My rockstar employee wants to start their own business doing the same thing we do 5 miles away

I've had several former employees start their own cleaning businesses over the years.

Personally, I don't get too worked up about it. Most people see the cleaning part of the business every day, but they don't see the sales, marketing, hiring, payroll, scheduling, client issues, bookkeeping, compliance, and everything else that comes with actually running a company.

A lot of the time, they're out of business within a few months once they realize what ownership really requires.

For me, the bigger concern wouldn't be that they're starting a business. It would be whether it's affecting their performance, availability, or commitment while they're still employed by you.

If they're still showing up, doing great work, and honoring their responsibilities, I'd have an honest conversation about expectations. If their business is bleeding into the workweek and impacting their role, then that's a performance issue that needs to be addressed.

Support the ambition, but protect your business.