Pick up the key lesson from Australia’s fastest-growing SMEs

Our friends over at SmartCompany – you should really check out that Aunty B character – have just unveiled the winners of their Smart50 awards, which recognise the fastest-growing SMEs as ranked by average annual growth.

The average age of the companies is just 5.4 years and most started from home with limited capital, so there is plenty of inspiration to be found in every profile.

But reading through the stories of these businesses I was struck by how closely they are focused on their people.

Now, I know that everybody says their people are the most important thing in their world. But it’s the stories of how bad people can stop a business in its tracks that show just how important it is to hold onto your stars.

And you can’t just be nice to your employees – you have to really involve them.

I loved these comments from Jonathon Green, co-founder of eCommerce site Eljo.com.

“Listen to your staff. Give their voices the time of day,” he says.

“Whether that is issues at work, ideas to improve a system, and particularly out of work life. Always give them a reason for what they are asked to do; it helps them have a sense of ownership over a given task.

“And ALWAYS give them credit where it’s due. There is nothing worse than doing things for an unappreciative audience.”

Get it done – today!