The Right Fit in Your Family Owned Business

Oftentimes in small businesses family members are also employees, co-workers, supervisors, and/or owners but is this the right fit for everyone involved?  In the small/family business realm everyone is responsible for pitching in and helping wherever it’s needed.  The pitching-in mentality for families to get the job done is great in theory. However, it can also cause a lot of undue frustration at times. Family members are often tasked with jobs that may not be a good fit for them. One family member may consider “time” to be important and always completes their tasks ahead of the deadline. While another family member may consider “interacting with others” more important than getting a task done. There is nothing wrong with either process. It is important though to recognize those variances and provide an environment that helps everyone to be engaged and appreciated which in turn creates a positive business atmosphere.

To Do Activities:

The following are some “To Do” activities to help make the family business successful.

Spend time having each family member complete a personality assessment.

• Real Colors is an example of one personality assessment tool that helps individuals find out what primary “color” area they operate in and really focus on what their (strengths, joys, needs, and values) are relating to their personality.
• Most assessments focus on different personality or behavioral aspects such as being left-brained or right-brained or an introvert vs. an extrovert.
• While the tools can be useful, it’s important to recognize there are other factors involved in how an individual operates including environment, genetics, income levels, generational factors, etc…
• Over time an individual may change how they operate slightly or may operate differently depending on the environment and any requirements (i.e. a job vs. spending time with friends).

Create a job description for each position in the business.

• This includes positions held by family and non-family members
• Job descriptions help to determine who is really needed for what job
• Discover where there is overlap or missing duties
• Create clear expectations for job duties
• Determine what each person’s role is including whether they have supervisory input in the business

Determine for each family member if they really want to be involved in the family business or not.

• Sometimes everyone must pitch-in in the short-term.
• If a member is not interested in the business; it is healthier long-term to phase them out and transition someone else into that position.

Ask each family member if they understand their role in the business and what’s expected of them. 

• Find out how each family member likes to complete their job tasks.
• Determine if tasks should be modified or changed to help better align with individual personality traits.

Hold a work meeting to help everyone understand how each other operates.

• Explain what everyone’s job duties will be.
• Facilitate a discussion and provide clarity about when flexibility in job tasks can occur to match one’s personality preferences or behaviors.
• Determine what tasks must be completed a specific way or by a certain time (i.e. sanitation procedures, ordering deadlines, etc.).

The Bottom Line

The “Right Fit” can make an impactful difference on not only helping everyone in the business succeed, but it will also help family members keep work and family activities separate. We often take family members for granted and treat them differently then we would normal employees or co-workers. Creating boundaries and helping everyone to be successful in turn makes the business and family unit successful not just for today, but long into the future.

*To learn more about real colors or contact a facilitator from CSU Extension, check out the Real Colors Website. Real Colors is only one of many personality assessments available to help you and others understand how you operate. Any mention of company names and/or products doesn’t imply an endorsement of those entities or their services nor does it imply a criticism of their competitors and products. Items mentioned are strictly for educational purposes.