family-business-succession-planning

Behaviors and attitudes extend beyond the business.  How you treat people correlates to their positive or negative involvement with you, your business, and your brand.

Following are simple questions to identify the impressions you are creating:

  • Have you created a culture where everyone is encouraged, respected, and provided growth opportunities?
  • Do family dynamics enter the business, or is it respected and treated as a professional environment?

Suppose your answer is YES, to both of these questions. In that case, the environment you have cultivated is evident amongst highly engaged, empowered, and passionate employees, all of whom act as champions for you as family members enter.

If the answer is NO, or you are unsure, you have a bit of work.  But, the good news is that it is doable!  First, you have to be intentional and invest in creating a more positive and inviting culture.  To do this, you can start with the four E’s focused on both your family and employees:

  • Express how much you enjoy the business
  • Explain why you started the business and what keeps you in it
  • Expose your family to managers, employees, vendors, and customers
  • Engage your employees and customers to drive brand loyalty

Investing time and effort into cultivating an inspiring culture will only pay you future dividends amongst employees and potential family member employees. Whether this is in sales, customer service, packaging, product development, whatever their role, you are creating internal brand champions who will serve you and your business well into the future.

On the other hand, remember, not all family members are the same. Some may want to be in the business, and some may never want it. The last thing you want to do is guilt or shame anyone into working in the business (family or otherwise) if they do not have the passion.

Click the following link to read the complete article on Franchising.com: Motivating Family Members to Want to Join Your Business

Read the article and then reach out to us to get some insights into your own situation. A few moments with us will provide you insight and clarity for your next steps forward. Contact Us




Family Dynamics and Family Governance

Family and Business alignment is hard to find when business issues liven up family dynamics.

However; with proper process, governance policies, and mutual respect built over time, a Family Business can thrive through multiple generations. Click the following links for more drill-down resources on  Family Dynamics and Family Governance.

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We can help you with insights, other resources, and see if it makes sense to work together. At the very least, in 30 minutes, you may get some ideas you can apply to your business right away.