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It’s All in the Family

March 13, 2012 By

Summary: You may be thinking of how you pass along your business to family. Before making any moves – create your plan.

In our business, one of the thoughts that may enter our mind is “Who will take over my business/clients when I retire?” or “Who can help me grow my business?”  One of the answers you may come up with is “family!” After all they know you, know the business and wouldn’t they love to take over!

duck family 320x213 Its All in the Family

Courtesy of PhotoExpress

This sounds great doesn’t it – get everyone involved. It is a good idea and in order for it to succeed – you will need a plan. Some people call it a succession plan (as in, who will succeed you) and others will call it an exit plan (as in, how are you going to walk out the door and not look back). Call it either one, you will notice they both contain the word “plan” so  you cannot just hand over the keys to a family member.

What to consider in the plan:

Training. How will they learn about the business itself? I am an advocate of being in and responsible for each position in the company. Depending on who this is, will determine how long they need to spend in each position.

Knowledge. This is business and industry knowledge. How will they learn about running a business and keep tabs on what is occurring in the industry. If a person comes from outside of the industry, this may take a while.

Experience. Or you can call this transition time. How will they gain the hands-on experience but still have you around for support and back-up.

Investment. This can be the most sensitive topic – will they need to buy into the business or earn “sweat equity” or a variation. Deal with this up front to avoid having different expectations. You don’t want a family broken up over this.

Formalize it. Yes its family and right now both sides trust each other. Keep it that way, formalize it in writing. This way down the road there is no “I thought you said….” or “My intention was….”. This is a serious subject and should be treated as such.

This may look like a lot of work now but those years down road when you are planning on walking out that door – not only will you feel confident you have left your company, clients, and employees in good hands…you will be proud of the legacy you were able to pass onto your family.

 

Filed Under: Authentic Leadership, Goals Tagged With: , ,

A Matter of Control

February 7, 2012 By

Summary: Do you find yourself with employees and saying “if you want it done right – do it yourself”. It’s about control. Try these three steps to let them work better and remain in control.

When it comes to working with people one of the things we have to do is let them do their job. I know it seems obvious, right? Then why do hear “they don’t do what is needed” or “I can’t delegate to them” or “if you want it done right – do it yourself”?

remote control 320x204 A Matter of Control

There are several factors that take place here:

  • training
  • their skills and abilities
  • attitude (both yours and theirs)
  • delegating properly
  • control

Training means you have to take your time tot each or coach someone to do their job.  The key word is “time” because when you have a new person or a new process/procedure it takes your time and patience to explain to the other person how do their job.

Their skills and abilities is most times the most frustrating.  We believe someone has the skill and ability to do what is needed to later find out…they don’t. This comes from either poor recruiting (a topic on its own) or pushing someone past their abilities. As much as we may believe that all people should be striving and doing more – not everyone is capable.  See people for who they are and what they can do.

Attitude is a two way street. If you have the “to get it done right, I have to do it myself” attitude, guess what…the other person will see that and make it true. Guaranteed every time! When they have the attitude, try to focus in on why its there.

Delegating properly is not as tough as many make it out to be. Well in one way – you have to get out of their way. Explain to the person what needs to be done, by when, provide all the information they need and set out of the way. Yes, that means don’t start by going back and saying “I forgot to tell you about x, y or z” or “how is it going’. Plan ahead of time and let them know you are available. The rest is up to them.

Control! This is your biggest challenge because you were the person who started out by doing everything and knew each everything about your business – no mysteries. Until now. Now you find yourself giving responsibility to another person so you are no longer seeing emails, invoices, checks, messages, faxes, etc. You know feel out of control!

So how do you find that balance of feeling in control without doing all the work?

Try these three steps:

  • Determine what you need to know. For example is it necessary to see every check that comes in or do you need a summary at the end of the week/month?
  • How do you want the information. Do you want a summary, a daily/weekly report, a quick email, etc.? Think about what you need to know and what the easiest way for the person to give it to you. Make it easy and simple otherwise you won’t get it or it will take up too much of their time.
  • Tell them. Only after you know what and how you want something can you have a discussion with the person. Explain why you need the information, how to present it and how often.

Have you found yourself being out of control? Share how you overcome it below.

Filed Under: Authentic Leadership, Employee Communication, Employee Satisfaction, Goals Tagged With: , , , , ,

Resolutions or Revolutions

January 10, 2012 By

Summary: Are you making resolutions you won’t keep or create a revolution in your business? Ask yourself a few questions and let the revolution begin.

The beginning of a year is usually when we start filling our heads with promises to ourselves – we call them New Year’s Resolutions. You know what these promises look like:

“I will loose 10 pounds this year”

“I will exercise at least three times a week this year.”

“I will save more money this year.”

