Key Takeaways:
– Most businesses in the U.S. are considered small businesses.
– Nearly half of all Americans are employed by small businesses.
– Many small businesses have teams of less than 20 people, offering little cross-coverage of necessary skills.
– Investing in the knowledge and skill set of your employees protects your business from the risks of increased turnover currently affecting small businesses.
Small businesses are forces to be reckoned with. Even with tiny teams, they are able to develop innovative products, offer excellent service, and generally thrive. But because of the tight-knit nature of small business teams, each team member has to wear many hats, with each person owning their own skill set to keep the growth going.
That brings its own set of vulnerabilities that are heightened by our current economy and job market trends.
How Many People Do Small Businesses Employ?
Small Business Stats in the United States
Small businesses are often depicted as underdogs – and we certainly are when retail giants like Amazon are dominating markets everywhere – but there are a surprising number of us in the U.S. In fact, 99.9 percent of all U.S. businesses are small businesses, according to Pie Insurance. And on top of that, almost half of all Americans are employed by small businesses.
It’s no wonder shopping small is a passionate point for so many of us!
Yet with all those businesses and all those hardworking people, most small businesses are working with relative skeleton crews to accomplish their goals.
88.1% of small businesses have fewer than 20 employees.
– JP Morgan Chase
It’s impressive to see small and mighty teams taking on the high demands of a growing business, but there are risks associated with tiny teams carrying large workloads.
Small Businesses & The Great Resignation
Current Turnover in Small Businesses
We’re in the midst of “The Great Resignation,” wherein employees are leaving their jobs en masse. Whether it be because of stress, renewed awareness of their off-kilter work-life balance due to COVID, or a desire for more than their current position offers, employees are taking matters into their own hands. It’s a movement that is impacting companies of all sizes, though some are rebounding faster than others.
Small businesses are seeing higher turnover rates right now than bigger businesses, for example.
And with so many teams under 20 people, you’ll need to be careful that you have enough skill redundancies on your team to keep projects moving if one or more of your employees opt to leave.
While smaller businesses have gained ground in hiring, they are also experiencing an increase in turnover. The survey shows a rise in resignations for smaller companies as employees seek retirement or new opportunities that fit their needs. Sixty-seven percent of employees are voluntarily leaving smaller businesses compared to 61% leaving larger companies.
– Principal Financial Group
Spotting Skill Gaps & Creating Cohesive Teams
Letting each team member own their role may seem like the most efficient way to disperse the workload, but it also puts a lot of pressure on each employee. As the only person capable of completing a particular type of task, a single employee may feel overwhelmed or unable to ask for help. Don’t let this happen!
Give your entire team a chance to understand the work that needs to be done within your business. When multiple people know how to manage your social media, dive into the data, and keep up with your marketing, you earn a slew of benefits for your team including:
- Cross Coverage – If someone’s out sick, a project doesn’t need to stall. Another trained-up team member can step in to keep tasks on track until their colleague gets back – without causing costly mistakes due to skills gaps. You can still empower one team member to take the lead, but protect yourself from pitfalls.
- More Innovation – With multiple minds approaching each problem, your team will be able to devise solutions that work across channels and across departments. They may even come up with ideas that advance your business beyond the basics into new, innovative territory.
- Employee Retention – Investing in your employees shows them that you care about their longevity in your company. And thanks to cross coverage, they can even take well-deserved vacations to recover from burnout and come back refreshed! All the more reason to love working for you.
Each individual has unique gifts, and talents and skills. When we bring them to the table and share them for a common purpose, it can give companies a real competitive advantage.
John J. Murphy, author of Pulling Together: 10 Rules for High-Performance Teamwork.
Skill Up Your Business
Give your team the guidance they need to continue thriving in the modern market. Whether it’s a few training sessions here and there, or hiring our team to take over some of the tasks your employees are struggling with, we are happy to help in any way that keeps you going.
