A Few Helpful Tips for Avoiding Conflict in a Family Business and Keeping Your Goals on Track

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            Is the stress of working in a family business troubling you? Are you looking for some expert advice to help handle it?  Working in business is hard enough but throw a couple family members in the mix and it can get frustrating, so we’ve assembled a list of excellent family business tips to help guide you through it.

            Family businesses face all the same challenges that the average non-family business deals with, but they also have a few added issues that arise due to family relationships.  Questions like “Which family member holds the most power?” “Who is the primary stakeholder?” “Who is first in line to take over?” and, “Who makes more money?” often arise and create uncomfortable, challenging situations. 

Here are a few helpful tips for avoiding conflict in a family business and keeping goals on track, courtesy of gaebler.com. 

Communicate Early and Often

The best tool for keeping a family business focused on business is good communication.

Good communication avoids unpleasant surprises and can minimize the damage on potential family business crises by addressing problems sooner rather than later.

 

Take the time to ensure that good communication channels between family members are in place. It's a smart idea to conduct family-only business meetings at least twice a month. A family business meeting allows family members get together to discuss how the business is doing. Each family member can discuss their areas of responsibility.

Don't Make Working at the Family Business Mandatory

It's wise not to force a family member to join the family business. Let them know that it's an option but encourage them to consider other options.

If a family member gets experience somewhere else and then joins the family business later, that's a good thing. They will bring new ideas and fresh thinking – avoiding the insular thinking that often plagues family businesses and ultimately leads to their downfall.

Nip Family Business Problems in the Bud

When issues arise between family members, address them quickly.

If a dispute is not resolved early, it can turn into a much bigger problem. Be on the lookout for hostility or jealousy between family members, and deal with such issues directly as they arise.

Don't Take Your Work Home and Vice Versa

It's smart to distinguish between family discussions and business discussions and keep those conversations separate.

Don't have business meetings at the house, and don't have family meetings at the business.

Mixing the two together all the time is a recipe for disaster. The business, the family or both may fail as a result.

Hold Family Members Accountable for Results

In a family, the standard is often to forgive a family member when they make a mistake. In contrast, mistakes in business are not easily forgiven.

Accordingly, a family business must lay down clear guidelines: in the business, we are going to hold you accountable for your actions, just as we hold all of our employees accountable for their actions.

Every family member should have a detailed job description that outlines what they are expected to contribute to the business. Measure performance against pre-defined metrics so there is no ambiguity on whether desired results were achieved.

Treat Family Members and Non-Family Members Equally

If family members get preferential treatment, non-family members will lose their motivation to help grow the business.

Smart family businesses don't flaunt their ownership by giving family members perks that others don't get.

Do whatever it takes to make non-family members feel that they have the same opportunities as family members. Otherwise, expect your family-owned business to deliver mediocre results and lose market share to competitors.

If you can't treat non-family members equally in some area – for example, maybe they can't have stock ownership like family members do – make up for it in some other way.

Ask a Family Business Expert for Help

When in doubt, ask for help.

Family business consultants are well trained in dealing with issues that are unique to family businesses. They will provide you with advice on dealing with complex family business challenges. For more information on family business consulting, visit our website at ContinuityFBC.com.

5 Tips to Running a Successful Family Business

CONTINUITY

FAMILY BUSINESS CONSULTING

US/CANADA: 877-925-5149 INTERNATIONAL: 1-617-500-3110

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Is working with family members a dream come true - or a complete nightmare?  This all depends on how the business is run and how well the relationships are maintained within it. 

There are plenty of stories to defend both sides of this argument; some leading to legal action and deterioration of family ties while others achieve great success working with family and pass on the business through multiple generations.

The term “family business” contains a widespread group of different businesses, from multi-national chains to local corner store shops and a wide range in between. The key to a successfully run family business lies in a few core responsibilities that are universal, regardless the size of the company and the family members that comprise it.

In most ways, working effectively with members of your family isn’t much different from working with any other business partners. Being brothers, cousins, sisters, father-son/mother-daughter, etc. isn’t enough to make a business partnership work. It takes an approach that encompasses some principles, which can be found below, courtesy of CNBC.com.

1. Communication is everything. Communication is the key to good relationships of any kind. With family though, it can take a little more effort, as there are often dynamics at play that make communication more complicated. We can have a tendency to feel like a loved one knows us so well that we shouldn’t have to voice our feelings or expectations. But if you want your partnership to work, it’s important to let go of these assumptions and communicate clearly and openly, just as you would with a non-family business partner.

2. Expectations need to gel. To a large extent, this point goes back to communication. Specifically, it is vital that each partner’s expectations regarding their role and those of the other partners are communicated clearly. Again, assumptions are a killer. Lay out what each of your roles will be in the business before starting. Voice what you expect from your partner(s), and put it in writing to solidify it.

3. A formalized business relationship is best. However strong your relationship is now, you’re bound to have disagreements with any business partner. Drawing up a written agreement for your partnership (and including the expectations from #2 above) is a must. Some entrepreneurs are reluctant to take this step, as it may seem as though a written agreement demonstrates a lack of trust. On the contrary, a written agreement for a business partnership is simply good business and is designed to protect all involved parties. The bottom line is that you’re much more likely to be sorry you didn’t create an agreement than that you did.

4. Priorities are important. We all want to be successful entrepreneurs and make a lot of money, or change the world. But it’s important to prioritize your family relationships over business. It’s heartbreaking to hear of families that have been ripped apart by financial or business disputes. At the end of the day, you can build another business or make more money, but you’ve only got one family for life. Remembering that can help put disagreements into perspective and avoid the nasty fallout of a family business gone badly.

5. All-business is no fun. Although you might have a lot of fun working your business with family members, it’s important to set aside “family-only” time too. If all you ever talk about is the business, not only will your relationship eventually suffer, but you’ll drive the other members of your family crazy! Take time out from business to do the things you would do together if you weren’t business partners. Try going out to lunch or for a round of golf without talking about business at all. If you do what it takes to maintain a strong family bond, it will only serve to support your working relationship.

Is working within your family business a dream come true, or complete nightmare? Let us know on the Continuity Family Business Consulting Facebook Wall, linked HERE. 

For more information on Continuity FamilyBusiness Consulting, visit our website: ContinuityFBC.com.