NEW YORK — Family businesses enjoy many advantages: a shared joy of success, a common pride in tradition, and a stability and loyalty that’s the envy of their clan-free competitors. Even so, there’s a flip side to the coin. Sibling rivalries, parent-child conflicts and charges of nepotism by a non-family staff can interfere with the smooth running of any family enterprise.
Has your dry cleaning business encountered such issues? Let’s discuss how to solve three of the most common problems.
THE LEADERSHIP BATTLE
The time has come to select a leader from the next generation. Several sons and daughters, now in their 40s, want to take charge. How do you avoid creating hurt feelings among the siblings?
“The transition to a new leader can be extremely difficult in a family business,” says Stacey A. Lundgren, a former family business owner and now a consultant in Howell, Mich. “The decision needs to be made on job performance and on the duties that each sibling has taken on over the years.”
