Management Habits That Do Not Scale as a Company Grows
What worked at 20 people can quietly break at 200. One of the first habits to break is how you choose your managers.
A common management habit that does not scale is choosing managers based on who executives see and like. Past about 50 people, leaders lose sight of who actually strengthens each team, so familiarity starts to reward proximity instead of leadership. A better approach is to ask the team, without naming the applicants, who they already see as their leader.
In a small company, executives see everyone work every day. Picking managers based on who they know and trust works reasonably well. Past about 50 people, that visibility disappears.
Familiarity starts rewarding the people who are close to leadership rather than the people who make their teams better.
Habits to replace as you grow
- Picking by familiarity. Replace with team input.
- Promoting by tenure. Tenure is not the test.
- Deciding in a single interview. Look at the last year.
- Informal expectations. Write them down.
- Founder-only decisions. Build decision rights.
Ask the team
When I promote, I still post the opening and interview applicants. I also ask the team, without saying who applied, who they already see as their leader and who makes the team better. The team sees the last year more clearly than any interview. Once, the team’s answer pointed to someone newer than the other applicants, and that person got the role.
Tenure is not the test
Years in the seat do not prove someone can lead. Look for the person who already develops the people around them, with or without a title. See How to Decide Who to Promote.
Make informal habits deliberate
Informal habits that worked at 20 people need a deliberate process at 200. Write down expectations, decision rights and how promotions happen, so growth does not depend on who happens to be in the room.
I shared this in Forbes: Informal Practices in a Growing Business. Developing leaders is the focus of You Are Capable of More: Leadership.
Choosing managers by executive familiarity stops working past about 50 people. Ask the team who they already see as their leader, look at the last year rather than one interview, do not treat tenure as the test and turn informal habits into deliberate processes.
Frequently asked questions
What management habits do not scale?
How should growing companies choose managers?
When do informal practices stop working?
Should tenure decide promotions?
You Are Capable of More
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Chris Sund speaks on this in You Are Capable of More: Leadership, for conferences, leadership teams and company meetings.
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