Entrepreneurship, first and foremost, is all about proper handling of the people in the workplace. An enterprise is built on people-to-people relationship and when an entrepreneur inculcates good values in his people – integrity, hard work and dedication – the end result will be a successful venture.
Personally, I want every one of my people to be happy with me. If you are not happy with me, then your work will not be good. You do not belong with me.
But a happy person – a mechanic, a machine operator, a supervisor, or even whole departments or units – will make happy products that will deliver the desired results. And excellent products attract good customers.
Doing business, for me, is an enjoyable experience. It gives the entrepreneurs the opportunity to make a lot of people happy and make money of his own at the same time. This can be a rare and wonderful experience.
Forget about one-time deals or the fast buck. Business is something done repeatedly and the more repetitions, the happier the customer becomes. That sense of happiness cascades, reinforcing the desire in the entrepreneur to be in business because he is happy doing it each time around.
I am not one to look over the shoulders of a subordinate to check if he is doing things right. It’s my way of sparing myself from the failings of a worker or a manager. I can be consulted for some advice but I expect the person to already have options on hand when he comes up to me.
I have no need for cry babies and am not afraid to make difficult decisions. But as a people-oriented executive, I feel that terminating an employee ranks among the toughest aspects of a chief executive’s job.
I have axed a few, including key people. That is a difficult and unhappy task.
By: Francis Laurel
President YKK Philippines
(From Doers, Dreamers, Risktakers, Part 4 – Iskolar ng bayan gives back, the enterprising way, published by SERDEF and UP ISSI)