As a CEO of a small business, the scaling process is more than numbers to you — it’s a personal matter that reflects the culmination of often years worth of dedication and trust in your long-term vision. But amid the groundbreaking changes coming to your organization, it can be all too easy to put too much on your own plate. If you’re not careful, the stress that comes with the upgrades can turn one of the most exciting prospects of your career into a test of resilience. 

BradyRenner has the unique opportunity to work closely with small business CEOs, understand the full scope of their work, and give them the tools and resources they need to put their financial growth goals into action — without becoming overwhelmed by it all. In this article, we’ll share what we’ve learned and provide forward-thinking leaders with a game plan for avoiding burnout throughout the demanding — but rewarding — scaling process. 

Scaling and the CEO 

The exciting switch from aspiration to reality that comes with scaling your small business can cause several internal challenges for even the most successful of leaders:  

• CEOs of scaling companies occupy a rapidly shifting leadership role. What was once a journey to recruit stakeholders to your vision of success and innovation becomes something else — the responsibility as key decision-maker and planner to take that now-profitable idea to the next level.

• Even if you move full-steam ahead, new product launches and other projects linked to scaling efforts may take longer than anticipated to roll out and capture the interest of your consumer base, leading to feelings of apprehension.

• Rapid progress sometimes means making important decisions about your business on the fly, with less time than usual to plan for all possible outcomes. The feeling that the path forward is unclear can be overwhelming.

• New developments on a daily basis can leave less time for you to recharge and do the things that make it possible to go after your goals each day.

You may be reflecting on your track record of managing complex business initiatives and putting out fires and think, “What’s the big deal? I do this all the time.” While it’s true that being an entrepreneur or small business owner is not for the faint of heart, the culmination of these added stressors can be daunting for CEOs — and even lead to overwhelm and burnout. 

It’s All About Perspective 

When a CEO becomes weighed down by the shifting tides of their organization, they can risk administrative problems. As the leader who represents the company’s purpose and direction, your burnout could impact employee morale. And as you take on more and more, your own productivity could lower drastically. 

But even if these dangers don’t surface, a CEO’s feelings of stress during the scaling process could cloud their perspective. You may not feel as confident in the quality of your work and ability to support staff amid the uncertainties of change. Add the (temporary) decreased ability to spend valuable time with loved ones and on personal ventures, and it’s easy to understand how the process can take a toll on your wellbeing as well as business performance. 

The Answer: Building Your Support System 

How can you circumvent these very real stressors at such a pivotal moment in your career? The answer can be found in your professional community. Having a strong network of support will help you to offload essential, yet time-consuming tasks, and provide you with a new perspective when necessary. 

With the right partners, valued leaders can avoid these repercussions and continue to thrive during the scaling process. Outsourced financial management, in particular, can help decrease the likelihood of CEO overwhelm in several key ways:

• One Less Thing: Outsourcing CPA services gives you the dual benefit of finding a trusted expert to oversee important financial services — from preparing your business for tax season to robust bookkeeping and accounting — while allowing you to remain the key decision-maker for your business’s financial matters.

• Breathing Room: A CPA firm that offers financial planning and consulting services gives you the opportunity to find financial clarity amidst change.

• Fresh Outlook: A financial expert knows how to ask the important questions to recenter your perspective on your business’s progress while scaling.

• Clear Path Forward: A CPA partner can help you strategize and implement a detailed plan for your company’s financial future, so you’ll always know which steps to take next. 

BradyRenner CPAs: Sound, Strategic Scaling  

The BradyRenner team knows the scaling process and is familiar with the stressors that our CEO partners can battle throughout this journey. As a small business providing comprehensive CPA services to the greater Baltimore-Washington region, we have a unique understanding of the scope of work involved with scaling to the next level — and years of experience creating tailored financial management experiences for our growth-driven clients. We’re ready to become the active, approachable, available, and accountable partner that makes the financial side of your business’s scaling process easier.

Contact BradyRenner’s award-winning team today for more information on outsourcing a CPA for your scaling business — and don’t miss our next article, which will explain how to avoid common hiring mistakes that CEOs make as they scale.