Recently, I was chatting with a business friend and he felt family businesses had better values than other businesses. To be more specific, we were discussing bait-and-switch and other deceptive marketing tactics employed by some businesses. My friend made the point his family business does not engage in that sort of marketing.
That got me thinking.
My family company is a member of our community’s Centre For Family Business [CFFB]. www.cffb.ca
Every month the CFFB members meet, have breakfast, network, enjoy a family business presentation, and receive education from an expert. The 3-hour sessions, which I spend with my son Jack, are my favourite business experiences. So, I look forward to the sessions.
Now that I have relayed my pro-CFFB thinking, I suppose I may be a little biased…favouring family businesses?
Regardless, I am wondering if family businesses have better values than other businesses. Could family businesses serve as ‘role models’ and ‘mentors’, helping other businesses create and sustain better values?
The question is important to me because I believe Values are the starting point for business success. I mean Personal Values.
I believe business success follows a path like this:
Values ► Culture ► Communication ► Value
V-C-C-V
Where:
Values = the personal Values of the Leaders of the business
Culture = the business Culture the Leaders of the business demand/accept
Communication = how well the business Leaders communicate the Culture
Value = the Value the business delivers to one and all, but especially to its Clients
Culture = the business Culture the Leaders of the business demand/accept
Communication = how well the business Leaders communicate the Culture
Value = the Value the business delivers to one and all, but especially to its Clients
Again - I am wondering if family businesses have better Values than other businesses.
I am going to give that more thought.
More on family business values in future blogs…
Reader comments (3)
Comments from the original blog platform, 2008–2021.
Duane Burman ·
Ref.: Family Businesses=Better Values. I was glad to see that you included "Communication" in your path. Unfortunately, I've found a significant number of family-held business heads who assume that their relatives particularly know what is going on their heads and vice-versa. Evidence of this situation has repeated occurred; when the family has decided to sell the business, all members are at the Closing table with the new buyers, the Selling family gets into an argument over price, terms or worse yet it comes out that certain family members have quietly started another business that could potentially be in direct competition with the one being sold! Results have been devastating----starting with WWWIII among family members, baffled & embarassed Brokers on both sides; and Buyers calling their attorneys!
Rick Baker ·
Thank you, again Duane. You are right! Communication is vital.
rickbaker.ca ·
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