Supporting Business Owner Wellbeing to Improve Performance

Boosting Business Owner Wellbeing to Enhance Performance

By Pierre Dutaret, CEO and Co-Founder, Libeo

Research by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy has shown that over two-thirds of business owners, particularly those at the helm of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) or very small enterprises (VSEs), prioritise their companies’ financial success over their own mental health. The reasons for this are multifold. Firstly, considering the current economic climate and the ensuing recuperation after the crises caused by both Brexit and Covid, populations as a whole have encountered financial difficulties. Furthermore, entrepreneurs worldwide are susceptible to difficult economic conditions, often struggling to make ends meet and get their business running, particularly in the beginning stages. As such, it should not come as a surprise that financial instability can lead to mental health struggles for SME business owners.

This situation is not ideal. Business owners must protect their well-being, from a personal as well as a commercial perspective, in order to guarantee business success. When business owners and CEOs are in a sound mental state, they are better equipped to exhibit a strong leadership culture that optimises productivity, increases profitability and improves employee engagement. In addition, business owners’ well-being can directly impact the well-being of their staff. Higher employee engagement often leads to higher productivity, meaning that from a business standpoint, it is in business owners’ best interest to prioritise their well-being and mental health.

One of the most significant challenges to any business owner, particularly when it comes to SMEs and VSEs, is financial stability. Getting a business off the ground, gaining traction against competitors and establishing a reputation among clients is not an easy feat. Entrepreneurs must ensure they have the financial capacities to achieve this. Reputation is one of the biggest factors that entrepreneurs must keep in mind and which can make or break a company. When it comes to companies’ finances, any mistake or unforeseen circumstance can cause significant financial losses, not to mention other indirect costs which may come about, for example, due to unpaid invoices to suppliers. Such cases may cause further reputational costs to companies, who will have to mitigate them so as not to detract consumers from procuring their products or services.

Inefficient time management is another factor that can cause mental burdens for business owners. For business owners to focus on more pertinent matters, processes must be made more efficient. Business owners can do this by employing automation and digitisation for small and time-consuming tasks which can be performed by a machine or algorithm, enabling workers to focus their time on human-centric, qualitative tasks that a machine would not achieve. Tasks such as data entry and filing are subject to human error. Outsourcing these tasks to digital tools would offer company owners greater security that they will be performed precisely and accurately. In addition, the precision afforded by automation creates greater financial stability, allowing business owners to manage cash flow proactively, knowing how much money will be coming in or out in a given timeframe. Such stability mitigates or even eliminates potential reputational costs involved with mistakes or unforeseen circumstances which may come about, allowing entrepreneurs to navigate their business with ease.

Research shows that, on average, companies and employees can lose up to 4 days a month on tasks such as invoicing and data entry, alongside increased stress. When quantified, it is incredible to think about what else could be achieved, especially regarding employee engagement and business strategy. More efficient time management and stability can also lead to a healthy balance between business owners’ and employees’ personal and professional lives. Rather than working long nights and weekends to finish arduous and repetitive tasks, having time allocated explicitly for work and personal matters allows business owners to engage with their products and services with a clear mind and sharp focus. Implementing strategic timelines significantly reduces monotonous workloads and dedicates more time to building a strong company culture and growth.

Businesses are more likely to succeed when CEOs are in a healthy state of mind, empowering them and their employees to think creatively, engage with products and services with a critical focus and incentivise employees to do so as well. Through harnessing digital innovation, business owners can focus on the things that matter – reducing time spent worrying about making ends meet at the end of the month or having enough time to devise new growth strategies while completing other tasks at hand. Moreover, using tools that automate time-consuming processes can greatly aid business owners in giving them the security to complete tasks accurately and in a timely fashion.