The uncomfortable question: Does your MT still fit tomorrow?
In this article:
- In practice: when growth falters
- When your MT no longer fits the future
- Investing too late or too early: both are risky
- 5 signs that you are late
- Why one new director won’t solve it
- Your action plan: 8 concrete steps
From practice: as growth accelerates
At a manufacturing company with 76 employees, we saw how growth was faster than leadership. A private equity club had stepped in with one goal: to professionalize and scale. The MT of four managers, all advanced from operations, had an average of 19 employees per person under them – far too broad to manage effectively.
Two acquisitions created mostly culture clashes. Different systems, different ways of working, no synergy. Attrition was high, especially in sales. Managers kept putting out fires instead of building structure, simply because they didn’t know how. The assessment results were confronting: all operationally strong, but without strategic capabilities.
These types of situations do not arise abruptly. They creep in – to the point where behavior, results and culture clearly show that the organization has moved into the next phase, while leadership has not yet sufficiently grown into it.
Which managers fit the future?
The most important question growing organizations must ask is: Do our current managers fit the future of our business? Not with today – with tomorrow. What does the next phase of growth require of leadership? What responsibilities do they involve? And what competencies are really needed then?
A person can function excellently today and get stuck tomorrow, simply because the game changes. The stage determines what capabilities are needed: from operationally strong to tactically skilled, from tactically skilled to strategically thinking. Putting managers along the bar of the future reveals early on who can and wants to advance – and who is in danger of falling into a role that is growing too large unnoticed.
It is fairer to the organization as well as to the manager himself. After all, no one thrives in a role that no longer actually fits their talent, ambition or natural style.
– Vivanne Geurtz
From collaborating to directing
In many SME organizations, managers grow with you out of loyalty, commitment and experience. They know the operation inside out, and that is valuable. But as soon as a company enters the next phase of growth, their task changes fundamentally. Leadership is then no longer about solving problems themselves, but about giving direction and making others better at their jobs. From collaborating to developing. From thinking along to making choices. From putting out fires to building structures that prevent fires.
That requires distance, overview and the ability to allow teams to function independently. And it also requires something personal: letting go of how you’ve always done things. Not everyone is comfortable with that shift. Not everyone can do it. And not everyone wants it. Growth requires not only more hands, but also different behavior. That’s where it often chafes first.
5 signs that you are late
From experience with dozens of SMEs, I see that leadership is often invested too late. Not because entrepreneurs don’t see it, but because the organization has been running well for a long time and signals are easily explained as “busyness” or “phase.” Yet the signals are often clear: departments that are not moving in the same direction, managers with a span of control of 15 to 20 employees, strategic projects that linger for months.
The outflow is rising. Not because the pay is better elsewhere, but because people have lost direction. You lose your best people to chaos that could have been avoided. Acquired companies are still each using their own systems, with no synergy. A culture that frays. When these signals come together, leadership investment becomes not a luxury but a necessary step to enable further growth.
The water head: too heavy too soon
On the contrary, sometimes they invest too early in heavy leaders, strategic profiles or extensive layers of management. The idea makes sense: “If we want to grow, we have to professionalize.” But without a solid foundation, it backfires.
So when is an organization “sufficiently mature” for strategic roles? Especially when the basics are in place: processes are clear, responsibilities are clear, teams know what their mission is, and day-to-day operations are running without one or two key people having to keep everything afloat. Only then can strategic leadership really add value.
If that bottom layer is still shaky, a water head emerges: lots of plans, little execution. Then managers think about the future, while the organization is still barely structured today. The result? Ambition frustrates. Energy leaks away. And growth slows down instead of accelerating.
Why good plans fail anyway
Fortunately, we also see organizations that do anticipate in a timely manner. At a technical company, a new generation took over and immediately looked ahead. Where do we want to go? What skills will we need in three years? She mapped out the entire organizational structure, determined what profiles were needed and even started to anticipate a heavier commercial position that would be needed later.
The plan was strong. But even here countervailing forces were at play: dropouts in sales, acute customer demands, peak traffic. Professionalization kept shifting. Six months later, the plans were still there, but the execution was not. This makes it clear that being on time is not only about insight, but especially about actually executing – even when the delusion of the day demands all the attention.
One new director won't solve it
When growth begins to chafe, organizations often look externally for a new director or MT member to “fix it.” It sounds logical: bring in someone with experience, vision and structure. But one external leader can never compensate for years in which the organization has not grown with it. That person has to determine strategy, sharpen processes, strengthen culture and develop the MT – all at the same time, while not knowing the organization very well.
Moreover, sometimes the least controversial candidate is chosen instead of the best fit. Someone from the current MT, for example, because he “knows the market” and “has experience. But market knowledge does not compensate for missing strategic capabilities. Then the choice is driven by what feels comfortable, not what is needed. Professionalizing requires a broader view: on collaboration, structure and the entire leadership system.
From practice: the market is changing
Sometimes it is not the phase of growth that changes, but the world around you. At a coatings company, the entrepreneur had never had to think about commercial strategy for thirty years. Customers found him naturally, his technical quality spoke for itself, agreements were kept. But when competitors in Asia started making the same products, the game changed. Customers suddenly had a choice.
The entrepreneur was honest: ‘I don’t have a clue. It’s not my thing.’ He was a doer, a risk-taker, someone with entrepreneurial blood – but not a strategist. Now that he was going to sell the company to an investor, his successor had to be able to implement that commercial strategy. Because what worked for thirty years won’t work tomorrow.
Your action plan: 8 concrete steps
What can you do to future-proof your MT?
- Determine your growth stage.
Where is the company now, and where do you want to be in two to three years? - Make management roles concrete.
What does this phase really require of your leaders? What will change? - Put your MT next to the future bar.
Look not only at performance now, but at potential and motivation. - Check the basics.
Are processes and responsibilities stable enough for strategic functions? - Evaluate span of control.
Guideline: 10-15 employees per supervisor works best. - Invest specifically.
Consider leadership training, strategic training or individual coaching. - Discuss who still fits in which role.
Who will fit in later? Who will not? And who can – and will – grow? - Organize an outside view.
Sometimes you can’t see for yourself where things falter. That’s normal – and solvable.
The engine behind healthy growth
What hurts growing organizations the most is that busyness obscures the view of development. The operation wins out over the important. But growing requires looking ahead – structurally, not incidentally. No one comes to warn you that you are almost too late. That insight must come from within the organization itself. Leadership development is not an afterthought; it drives healthy growth.
It requires honesty and self-reflection: what phase is coming, what does that phase require of us, and which leaders fit the bill? The organizations that dare to ask these questions in time are also those that grow into their next chapter with peace, direction and confidence.
Start next week: Schedule a two-hour MT session. One central question: does our current leadership fit the phase ahead? Go through the eight steps under “Your Plan of Action. Not to have immediate answers, but to see if you envision the same future. That honesty determines whether growth energizes – or eats away.
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