Most new managers at startups are responsible for both IC tasks and management work which many experience as a tricky balancing act. In addition, startup employees tend to wear many more hats and more ambiguous and faster-changing roles and responsibilities than employees at bigger corporations. Considering these different demands, leaders at startups need to quickly learn how to prioritize their own work and help their team get clear on their ever-changing priorities.

It can be a difficult balancing act for managers in a fast-growing startup to foster innovation while maintaining the startup culture. No doubt, there are many startup characteristics that lead to its initial success, and those traits are important to maintain as the startup grows. But as time goes on, it may be difficult for managers to continue moving the company forward, embracing growth and change, while still maintaining that initial magic feeling of being a startup.

Many first-time managers at fast-growing startups often find themselves all of a sudden in a leadership role because the team grows suddenly. Because of the rapid growth the startup experiences, they may skip leadership training. But that’s a big and costly mistake. For example, new managers often struggle with handling conflicts among team members or giving tough feedback because it’s the first time they have to do this. It’s important to be properly equipped with tools that help these types of conversations go smoothly so that it creates more synergy not decreased efficiency and disengagement among the team.

As a new startup, there are often countless tasks that need attention all at one time. This can create a sense of overwhelm for many, especially a first-time manager. Not only do they face the challenges of managing their own burnout but they also have to prioritize the well-being of their team amidst the fast-paced and demanding startup environment.

Organizational structures at every company are dynamic and fluid, always changing and evolving. However, at a fast-growing startup, the organizational structure will not only change faster, but those ripples of change will permeate throughout the smaller teams stronger. Imagine a marketing team of three people that loses a team member due to personal reasons. Not only will all those duties need to be reassigned to the remaining 2 members, but the manager will also be faced with attracting and hiring a new member of the team while trying to retain everyone else. During periods of leadership transitions or restructuring, it’s important to maintain employee morale and keep expectations realistic when it comes to workloads.

With so many projects requiring the manager’s attention, it is key to find the right balance between achieving short-term goals while aligning the team’s efforts with the long-term vision and impact of the company. It’s important for new managers to know which tasks and projects will align with both and not be a distraction. In addition, it’s important to recognize that timing plays a key part here as well; knowing which fires to put out at the right times and which ones to let burn temporarily is a critical piece of managing a high-performing team in a fast-growing startup.

It is imperative that messages are conveyed with clarity in the startup phase because time is of the essence in order to grow quickly. New managers need strong verbal and nonverbal skills in order to ensure clarity, transparency, and efficient information flow within the team and across the organization. This not only means that the team has to be cohesive but that the manager needs to equip them with tools that help them communicate effectively. This doesn’t just mean with email or messaging apps. Using project management tools, such as ClickUp for example, can expedite the communication of a team on a project and allows the manager to give direct feedback each step of the way.

One of the biggest challenges a fast-growing startup may face is the limited resources and budgets. New managers must make strategic decisions to maximize the impact of available resources, drive growth, and be prepared to do so quickly and efficiently. Being able to make sound decisions without overanalyzing them or suffering from analysis paralysis plays a key part in the success of the managers’ ability to keep the project and organization moving forward.