Some of the greatest and most successful businesses in Australia are family businesses. But there are a range of issues you must recognise and understand before deciding to go into business with family members.

If you are going into business with a family member, remember this: you should run a family business like a business – not like a family where there’s a place for all those family emotions that knit people together. I read something recently that was so spot on – family businesses often take the family to work and bring the business home.

Tiffany Nugan, International Marketing Manager and Nugan Estate says that while working in a family business can be tough at first, there is also much to gain.

“When I first joined Nugan Group, it was difficult because my mother, Michelle, who is our CEO and brother, Matthew, who is our General Manager had both been working in the business for twenty years,” she says. “It took probably 2 years for me to find my niche in the company and for the three of us to learn how to get the best out of each other. 7 years later, it’s fantastic. All three of us have different strengths and we now work so each of us is used to the best of our ability.”

Run the family business like a normal business and it can be very rewarding.

“The other great benefit of a family business, is family members are passionate and they want what is best for the business – so even if you disagree you know you’re all it in for the same reason,” says Nugan.

Too often, too much emotion comes into play in a family business and this can ruin the business and put stress on family relationships.

In any business, it’s important to have business meetings, but sometimes family business meetings can turn unprofessional. It’s crucial that meetings in family businesses are run according to the rules of any meeting.

Here are some tips for family business meetings:
o It is important to start a meeting on time
o Issue an agenda in order to make sure that everyone is prepared for the meeting
o Send the agenda to all family and non-family members before the meeting and ask if they want any items added to it for discussion
o If anyone can’t attend the meeting, ask them to send an apology
o Conduct the meeting in an orderly fashion. Have one person chair the meeting so that this person keeps control of the flow
o Focus on the objectives of the meeting. If any issue can’t be resolved make sure a person is appointed to follow up and seek a solution
o End the meeting on a positive note. Seek to have any business issues between family members worked out as quickly as possible after the meeting. If you find that squabbling occurs every meeting it might be wise to bring in a facilitator – an independent person who can assist in cutting out the conflict
o Send out minutes of the meeting to all who attended
o If there’s continuous tension, seriously consider employing a third party to help resolve any ‘burning’ issues.

By Peter Switzer, published on 3/03/2009

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