If the business is to thrive, there should be conditions attached to the hiring of family members. Every owner of a family business faces the issue of whether to hire particular family members. It's important to set a fairly high bar before hiring family members, or the business will end up employing less than competent people.
A family business constitution expresses the will of the family for future generations and gives family members a sense of security about how matters will be handled including a method or process for the resolution of differences. The purpose of a family business constitution is to ensure each family member receives predictable and fair treatment.
There is little that can be done to avoid all family business conflicts. A family business constitution sets up the playing field for orderly succession. It also establishes mechanisms to help resolve conflicts before they have damaging effects on the business and on family relationships. Family constitutions are instruments of governance.
Learning how to write and implement a family constitution is important. Family businesses need rules that define expectations, and a family constitution can be written to address common family business conflicts. As families grow and family business issues become more complicated, a written family constitution becomes one of the most important gifts that founders can give to successive generations.
The process of family business strategic planning involves establishing and defining boundaries and maintaining specific roles. Failure to define boundaries between family and business often lies at the root of many family business problems. Family business boundaries need constant maintenance if they are going to do the job for which they are intended.
As a family business grows, the need for a well-defined family business structure becomes more important in order to keep the business growing. Once the entrepreneurial stage passes, more family business structure is required to define how the founder will interface with the business and find solutions to family business issues that arise.
When considering family business growth, an important task of the family business is to ensure the family business assets are compounded over the generations. This means that it is the responsibility of a business successor to work towards leaving future successors with more than was there at the beginning. It's important to have clarity with this task.
Effective family business communication is one of the fundamental aspects of building a smooth-running platform for success. Oftentimes, combining the dynamics of family and business can create conflicting messages, causing a family to confuse tasks. This can be one of the biggest mistakes families in business can make. Clarity of tasks between family and business is essential.
One of the most important keys to family business success is having well-defined personal boundaries. Family members must resist getting caught in the middle of a conflict between other family members. It's possible to establish a boundary by knowing what to say, and how to say it - without getting caught in the middle.
A successful family business is one that respects the privacy of the family members who work for the business. It's important to respect individual privacy as well as the privacy of each family unit in an extended family. By respecting the privacy of all family members, positive relationships can be maintained at work and at home.
