How do you stay close to your team when you’re leading more than 600 people?

Being close to a team of 600 people…

Wow!A megaphone.How do you stay close to your team when your team has more than 600 people?

Well, there are several points here, right? How to stay close?

First of all, I've always been a very approachable leader.

It's true that the team has grown a lot over the last five years,in this case at Factorial.

When I first joined Factorial, there were only five of us in the sales team. And today I lead a team of 600 people.

I'm someone who likes staying close to the team so I always make sure to be around them.

I'm not someone who likes to be locked in an office,unless I have a meeting or an interview.

There are no barriers.I try to move around the different teams in the office.

Over this time,it's true that as you grow as a leader,you start to feel what's often called "the loneliness of leadership".

You need that closeness with the teams,besides trying to find ways to talk with them to understand what's going on.

I think they also appreciate it when you get closer to them,they see you as more approachable.

They don't see you as someone at the top of an org chart with 600 people below.

I like people to know me, and I love getting to know them too.

I like running into new people in the cafeteria,having a coffee with them asking: "Hey, which team are you on?" and introducing myself.

So I try to stay close to the team in this way, even though obviously,I'm sure many managers feel the same, as you move up the org chart,you start to feel more of that "leader's loneliness." So then, you have two choices:either stay on your own or get closer to the team.

What about hierarchy?You say that anyone can talk to you,but it could be someone several managers below you,you're not their direct manager.

What happens in these cases?If someone comes to you with their problems...

Well, when I joined Factorial back in 2020,the company had about 35 or 40 people,I can't remember exactly,but somewhere around that, and the sales team,where I started, was basically just five of us.

There were five of us working on expanding the Spanish market,which had already been previously opened,and one person who also spoke English and French started opening up the French market.

And we saw a niche, basically an opportunity to expand our services,and help thousands of companies,because there really weren't any businesses focused on helping these small companies,their managers and to have more time for its people,the most valuable asset of a company,what really matters.

We had a great response, so we began expanding into new markets.

In 2021, we decided to open, along with Spain and France,Portugal, Italy, the UK, and Germany.

We decided to expand into Mexico, and because we were already in Portugal,we also got a lot of opportunities coming from Brazil.

So, we decided to open Brazil.We went from being a sales team of five people to a team of 300–350 people in sales alone, which is what we are today.

And from day one, my door has always been open.For me, in a company like Factorial,there's an org chart but that doesn't mean you can't talk to the person at the top.

But it also doesn't mean that people,both they and I,can skip that hierarchy.

That means my door is always open. I like to understand and listen to people who may have a specific problem.

And if they come to me, it's for a reason.Depending on the situation, I either support them directly or encourage them to be brave enough to talk to their manager first and make sure they understand the issue.

The solution is there.So, my doors are open, but I would never skip the person below me,and I believe I have to encourage that person to speak up and be brave enough to express what's worrying them and why they're telling me about it instead of their direct manager.

So, it's kind of my way of seeing life.