One of the major things I’ve seen in the perpetuation process that tends to cause some difficulty in getting a business perpetuated is bringing family members into the business. More specifically, children of owners into the business without setting specific expectations.
Setting expectations, both ways
Children of Owners always want to be in the business, be successful and have their parents proud of them – I’m sure – but sometimes it doesn’t always work out.
The insurance business is a difficult business and not everybody is cut out to be successful in this business. That can make it a difficult time, especially at Thanksgiving Dinner, when those kind of things don’t work out.
Getting ahead of it
So, a lot of times we tell our clients that it is really important to make sure, if you are going to bring your children into the business, you set specific expectations and let them know what your ultimate goal is. However, offering them the opportunity to take over the business before you understand whether they either like the business or whether they’re going to be successful in the business can make it very difficult to perpetuate the business long term. It also can be very difficult at Thanksgiving Dinner, which is again what we advise our clients.
So, I hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving and I hope you get to spend it all with your families, and I’m sure I’ll be talking to you all soon.