And more often than not, by the time February has finished we have forgotten or make excuses as to why it can’t happen or why it’s impossible this year. You know the routine.

revolution2 320x248 Resolutions or Revolutions

STOP!

Instead take a different approach – create a revolution! While you may not be overtaking a country or stopping a fascist dictator, you can change what is around you.

Take a look at your business – a good hard look, no skimming allowed. Ask yourself the following questions:

  • What is working?
  • What’s not working?
  • What has to stay the same?
  • What can be upgraded?
  • Are there any sacred cows?
  • How do I feel about the office environment?
  • Where do I want to be at the end of the year?
  • Are we working together as a team?
  • Do I have plan?

As you are answering these questions, you may realize the revolution needs to take place in your business. Envision what it will look like at the end and create the plan.

Post your plan to the wall, talk to your staff, and let everyone know so they can help hold you accountable and most of all - Just do it!

What would you like to change in your business?

 

Filed Under: Authentic Leadership, Goals, Leadership, Policies & Procedures Tagged With: , ,

Is your training relevant?

August 23, 2011 By

Summary:  In order for training to be relevant to your employees they must understand the big picture and fit in with their personal motivation.

Here in my neck of the woods, school has started. The annual ritual of buying new clothes, shoes, supplies and backpacks. It is also the time where kids are either dreading or looking foward to seeing teachers, classmates and learning more.  This got me thinking…what do school and business share?  My first reaction was school gets people ready to enter the workforce – well if you have hired recent gradutes, you sometimes wonder.

training e1314057019284 320x140 Is your training relevant?

In the bigger picture there is a commonality – skills preparation.  School teaches students to read, write, do math, understand science, and how all this applies to the world around them.  In business we should also be focusing on the skills of our employees.

While most employees (like students) don’t always look forward to training – it is up to us to make it relevant.  For example:  remember learning algebra and thinking “I will never use this”. In business, I like to remind people that the algebra class they hated has come back to haunt them as excel.

When we are teaching/coaching our people it is important to make it relevant at that time (and not like the example above several years later).  How do you do this?

  • Start with the big picture
  • Drill down on the details
  • Take it step by step
  • Ensure understanding before moving on
  • Return to the big picture

It’s important you explain the overall reason for the training because without it, they may be able to do the steps – it won’t be consistent.

To really take training/coaching one step further – make it important to them. In other words, know what their motivation is for doing good work and phrase the training to match their motivation. For example: A person who wants everthing to be fair would be more interested in a training session on “The equality of customer service” than “How to be pleasant on the phone”. I know it sounds corny but you get the meaning.

In the end – make training relevant and give it meaning to your people.

Share how this has worked for you below in the comments.

Filed Under: Authentic Leadership, Goals, Policies & Procedures Tagged With: , , ,

Your Support System – do you have one?

August 9, 2011 By

Summary:  Small Business Owners need a Support Team – learn why and where to find them.

In our personal lives we all have some type of support system. That system is usually made up of friends and family. They help us make sense of the world and give us advice on how to handle what comes our way.

support team e1312823420176 320x169 Your Support System do you have one?

However in business – it is not always that easy.  Our friends and family may not understand what it is like to lead a team of people, how to attract our target market, or how to manage our cash flow. Many times a separate support system is needed – these are still people we have confindence in, trust and tell our biggest business worries to, they just may not be family or friends. This is a valuable resources for you, your company and your mental well being.

Right now you may be thinking – that would be great but where do I find one? Obviously the trust in these relationships wouldn’t be created instantly but over a period of time.  Here are some places to start looking:

Professional Groups:  There are companies out there whose model is to be a support system for either managers or business owners. A quick search on Google for “ceo peer groups” yielded over one million results.  They will group you with like minded CEOs in your geographical area. Learn from the experience of others.

Group Coaching:  Typically centered around a topic and for a set duration – you are in a group of other CEO’s or like minded individuals learning more about a particular topic. By working in this group you get to know the individual participants, bounce ideas off each other and can create longer lasting business relationships.

Individual Mentor: This is a person who works with you on a one-on-one basis focusing on you and your company. They provide you with guidance, a sounding board, or connect you with others. This may be a good place to start if you feel uncomfortable with the two options above. Besides – who doesn’t love personal attention?

Advisory Board:  This is a more formalized group that you put together – similar to a board of directors in that you have people from various backgrounds and specialties who have agreed to work with you on your business.  While they won’t be making business decisions they provide the guidance and advice you may need.  What you receive from an Advisory Board will only be as good as the people who accept to help you in your endevours.

You don’t need to do this alone – find the method that is most comfortable with you and get started.

Do you have a support system?

Filed Under: Authentic Leadership, Goals, Leadership Tagged With: , ,
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