Is Growth for Everyone?

Editor's Note: For more perspective on this question, check out the AIA Practice Management home page and scroll down to view the October 2012 webinar Best Practices in Business Development, presented by Karen Compton.

"Can a small firm with no plans to grow expect to survive?"

This is a wonderful question. Firm success begins with an understanding of the end game. If you are clear that your culture is to remain a small family-like firm, then embrace it and success will still be yours!

Growth is not a strategy for everyone. The monikers of your success will be in the ability to identify, cultivate, and deliver to clients who want, appreciate and respect YOUR value. So, what does this mean for staff?

1. They must be clear on the clients you service and the niche you provide. For the market sector you’re in, staff must be clear on what a client wants, needs and expects from your firm's culture.

2. They must be clear that “the buck stops with them” and more importantly, they must be empowered to take responsibility.

3. You must mentor them, not just on design, but on business. In a small firm, mentorship is key. Adopt a Shadows Program, where others can shadow not only your design decisions, but your business decisions. It is important in a small firm that everyone understands where and how you make and lose money.

4. Finally, embrace failure. Yep! I said it. Staff will make mistakes, and in a large firm you can hide. But, not in a small firm. So, create a safety net for failure—not by chastising, but by seeking what could/should have been done differently. Success is yours regardless of size.

Karen Compton, CPSM. Published in the September 2012 issue of Professional Services Management Journal. Karen Compton is principal of A3K Consulting (Glendale, CA), a business development and strategic planning firm specializing in the architecture, engineering and construction industries. Ms. Compton is also the founder of Industry Speaks™, a web-based business-to-business portal that connects AEC firms with experienced consultants, provides peer reviews of consultants, reports on key industry trends, and publishes expert reviews of professional courses and books. Contact her at kcompton@a3kconsulting.com.