In my last post, I summarized the situation of Sharpe Enterprises, a family-owned business that became the largest producer of citrus fruit in the United States. Fred Sharpe, founder, brought each of his four children into different areas of the business. Along the way, he created a holding company that held the stock in the …
Spilled OJ – Creating a Family Business Mess
Fred Sharp moved from the Iowa farm he had inherited to Florida his wife, Alice, and their four children in 1940. He planned to become the largest citrus producer in Florida… and that’s exactly what happened. It was a great time to purchase land in Florida, and Fred had received a great price for his …
Taxes, Heartburn and Family Business
Seeing as how it’s tax season, I thought it would be apropos to include a bit on the subject of taxes. Taxes are no fun to deal with. When tax issues become intertwined with family business decisions, it’s even less fun. The four Stockton brothers – Charlie, John, Kevin and Dean – are members of …
Talking Turkey at the Family Business Seminar in Istanbul
Yesterday I spoke at a seminar on family business in Istanbul, Turkey. Throughout my career in counseling families in business, I’ve worked with many businesses in Turkey. At yesterday’s seminar, I shared case studies and experiences in two talks, “Reflections on more than 20 years of serving the Turkish Clients” and “The Joys and Challenges …
Avoiding the Pitfalls of Nepotism – A Quick Review
In my last two posts, I discussed nepotism – how it can hurt a family business and the good kind of nepotism that can actually help a business. Nepotism is the practice of showing favoritism toward one’s family members or friends in economic or employment terms, for example, granting jobs to friends and relatives, without …
The GOOD Kind of Nepotism
As discussed in my previous post, nepotism is the practice of showing favoritism toward one’s family members or friends in economic or employment terms, for example, granting jobs to friends and relatives, without regard to merit. Such practices have damaging effects on businesses, eroding the support of other employees, reducing the quality and creativity of …
Nepotism in Family Business
Nepotism is the practice of showing favoritism toward one’s family members or friends in economic or employment terms, for example, granting jobs to friends and relatives, without regard to merit. Such practices can and do have damaging effects on businesses. They can erode the support of other employees, reduce the quality and creativity of management …
Advisory Boards – Getting Down to Brass Tacks
Creation of an Advisory Board made up of outsiders who are experienced business leaders is a way to “push the envelope” for a family business and cause business owners to examine directions and possibilities they might not otherwise consider. An Advisory Board can make the business stronger, increase shareholder value and better position the company …
Advisory Boards for Family Businesses
Family businesses often lack the breadth of vision and diversity of experience needed to take the business to the next level. It has been known that in some businesses if the “right person” does not introduce an idea, it simply doesn’t get a reasoned consideration. In those cases, the business becomes insular and static, and …
Family Business, Students & Spanish in Chile
In October I was in Boston for the Family Firm Institute’s (FFI) 25th Annual Conference*. At the Conference, a friend from Barcelona, whom I mentor, introduced me to Professor Claudio Muller, from Chile. Claudio teaches about Entrepreneurship and Family Business and invited me to speak to his class. As an aside, in my last two …
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