There are two options for the Enterpriser – either buckle to getting a special education and regard the company from the point of view of a manager but not owner, or hire a manager – an intelligent and experienced person who has a subtle perception of the situation and is result-oriented. However, the latter is not that simple.

Practice makes it clear that the more new manager resembles the owner (has adventurism, passion, and craves for novelties), the less efficient he/she is. Little will change in this case as the Enterpriser’s approach still dominates. But the person like this has better chance to take and hold the position. And vice versa, the less the Manager resembles the owner, the more managerial his approach is and, consequently, the more beneficial he is for the company. But such a person has much fewer chances to come to an understanding with the owner, because people usually have a tendency to surround themselves with their like.

The Manager has also his share of difficulties: he has made a successful career and now he feels responsible for the company and the people working in it. In the course of his professional growth he has developed such characteristic properties as the ability to control himself and the environment, the ability to make serious decisions and respond for them.

He knows how to deal with big capitals and how to organize the team work. He has a new vision of the company’s opportunities and prospect, but for some reasons it is impossible to make them real within the frames of his present engagement. He, in turn, starts feeling constrained. A person of his rank, with all the knowledge and experience, may be disappointed by inability to apply these in to the full. “Coming onto the market”, The Manager realizes that all the company can offer does not match either the level or the scale of the market, and certainly cannot match his managing ambitions.

Again, there are two options. One is, if a manager is strong, optimistic, confident, and reasonably passionate, to start his own business where his authority would be irrefutable. The statistics of the Stockholm School of Economics shows that the number of people who make this decision ranges from 10% to 20% in every group. The other is to hold a higher position, for example, to become a member of the Board, and to deal with further strategic development of the company rather than with its operations. He wants to be free and powerful enough to make cornerstone decisions. However, it is not usually possible for a person of a different nationality to join the Board of Directors of a foreign company. In Russian companies the positions in the Board are usually taken by the shareholders or business partners, so it is equally difficult for the Manager to carve his way there. Either the information on such openings reaches someone but not us, or reaches no one. Maybe a friendship with a “good” headhunter could help.

Some people turn to consulting. Knowledge of a certain industry, professionalism and wealth of experience give them a chance to promote their careers. On average, 15% of the SSE graduates follow this path.

However, not everybody is ready for such fundamental changes in life and career. And then a rapidly growing Russian company, wishing to switch to another field but keep control on existing stable business, becomes a really attractive opportunity for the Manager.

In this position, the Manager can apply all his knowledge, vigor and experience to cope with lack of order and make the organism mature, steadfast and strong. The must for a modern manager includes the experience of working for big, influential companies and involvement in different projects, the ability to develop and introduce new, advanced systems of management; the skills in regulating business process and building a team of result-oriented associates. This must be a person whose self-discipline, self-motivation and charisma make him a real leader. And his ability to be a good learner is also of vital importance. In terms of education, it is necessary to mention that his personal flexibility and adjustability to changing conditions count even more than his professional skills. This person ought not to “bring coals to Newcastle”, he should be aware of the corporative culture of the given company; he must know how to introduce the systems of more advanced management step by step. The latter may be hard for a specialist, as the first impulse is usually to rearrange everything in your own mode and vision.

It is difficult both for the Enterpriser and the Manager to be always consistent, reliable and wise in making decisions and in setting goals. This is where the cooperative work and joint effort are very important. These will help you fall those 40% (which is not that unlikely!) and still remain yourself.

According to American statistics, 60% of general directors, who were the first to follow the owners in managing companies, leave the position after just one year of work, because, having failed to achieve mutual understanding, they could not reach an agreement with the owner and could not change the course of affairs. The second general director has usually more luck, and, as a rule, his management suits everybody. He is conservative to a certain extent, logical, predictable, and focused on current situation. This person is exactly what the company needs.