Lessons from an experienced entrepreneur

My SCORE colleague, Irwin Miller, spoke at a luncheon some time ago about his long and very successful career in the pharmaceutical business in Houston. He spoke about his struggles to get started and the difficulties and many successes along the way. He concluded by identifying several key lessons based on his experience in running a successful small business.


• Hire good people. Effectively managing people is, of course, very important in running small businesses but it all starts by hiring trustworthy, hardworking, and capable people in the first place. If you don’t, you’ll spend more time doing their job than doing yours.


• Constantly improve. Irwin says, “If it’s not broken, fix it.” If it works today, it may not work tomorrow because the environment is always changing. You need the attitude that whatever is done today, can always be done better.


• Always innovate. Finding new ways of doing things is the best way to beat competition. The market rewards those who are the first to produce a new and valuable product or service.


• Put the customer first. Business starts and ends with your customers. If they feel they are your first priority they will keep coming back. Understand their needs and do everything you can to satisfy them. Satisfied customers are your most effective marketing tool and often are the best source of information for improving your business. So, ask them what you can do better.


• Take care of internal customers. Internal customers are your employees, suppliers, and service providers who are indispensable to operating a profitable business. Treat them well and they’ll spend that little extra effort to get the job done well and help you through difficult situations.



• Always keep commitments. Never let anybody down even if you have to eat some additional expense or spend some extra time to do what you promised. Your word must be golden and is essential to building a good, long-term reputation.


• Work hard. Most small businesses require a tremendous effort by the owners especially in the early going. You’ve got to attend to all the little details. Running a small business is not for the faint of heart. There will be many bumps along the road but you need to keep plowing through to succeed.


Other successful business men or women may have other key points but they won’t be too dissimilar to Irwin’s.