One very difficult situation for an entrepreneur is buying an existing business, one which already has employees. One strategy I had used was to ask each employee for a resume, as if they were re-applying for the new entity or company. Why you ask, well this shows that everything is new, changing, and we are reaffirming your status here. It puts everyone on notice that this is a different management, we do things by the book, and whatever hanky panky is or was going on before, it stops now, and we are not going to point fingers - everyone starts anew with a clean slate. See that point.
The other day, I was talking with an entrepreneur who is possibly considering taking over an existing business for sale, there are a number of employees already working there, however he wasn't sure about who was the top employee, or who were dragging down the profits. What's my advice here you ask? Well, if you find yourself in similar shoes as anyone who has ever bought a used small business has, you may wish to look at the team dynamics there, one or two employees might not be pulling their weight and dragging the best employees down.
So, you might have to fire someone, or even clean house over the first few months of taking over the business. Expect this to be the case as it often is and be ready for it, even if that does not occur. You'll need a clean break or you can't fix it or reform the company your way for the best Six Sigma style efficiency you see? Further, if the former owner had hurt the business reputation in some way, you might find it can be traced back to a poor attitude amongst one or several employees towards your customers.
This can be remedied but, only if everyone is on the same page. If the old way had caused bad customer service, you don't want to continue practicing the definition of insanity; doing things the same way and expecting different results. By asking for each employee to fill out a new application and resume, everyone will get the idea, plus, you can explain they will be competing against people who wish to apply for the job. You can tell them that having experience will give them a slight edge, but nothing is guaranteed.
This is a good way to get everyone to perform their best to make that transition, so please consider all this and think on it.
Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on Business Topics. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net/
