Balance

When things are going well, a family or closely held business is a thing of beauty.  When they are not, the problems are pervasive and they seem to be omnipresent - - it's work life problems and it's family issues all rolled into one...unfortunately the strength of a family or closely held business can also be it's weakness.

Any number of things can cause conflict, turmoil and stress.     

The Senior generation may not be letting go or the Junior generation may not be stepping-up....inter-generational conflict.

Sibling rivalries can sometimes have a devastating impact.  A consortium of cousins or sibling partners can have issues, sometimes stemming all the way back to childhood that spill over into the family business.

Stake holders' desires change and it's difficult to achieve a proper balance.  It may be, we never stop working or it could be conflict between those that work in the business and those that don't.

Success dictates change....sometimes faster than those involved can assimilate.

The lines separating business and family can and do blur.  In fact at times, even to the extent that poor business decisions are occasionally made on purpose, to preserve family harmony. 

The proper pre-script for Family and Closely-held business problems is always unique.  Typically the solution requires better communication, planning, and a measure of strategic thinking.

We bring insight.  We'll guide you through the process of balancing family and business, developing a shared vision, and create policies to govern where the lines separating business and the family blur.  (Ownership, employment, control of assets....)

Everyone perceives the world differently and then they color what they see using their own value system.

Each stakeholder, family member, management employee, the Family as an entity, and the Business as an entity has a preferred method for looking at the world, and a value system it uses to color what it sees.  It is this simple fact that's normally at the root of whatever is causing conflict in the family and/or the business. 

A shared vision, policies to govern those areas where the family and the business collide, parallel business and family strategic planning, and a creative plan to untangle the current issues......is what we offer.

Each client arrangement is different.  As like most things worth doing, it's a lot of steady work at the beginning and tapers off to maintenance - addressing what needs to be changed over time.  We'll work at your pace, however, most clients budget between 10 and 20 hours a month for the first six months.

There can be quite a bit of emotion involved in developing and implementing a shared vision: some will see it as a FAMILY business; others will see it as a family BUSINESS; and other will see it as a Family Business Enterprise.  There are a lot of advantages and very few disadvantages in bringing a skilled facilitator in to the process. 

For those inclined to "go it on their own" you'll find some of the tools we use in our On Line Store.  Just remember, a sledge hammer and a tack hammer are both tools to pound something....however, each has a dramatically different effect.  

    Create the Culture           Define and Develop the Legacy