Link to Ece’s Blog: http://blogs.ubc.ca/eceikiz/
While I can confidently say that I whole heartedly agree with Ece’s ideas on the topic of family businesses and how they should be run, There are some important points that I feel like she didn’t mention that I would like to cover in my blog.
Having family involved in the workplace can be a very tricky situation. It can cause problems both in and out of the house. Most people have the misconception that entering a family business and working under your father or uncle or whosoever it is, is easy. Trust me, it’s not. I am speaking from experience since I have worked in my dad’s office for short periods of time over my summer breaks.
You can face many challenges, the most pestering one being high expectations. The pressure you feel to live up to your father/uncles etc. name and trying to prove your worth to the rest of the office put you under a lot of stress, some would argue that this should make you work harder but that depends from person to person, most people would crack under the pressure.
Another big challenge you face is what I call “The Easy Way Out”, this was the hardest thing that I had to tackle, the temptation to call yourself the “Boss’ kid” and pass on your work to others is irresistible. After all, who’s going to question the son of the man who owns the place.
These are challenges every “Family-Business” needs to face, but with proper management by the father/uncle etc. and a little bit of dedication from the inheritor, these can easily be overcome, and a business can prosper under the care of a family.