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Tag: company growth

  • Why Growth Turns HR Into a Founder Problem

    The first thing growth takes from founders is not money. It is attention. At some point, usually earlier than expected, entrepreneurs realize they are spending more time clarifying pay, contracts, roles, and responsibilities than thinking about customers, strategy, or growth. None of these interruptions feel serious on their own. Together, they quietly slow the business down. 

    Most founders misread this moment. They assume it is a temporary mess. A side effect of hiring fast. Something that will settle once the next milestone is reached. If this feels familiar, it is because almost every growing company passes through this phase and most do not notice it until it has already changed how the business feels to run. It rarely does settle. 

    When informality stops working 

    What is actually happening is structural. Informal people systems that worked when the company was small are starting to collapse under complexity. HR has stopped being background admin and started becoming growth infrastructure. 

    Elite organizations encounter this moment early because the consequences of getting it wrong are immediate. When Arsenal Football Club, one of the world’s most recognizable soccer organizations, announced a partnership naming Deel as its official HR platform partner this week, the decision was not about branding or sponsorship. It was about control. Operating at speed, across borders, and under scrutiny requires systems that remove ambiguity before it spreads. 

    With the men’s World Cup coming to North America next year, global soccer is drawing increased attention from U.S. investors and executives. However, the relevance of this example has little to do with sport. It has to do with pressure. Organizations that operate under it cannot afford people chaos. 

    Fast-growing small and medium-sized enterprises face the same inflection point. They just experience it later and with less warning. Early on, founders are the system. They know who is paid what, who is contracted how, and which exceptions exist. Decisions are informal. Questions are answered quickly. The business moves fast because the founder holds everything together. 

    Growth changes that. Distance appears. Employment types multiply. Regulations vary. A contractor becomes an employee. Someone works from another state or country. Payroll slips once. A question arrives that no one can answer with confidence. 

    Benjamin Laker

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  • Fractional or Full-Time Help? Growing a Business Requires Founders to Know the Difference

    Hiring a team can be daunting for many founders, especially when it’s their first company. It’s like leaving your toddler with a babysitter for the first time. Trust me, I get it. One mistake can be detrimental. If you bring in the wrong person to a team, it can derail any progress made and cost you thousands in the process. That’s why hiring fractional help can be of assistance.

    Think about it like testing before buying. But when should a company seek full-time help and when is it better to go with fractional hires? There are some important factors to consider. 

    How to tell if you need help 

    If any of the following are true, you’re overdue for a hire or more. These are just a few of the main pain points.   

    • You’re replying to customer support at midnight.   
    • You’re spending more time on spreadsheets than on strategy.  
    • Your to-do list seems to be never ending.   
    • You’re managing people and projects that should be done by someone else.  

    As a CEO, when you spend too much time on work outside of your expertise, you know support of some kind is necessary. Many CEOs get stuck in the doing—managing projects, overseeing tasks, and solving immediate problems. They may be the busiest people in the business, but unfortunately that often does not translate to revenue. Hiring experts to fill your gaps is the best way to grow sustainably.  

    A few years ago, a founder contracted me to help with declining profits and “hiring problems.” Within two weeks of discovery interviews, the real picture became clear. He was spending more than 80 hours a week managing his team members and completing tasks far below his pay grade. The interesting part is that he had a team to rely on, but he didn’t have the tools to succeed with the team.  

    Consequently, he had no time to grow the company. That was the real issue. I persuaded him to bring in a fractional chief of staff and that completely transformed his organization. The CEO’s mindset shifted from reactive to proactive, and two years later, he sold the company for $2 billion.   

    Fractional versus Full-time  

    You know you need help, but you’re unsure what type. If you don’t have enough work for someone to fill the role full time, but you need the help of an expert, fractional is the way to go.   

    When I first founded my company, I hired a fractional social media expert. I am a Baby Boomer, so it is the furthest thing from my expertise. Years later, when I had the funds and many more projects to delegate, I hired a social media manager full-time. Another reason to make a fractional hire is when you simply can’t afford full-time help. Expert fractional work won’t be cheap, but it will give you an expert for less money.   

    The long-term effect   

    A mistake I see many founders make is not hiring help soon enough. Although it requires investment early on, it saves a company money in the long run.   

    Imagine you attempt to do it all yourself for the first few years. You will save cash in the short term, but it will cost you in the slowed and possibly stagnant growth of your company. One person can’t effectively do the work of many people. Also, it’s 2025. Everything moves faster than ever before, and without the proper help, you can quickly have a disaster on your hands. Instead, make a small investment now to prevent turning into one of many organizations that operate reactively rather than proactively.   

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    Carol Schultz

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  • Former RXR exec Michael O’Leary joins Tritec as CFO | Long Island Business News

    Michael O’Leary, a former executive with RXR, has joined Tritec Real Estate as its chief financial officer. 

    O’Leary spent 18 years with Uniondale-based RXR, eventually serving as executive vice president and CFO. He helped boost RXR from a $2 billion company with a staff of 80 to a $20 billion business with more than 500 employees, according to a Tritec statement. Appointed as RXR’s CFO in 2020, O’Leary directed financial management, strategic planning and investor relations, establishing the company’s Fund Portfolio Management and leading teams in capital markets, accounting and long-term strategic initiatives. 

    A certified public accountant and member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, O’Leary began his career in the Real Estate Group at Ernst & Young, managing integrated audit engagements for real estate, construction and hospitality companies. At Ronkonkoma-based Tritec, O’Leary will oversee the company’s financial strategy, planning and operations. 

    “We are thrilled to welcome Michael O’Leary to the Tritec family,” company co-founders and principals Bob Coughlan and Jim Coughlan said in the statement. “His expertise, vision, and proven leadership in guiding companies through growth and transformation will be invaluable as we continue to expand our portfolio and strengthen our position as a leader in real estate development. Michael’s addition reflects our commitment to building a team that can deliver on our mission of creating vibrant, lasting communities.” 

    O’Leary, who holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the State University of New York at Albany and an MBA from Columbia Business School, says he is excited to join Tritec. 

    “Tritec has an extraordinary legacy of building communities and creating value,” O’Leary said in the statement. “I’m honored to join Tritec at this exciting moment in its growth. I look forward to leveraging my experience to help scale the company’s financial infrastructure and support its long-term vision.” 


    David Winzelberg

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