GrubHubMike

9 tools for growing a startup from 1 to 50 employees

 Here is a roundup of 9 tools for growing a company from 1 to 50 employees:

Tool #1: Revenue.  Apparently there are business models that are proponents of not making money right away, but I don't get them.  Cash allows an entrepreneur to hire people and resources to get things done.  At first it is all about increasing velocity on the sales -> product -> sales cycle.  Successfully executing that cycle then requires supporting activities... billing,finance,IT infrastructure, etc

The Third Office (50 employees)

 This is the eighth installment in my series on going from 1 to 50 employees.

We outgrew our 2nd office in 18 months when we went from 15 people to 50.  Two things have changed about the nature of the business during this latest evolution.  First, instead of being very scrappy with cash, we've loosened the purse strings.  Second,  vendor relationships have become much more important.

Winter Camping in Manistee

I take a trip to Manistee, MI every January for a fricking cold winter camping extravaganza.  Getting away from work and everything for a couple of days is great.  The snow was so deep this year that it was a serious grind to get the 10.5 miles to the campsite.  Day 2 was tough, another 10 miles back to the car.  Best part was: I didn't think about work all weekend.  Here is a video of the trip:

Promoting People (35 employees)

 This is the seventh installment in my series on going from 1 to 50 employees.

My view on management hierarchy underwent a 180 degree flip at around 35 employees.  For a long time I had been a big proponent of "We don't need managers and hierarchy, a flat organization works a lot better."  All well and good, but when you get above 15 people asking you for direction, you become pretty much useless to all of them.