The revolving doors of senior executives are just as active at Young Enterprise companies as at Fortune 500 ones.
In something of a shock move last week, StylEco decided to unseat one of their MD’s. Written warnings had been given, the HR policy had been followed and despite some dissenting voices the motion was carried. All a bit traumatic, made the more so when I discovered that the reason that MD wasn’t present was because she was at a family funeral, just after Christmas.
As their Business Advisor I was aware that some rumblings were afoot in the ranks but this is a very energetic group and getting to consensus and decision in a 1 hour meeting sometimes means calling a halt to discussion. Which can make you unpopular.
This week she appealed the decision and was voted back in with an overwhelming vote of confidence. Some things you have to nip in the bud, others are best left to play themselves out. The vote of confidence will also help both MDs re-imposed their control over the meeting and company.
As part of the learning that the mini-crisis caused, a new seating plan was enforced that helped to break up some of the noisier clusters.
The other big news on the agenda was the Valentines Trade fair in Bristol Galleries (Wed, 6 Feb if you’re in the centre of Bristol). Along with making sure they would have enough stock of their best selling eco-friendly bags and purses, they are planning on introducing two new lines – cushions and sets of fridge-magnet letter tiles made from old PC and laptop keyboards.
Quite a bit of time was spent discussing uniforms and logos (seems to be a recurring theme this year) and the meeting finally concluded with a reasonable plan in place.