What It Takes to Build Structure During Rapid Growth

For 20 years, Ginger Warner has helped organizations grow from startup mode into more structured, scalable businesses. As chief revenue officer of AllWater, an aquatic resource management firm based in the Southeast and headquartered in Brunswick, Ga., she focuses on a challenge many HR professionals know well: building structure without losing what made a company successful.

Along the way, she has learned that manager development and coaching are not separate from business growth; they drive it. SHRM spoke with Warner about training, coaching, and helping people adapt through change.

SHRM: You’ve spent much of your career at startups and rapidly growing companies. What draws you to that environment, and what does it mean for developing people?

Warner: I enjoy the pace. You are building the plane while it is flying, and that creates both urgency and camaraderie. Everyone has to have that mentality and that creates an exciting dynamic and also a camaraderie with the group you’re working with. 

I’ve also found it to be a place where you’re recognized for what you can do and for your abilities, not just the role you fill. In a more established organization, the scope is usually narrower. In a company that is still growing, you can help shape the structure itself.

SHRM: You’ve led training initiatives during challenging times, and startups can be challenging. How do you bring teams together around a shared goal or aspiration for an organization?

Warner: I think training is vital to keep people on the same page. At AllWater, for example, our field technicians are not just completing tasks; they are responsible for protecting the health of the ponds and lakes we service. When people understand that their job is bigger than a checklist, they start working more like stewards.

That shift changes how they work. They notice issues that are not on the list, flag concerns to clients, and act more proactively. When people understand the company’s goals and how their work supports them, the business operates more efficiently and misses fewer opportunities. 

SHRM: Before you design any training, how do you diagnose what a team actually needs to grow?

Warner: At one company, I came in during a period of remote work due to the pandemic and with new people who needed onboarding. What was missing when I came in was a clear answer to two questions: How do you fit into the bigger plan, and who else is part of it?

It’s not just about what one person does. It’s about how that work fits into the company as a whole. So I built a program that brought people in from across the business to explain their roles, where teams overlapped, and how the work connected.

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SHRM: You’ve helped organizations move from reactive, intuition-based operations to something more structured. When you’re piloting a program during a difficult period, how do you structure it to earn trust and create scalable processes out of a founder-led company?

Warner: In a founder-led company, the challenge is turning something personal and successful into something scalable. Founders are usually passionate and persuasive, and that is part of what made the business work.

But translating that to the rest of the organization is not easy. A founder may be winning on charisma, and you cannot bottle charisma. So I focus on the company’s value proposition, which made them successful in the first place, and build off that.

Then you step back and ask: Can this work without depending on one person? If not, you need repeatable processes and systems. That only works if people understand you respect what got the company here and are trying to build on it, not erase it. For me, it is less about rejecting the past than about multiplying what already works through better systems, tools, and efficiencies. 

SHRM: Have there been situations where communication and buy-in didn’t quite land with managers used to the founder-led way of doing things? How did you handle that resistance?

Warner: In many of the companies I join, the HR team is small, but they are the experts on people. During rapid growth, whether through a merger, acquisition, or startup expansion, HR should own that expertise. HR often knows where resistance may surface and who may need more support during the transition.

If somebody’s really having a hard time with something new, generally they’re frightened about being able to keep up, or being able to be successful at it. So, it may take a couple more conversations or meetings to figure out exactly what their worry is, and then how to get them to a point where they feel they can be as successful. The goal is never to run over anyone with something new. The goal is buy-in. And again, if everybody’s operatingoff the same priorities, it becomes a much easier conversation.

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SHRM: There’s a real distinction between training and coaching. Training is often a module everyone gets, while coaching is more personal. How have you seen coaching help people reach their potential?

Warner: When I think about coaching, I think about helping people get to the next level and reach their potential.

I have often seen that matter most when something in the company creates insecurity, whether that is lost business or a change in someone’s role. In those moments, coaching helps people see potential in themselves that they may not see clearly on their own.

I especially value helping women find their voice in the workplace. The industries I have worked in have been male-dominated, and that can make it harder for young women to feel confident speaking up. Helping women, or anyone, find their voice means reflecting their own capability back to them and encouraging them to use it.

Effective coaching starts with genuine belief in what a person brings to the table. In many ways, you are helping transfer that belief to them so they can move forward with confidence.