Crucial Pieces of Advice for Every Family Business Owner

What do Comcast, Wal-Mart, Koch Industries, and Ford all have in common?  Aside from all being billion dollar companies, they’re also all family-owned companies.  When most people think about family-owned businesses, they think about small mom and pop operations that rarely grow beyond their one store.  However, family-owned businesses aren’t just rewarding, they can also be extremely profitable.

Seament is a multi-national cement business, but it’s also owned by the Bouri family.  The Bouris are one of many successful business oriented families, and with enough drive and knowledge you could turn your small family business into something huge.  Running a family-owned business is similar to owning a regular business in some respects, and completely different in others.  Family politics can make things a little more difficult, and that’s why the owners of family businesses need to work hard to grow.  If you want to grow your small family business, make sure that you keep these bits of advice in mind.

Let family members work willingly

You may have a picture in your mind of every family member working happily side by side, but some members of your family most likely don’t share your vision.  Some family business owners make the mistake of pressuring other family members to work for their company, and their decision only results in an unhappy and resentful employee.  Don’t pressure your family members into joining your business, and on the flip side also don’t allow them to pressure you into getting a job.

Leave family problems at home

Did you have a fight with your wife/book keeper before work this morning?  Have you been arguing with your son over his grades?  If you’re having disputes at home, don’t make the mistake of bringing them to work.  If you can maintain a separation of your business matters and your family matters, you’ll be able to run a successful family owned business.  Drawing the line between business and family matters is important but it can be difficult to master.  Let every related employee know that you plan on not bringing up personal problems at work, and that you expect them to do the same.

Remember the legal aspects of owning a business

Contracts, over-time hours, and other legal business problems can seem boring and troublesome, but they’re absolutely needed if you want to keep your assets and family members safe.  Drawing up a written agreement with your family members/employees is important since it can help protect you, your business, and even your employees in case you run into any trouble down the road.  Remember that having your family members sign contracts and make legal agreements about their employment doesn’t mean that there’s a lack of trust between you and your family – it simply means that you’re handling your business in a professional manner.

How to Go Global

With the majority of people in the world communicating via the Internet, it's becoming increasingly easy for local companies to go global. The Internet has become an amazing way to connect people through a virtual international marketplace. Mark Bouri, CEO of a global cement company, offers tips on how to take your company to the next level. Keep in mind that attempting to take on the whole world requires work and the ability to think big.

Speak Their Language

Obviously, in order to reach other countries you have to speak their language. Though English is thought of as the global language of business, people are much more comfortable speaking in their native tongues. And while you don't need to go out and purchase Rosetta Stone for every language, you should look into translating your web content into as many languages as your company can afford. There are many translation services available online, such as MyGengo.

Double Check Your Measurements 

Even after translating your web content, it's important to make sure that any currency or other measurements are in line with the target country's standards. Pounds and inches are not universal terms and will leave some site visitors confused. Further, if you have any prices on your site, these will need to be converted to the currency of the area you are trying to reach.

Change Your Banking

In order to allow for international shoppers, you're going to have to look into universal methods of payment. Credit cards are a good option, but you need to assume that not everyone you work with is going to have one or want to use it. It's a good idea to set up a PayPal account so that the companies or customers that you work with are able to transfer money from their bank accounts into yours. Ease of payment is important to clients, so make sure you aim to please.

Do Your Research
In order to be effective in the global marketplace, you must do your research and be familiar with other companies that are out there. Find out who your competitors are in each market and why they’re on the top. Come up with a unique plan for each region that will bring your company to the forefront.

To be a successful international company, you must consider the above information. Mark Bouri feels that the hard work it takes to go global is well worth the rewards. 

Be a Better Entrepreneur in 2014 with New Year's Resolutions

Since we're only a few weeks into 2014, it's a good time for entrepreneurs to wipe the slate clean and look at the year ahead with fresh eyes. Seasoned entrepreneur Alex F Bouri offers some words of advice for taking advantage of the new year and the opportunity to make New Year's resolutions.

Start with an Evaluation…

What seemed to work last year and what didn't work? Being honest with yourself is the only way to truly evaluate your business plan and start with a clean slate.

Tackle Challenges Head On

It can sometimes be difficult to admit to yourself that you have weaknesses, but it's extremely beneficial to do so. Once you identify what's challenging you most, you can figure out how to tackle it. As a New Year's resolution, stop thinking up all the excuses for why you can't do something, and start focusing on the reasons why you should.

Incorporate More Technology

Nowadays, there's an app for almost anything. Why aren't you taking advantage of this? Apps are huge time savers, can help you stay organized, and are extremely easy to get accustomed to. It's simply a matter of researching the ones that you'd find most helpful. This can help you to incorporate other goals, like keeping all your employees more informed and checking items off a to-do list every day.

Connect with Clients

If you're a small business, you probably know a lot of your clients by name. Take advantage of this by sending out holiday cards or sending personalized e-mails with deals they might find useful. If your clients feel as though they know you on a personal level, they'll be more likely to stick with you in the long-term.

