By Marang Marekimane, founder of Business in Theory

We rely so much on the people we work with that losing a team member can be difficult to imagine. Studies show that the more you empower your staff, the less you worry about losing them. How do you do that on a tight entrepreneur’s budget?

Neglect to empower your team and you will lose them

As entrepreneurs, when we first start out in business our families are often our first recruits. Then we employ from the community. While on the journey of building a business, it’s important to consider how you empower your team as it will influence its growth. Empower them and you will grow the family, the community and the business.

Teach them a skill

I was once asked why I focus on documenting business processes and not building systems? My answer, “Documenting a process and sharing it with the team teaches the next person how to do something. They learn a skill. This will ultimately close the poverty gap”. Most of us start with a small team - often one that is not highly skilled, but is available. The key to growing your business lies in skills development. Most people use the “show and tell” method. However, these people are also frustrated that they do not have enough hours in a day and as a result, they’ve also become micro-managers. Entrepreneurs that use process guides, spend less time looking over shoulders and more time managing growth.

Do not worry if you lose them

Young people are more likely to work with you to grow the business and to contribute towards building a legacy. If they decide not to work with you for the long-term, you will still have taught them how to start and build on their own. It''s important to transfer skills to your team. In the long run, they might become potential shareholders, managers or franchisees. If they decide otherwise, they’ll still have a great resume, earn better at the next job, and have a better chance of fighting poverty. Add systems to the business and you will not have to worry about losing a team. The next person can learn from the process guide.

So the lesson is that if you neglect to empower your team members you will lose them. Empower them and you won’t have to worry about losing them.

Marang Marekimane is the Founder and Chief Executive Office of Business In Theory, a South African company that assists entrepreneurs to formulate growth strategies and improve business processes. Marang also hosts workshops for entrepreneurs to define or review their business model and on how to implement and improve business processes. After spending more than a decade in the corporate sector working for major corporations such as Liberty, First National Bank (FNB) and Standard Bank, Marang now uses her knowledge and experience to articulate her insight of business development into turnkey solutions that improve the sustainability of small and medium enterprises.