As sales volume expands entrepreneurial business owners find themselves hiring employees to help them as "doers", to get the work done, and "growers", to continue the expansion. They also find themselves confronted by organizational needs not required in the earlier stages of business growth. This is a result of the developmental dynamics of the business cycles.

The evolution of a business can be tracked through seven stages. Each stage is impacted by the volume of sales, as well as the organizational complexity required to support that volume. It is important for entrepreneurs to monitor the cycle their business is at and the one they are getting ready to move in to in order to be prepared for success. However, since the entrepreneurial spirit is usually more focused on creation and invention rather than administrative and organizational functions it is easily overlooked. 

Some find the answer in delegating this responsibility to a member of the management team who is more suited to monitoring and addressing these needs.
The stages and their characteristics are noted below. This information was adapted from Leadership, anagement, and Culture in High Performance Entrepreneurial Companies, Eggers/Leahy, Center for  reative Leadership, 1996.

STAGE
MAIN GOAL
CHARACTERISTICS
Conception
Creation of
business
Develop a deliverable product/service;
develop adequate customer base; create
cash to stay alive
Survival
Keep and satisfy
Customers
Break even cash flow; generate cash to
grow; develop market niche. Still vulnerable
to failure
Stabilization
Return profit
Maintain niche & customer base; eliminate
problems draining cash. Can stay here
indefinitely. Can return to Survival if
environment changes and company does
not
Growth Orientation
Becoming larger company
Develop resources and sales for growth;
develop management & internal systems for growth. If cash flow outstrips growth company may drop back to earlier stage.
Rapid Growth
Grow rapidly and finance that growth
Maintain cash and establish expense controls; increase customer base.
Professional managers may replace original founders/owners
Mature
Maintain viability & increase organizational excellence
Control financial gains & eliminate
inefficiencies; develop more professional
management, budgeting, planning and cost
systems.
Decline/Regeneration
Regenerate
business in
changing climate
Downsizing & delaying; decisions made to
please bureaucracy not customer. If it
adapts company may be returned to former
health.