What you need to do to run a successful family business

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Set common goals and do not forget to separate work and personal, so as not to harm either family or business.

The good thing about business is that you can realize your potential, experience strength of character and make every effort to improve your financial condition. At the very least, affect the level of personal income.

With this, everything is clear, but an important question remains: where to find a reliable partner? How do you find someone you can rely on? For me, my husband became such a partner. In 2005, a year after graduation, we first thought about starting a family business and implemented our plans as soon as possible. 14 years have passed since then, but we have never regretted it.

During our joint work, there have been many failures and victories. We have learned to lead, promote, sell and continue to learn these skills. The main thing that you understand over time is strength in synergy. Only a proven team go "from the fire to the fire." Therefore, the presence of a partner whom you trust in life and in business is important.

What to do and what do you need to be prepared for when opening a family business?

1. Decide who is in charge

It is advisable to agree on this immediately. There is nothing worse for a joint cause than an eternal struggle for leadership.

2. Separate responsibilities

You need to divide functions everywhere: by directions, niches and clients. During my entrepreneurial activity, I have acquired many familiar business families. Among them are chefs, window workers, owners of a chain of stores and IT companies. All have a similar distribution of roles:

• one leads the service direction and solves technical problems (organizes the provision of services, the supply of goods, is responsible for the information and technical equipment of the company);
• the other promotes the company, is responsible for marketing and finance.

The result is a productive tandem.

In our company, I am also responsible for launching new directions. We have a formed checklist, which includes many items: from studying the target audience to launching ready-made advertising campaigns with a new website, scripts, web analytics. In this case, the husband plunges into the technical side of the issue.

3. Set common goals

A family business is all about common goals, plans and dreams. This applies to professional and personal development. Such a business unites the family and makes it resilient to the difficulties that arise along the path of life.

4. Work on a shared budget

Organized a joint business - get ready that the budget will become one. Now you are working to increase the company's profits, on which the material stability of the family directly depends. In addition, the income of the husband and wife becomes transparent. But this is only if financial records are kept.

It is both pleasant and profitable to work for one business, but there is a well-known expression: "Do not store eggs in one basket." Is the company operating at a loss? The family budget is at risk. So that it does not bother you, put aside the "egg-box".

5. Assign wages

The problem that novice businessmen face is not understanding how much they earn and what their monthly income is. You will avoid this situation if both spouses are assigned a salary consisting of two parts:

• fixed - the salary that you receive regardless of the economic performance of the business;
• variable - the agreed percentage of the company's profit, which is paid based on the results of the financial close of the month or year.

6. Don't be afraid to get bored with each other

Many people think that spouses working together are annoying to each other. From personal experience, I will say that this is not so: I work in an office, and my spouse is constantly on the road: negotiating new objects, concluding deals, negotiating with suppliers. As a result, we see each other not much more than if we worked separately.

7. Separate personal time and work

Need to discuss a project urgently? Do it at the right time. Otherwise, there is a risk that the work will become round-the-clock. Learn to divide time between personal and work, then life will be more harmonious.

8. Do not tolerate problems

Difficulties in business can turn into family problems, and vice versa. Often the opinions of the spouses do not coincide. As a result, disputes and disagreements arise. You need to keep yourself tight so as not to start a showdown with employees, so you need to learn how to separate work and family problems, as well as to be restrained. If this fails, then the authority of the leaders falls irretrievably.

9. Plan your vacation

Families who run a common business initially face the difficulty of organizing a joint vacation. Husband and wife hold two main management positions and perform many functions, so it becomes impossible to leave and leave the company at the same time, at least in the first two years of work.

To be productive, remember to rest. Plan your vacation separately and plan for leisure time on joint business trips. You will start traveling together when you hire the right people and learn to delegate.

10. Support, motivate and trust

When a business becomes a family business, there are more opportunities to truly support and motivate each other. Trust skyrockets. Who else to trust in family, business and in general in life, if not a loved one?

In any case, whether you decide to open a family business or not, remember: business is a business in which you need to constantly develop and learn new things. Get ready to immerse yourself in the work of the company with all your heart and work as a team, and then it will make family relationships even stronger.