Gilding the Cage: How to Keep the Good People Without Sharing Your Nest Egg (Practice‪)‬

a 47-year-old architect who owns a six-person firm in the Midwest is worried that her second-in-command is going to leave and start his own business. Her 15-year practice, which she incorporated five years ago, specializes in high-end residential remodeling, so she spends a lot of time training employees and hiring the right mix of personalities. The small office allows for a studio environment, and it's a size she feels comfortable managing. A partnership isn't part of the business plan, at least not right now. And that creates a potential problem. "I don't want this firm to be a revolving door," says the architect, speaking under the condition of anonymity. "Keeping the people I depend on is a huge challenge. It's not what I went to architecture school to learn." This scenario plays out all across the country in small- to medium-sized firms, especially in hot job markets. Large offices have multiple partners, diverse opportunities for leadership, and a clearly mapped route to the top. But firms that have decided bigger isn't better have to figure out other ways to help talented employees advance their careers--or their staff will likely move on.