Why Small Businesses Can Benefit from a Chief of Staff Too

Harvard Business Review published a great article about the role of Chief of Staff in the May-June 2020 issue, entitled, The Case for a Chief of Staff. I think it quite clearly outlined the responsibilities and primary duties of a Chief of Staff (CoS) for what appeared to be larger, more well-established organizations. Clearly, these behemoths can benefit from a Chief. However, I couldn’t help but wonder where does the value of the CoS role lie in a small business or start-up, or when working with a founder or entrepreneur? After all, I’ve built my career as a CoS banking on the value of the latter.

Is there a case for a Chief of Staff in a smaller organization or is it simply a superfluous position that could be eliminated from the org chart?

For the purposes of this post, let’s assume a small business is an organization that has less than 500 employees. As we know, that doesn’t mean that revenue is necessarily any less than a larger company, but just that the structural complexities of a bigger company are not always present. For example, Beyonce’s company Parkwood Entertainment reportedly employs less than 200 people, while her annual earnings are an upward of $80 Million. And Anthony Robbins Companies, a billion-dollar empire that includes over 31 companies, employs less than 500 people, according to LinkedIn. Not bad for “small” businesses.

Now, I do not know if Beyonce or Tony Robbins have a Chief of Staff, but I would argue that they should! Small business or not, those multi-passionate entrepreneurs (and many other leaders like them) have complex business and personal lives, multiple business ventures, a variety of stakeholders, and a slew of projects and agendas to push forward. Someone has to manage the flow of information so that the Principal’s time and decision-making are most effective. That person is a Chief of Staff.

While the role of Chief of Staff can vary greatly from leader to leader and organization to organization, here are a few key ways a small business can benefit from a Chief of Staff:

1. Make decision-making easier and faster. When running a small business or growing multiple companies, there is a constant flow of information, research to review, stakeholders to communicate with, and requests for the leader to weed through. In a small company, there may not be as many layers of management to act as a stop-gap before these requests or piles of research land on the leader’s desk. A Chief of Staff can make sure the right information is flowing to the right people, ask clarifying questions of the leadership team, help synthesize information and requests, and more, so that when a request or issue does make it to the top, the leader can quickly make a decision with the most pertinent information, as well as a thorough analysis of the consequences and potential outcome of each decision. This speeds up decision making so that the leader can get back to casting the vision and staying 10 steps ahead of the team.
2. Strategically structure the calendar for effectiveness. Creating more space for a leader to think, learn, be creative, solve problems, make decisions, and stay ahead of the team, company, and industry means that their time must be structured effectively for their maximum effectiveness. Creating a cadence of communication is critical – from all company meetings, to weekly leadership team memos, to weekly financial reviews, and quarterly board meetings. Being able to see across the organization (or in the case of small businesses and family enterprises, across all the projects, businesses, and philanthropic commitments) enables a Chief to organize the leader’s calendar to advance their agenda, while ensuring meetings are aligned with the leader’s long-term vision.
3. Manage important relationships. A Chief of Staff generally works directly with the CEO or Founder to build strong relationships inside and outside of the organization in order to carry out the leader’s vision, influence outcomes, and keep projects moving forward. The leadership team of a small business is usually wearing multiple hats. An effective Chief will understand which relationships are important to the leader’s agenda and the growth of the organization. They will also handle the minutia of nurturing these relationships on behalf of the leader, so that the leader can focus on the growth of the company. A Chief at a small business may not necessarily manage a particular department, but rather manage the entire company with and on behalf of the Founder or CEO.
4. Create & cultivate the culture. A Chief of Staff in a small business setting has the unique opportunity and responsibility to influence and then nurture the culture of the organization. The leader and their CoS will set the tone for how the team works, what style of leadership is employed across the organization, how the company communicates, and the values that are spoken and lived by. While the Founder or a leader of a small business may create a culture, it will be up to the Chief of Staff to formalize it and ensure it is communicated and implemented across the organization.
5. Set up and streamline administrative systems to manage the day-to-day operations of the Executive Office. A small business may or may not have multiple divisions or departments, but in most cases will have a small team of people who work next to, and/or report to, the CEO. Particularly in a small business, which would theoretically have less silos, the information flow, impromptu meetings, and general office procedures could become more entrepreneurial and less purposeful. A Chief of Staff would organize these systems (usually with a great Executive Assistant to help carry them out), while also communicating new systems and processes to the C-Suite leadership team so that decision making is easier, important relationships are managed, and the leader remains focused on their most important items.

So, does size of an organization matter when determining the need for a Chief? Ultimately, no. The key functions of a Chief mentioned above can be extremely helpful in a small business or a larger global organization. I believe it has much more to do with the scope and complexity of the Principal’s life, their passion projects, and business ventures, as well as the overall nuances of the organization(s) they lead.

Are you a small business? Could you benefit from a Chief of Staff? What additional questions do you have about the Chief of Staff role? Leave your questions in the comments and we’ll do our best to answer them below or in future blog posts!