Small Business Today Magazine FEB 2015 TAYLOR CONSTRUCTION MANAGMENT | Page 40
EDITORIALFEATURE
Entrepreneurs Tool Box -
Family Owned Businesses
By Alvin E. Terry, MBA/Business Consultant
N
ew Year’s Resolutions should have
been made by now and already implemented with a new business plan.
If you have a family owned business,
I hope that all of the family members who
are directly involved in the operations of
the business have had an opportunity to
add some valuable input to help ensure
that the business can continue to be successful. It’s time to make some new money and collect the old money that is carrying over from 2014 on the books.
You really need to get through the first
quarter of the business year to gauge exactly what the business environment is
looking like. Did you lose customers last
year? If so why? Did you gain new customers? If so how? Is it time for a staff
change with new responsibilities? Should
we consider new hires or layoffs? Have
family members decided to pursue other
job opportunities in the job market due to
burn out in your business?
Whether you have a product or service,
are you continuing to provide added value
to your customers? Do you need to upgrade your product or your service? Is it
time for pricing adjustments?
Obviously, there are a lot of moving
parts in keeping a business on track. Every business, whether family owned or not,
experiences the same challenges on a daily
basis.
Fortunately, with the right team of mentors and armed with current market information, you can help keep your family
business on track.
Pros:
• Starting a new business or continuing a
family owned business tradition has been
the backbone of American entrepreneurship.
Did the chemistry work between the
family members or did everyone outgrow
their nerve endings? Did anyone in the
family have false expectations or not know
what to expect on what it takes to run a
business?
• Mostly everyone can name at least
10 family owned businesses in America.
Just to name a few: Ford, Dodge, Heinz,
Firestone, Johnson & Johnson, Campbell,
Sears, Woolworth’s, Wal-Ma