Set More Incentives

For many people, the goal is improving KPIs (Key Performance Indicators). It's hard to do that without the help of your employees, and it's hard to get them to do that without incentives. Hold contests to see who can sign on the most new customers, make the most phone calls in a day, or make the biggest upsell. Every little bit counts!

Family Business Advice 101: Tips For Transitioning Power To The Next Generation

It’s finally happening.  Maybe you’re ready to retire and enjoy your golden years, or perhaps you’re finally ready to hand over control to the next generation.  Either way, after years of success you’re ready to hand over the family business to the next generation.  It can be difficult to step down after decades of doing things your way, but this is something you’ve been planning on doing since your first day of business. 

Giving someone else control of your business can be stressful regardless of if you’re related or not, and some find that it’s more difficult to give up control of a family business than any other kind.  Charles Bouri and Prudence MacLeod were able to take over the family business without any problems, but that’s probably because their parents did a good job of transitioning over control.  If you’re going to be stepping down from the family business soon, make sure that you follow these tips to ensure that everything goes smoothly.

Know that things will change

When some family business owners hand over control to the next generation, they’re surprised and even a little offended when they see their children, nieces, and nephews making changes to their business.  No one you put in charge of your business is going to run things the exact same way you did, and if you want your business to succeed you wouldn’t want that way.  Businesses need to evolve with their markets, and a business that stays the same each and every year is eventually going to fall out of public favor.  Embrace the change, and be happy that the new owners are excited to be making a change.

Talk about it frequently

If you want the transition of power to go by smoothly, you need to talk about it with your family members, and talk about it often.  Honest conversations about your plans are crucial for ensuring that your employees and family members know what they need to know about the upcoming transition.  While we’re on the topic of honest conversation, we should move on to the next topic…

Be ready to defend your successor

Maybe your cousin always envisioned that they would be the one to take over the family business instead of your son.  Maybe your life partner doesn’t understand why you’re choosing one child over the other.  Either way there are going to be some people that are going to be surprised by your choice of leadership, and they’re going to demand answers about why you chose who you chose.  You don’t need to go into in-depth detail about your decisions; you just need to be prepared to answer people when they start asking questions.  A simple statement about the good qualities of your successor (good business sense, spotless work record, enthusiasm, new ideas, etc) should be enough to explain your choice.  

Questions to Ask Yourself Before Hiring a New Employee

The saying "It's hard to find good help these days" is very true, even though most people wouldn't expect that it would apply in this economy.  Despite the high amount of people that are looking for jobs, many employers still have difficulties finding an applicant that they feel can handle their job.  Everybody has had to go through employment woes, from the small business owner down the street, to Alexander Bouri, even to CEOs of large businesses. Some business owners wonder why they can never seem to find good employees, but the problem may have more to do with the way you're going about the hiring process. Before you start looking for new employees, ask yourself these important questions.

Do I have a defined role to fill?

If you're constantly bombarded with basic questions about the position from people you're interviewing they may not be as clueless as you think.  When you advertise a job you need to advertise a specific position that needs to be filled, vague job descriptions are sure to bring in applicants that aren't qualified for the job.  Filling out a detailed job description ensures that you'll be scheduling interviews with people who can handle the job, and also makes it easier to set basic bench marks to see if your employee is living up to their standards.

Am I hiring someone with my skills?

Work relationships aren't too different from regular relationships.  In both scenarios you want to find someone who can compliment your skills and personality, you don't want someone who has a carbon copy of your skill set.    The new employee you hire should ideally excel in areas that you aren't familiar with so that your company can grow, and so that you have someone with new perspective to add to your daily work routines.

Can You Commit to Your Employee

A lot of businesses view employee loyalty as an essential part of every business, but in order for an employee to be loyal to a company the company itself as to earn it.  Can you guarantee that you'll be able to provide your employee with a good salary and benefits?  Can you ensure that they'll be safe at work?  Can you give your employee the training they need in order to properly do their job?  If the answer to any of those questions is no, you should hold off on hiring another employee.

Three Difficult Truths About Starting a Business

Founders of successful businesses all started out the same way.  They were people with ideas who were determined to make them work.  In a perfect world a head full of ideas and a gut full of gumption would be all you need to be a successful businessman, but unfortunately we live in the real world.  Every businessman you know from big successes like Maurice Bouri to the owner of the deli down the street learned some tough lessons when they started their businesses.  Sometimes you have to learn from the school of hard knocks in order to truly understand something, and if you're starting your own business soon you'll probably be learning these tough lessons soon.

You Can't Get Bank Loans with Ideas

No bank or credit union is going to write a check and tell you to simply follow your dreams.  You may have one of the best ideas in human history, but if you don't have proof that you can pull it off you shouldn't expect a dime from anyone.  It's unfortunate and unfair, but many banks shy away from financing startups because many of the people behind the startups have little experience managing businesses.  Having a concept is great, but if you want to get any monetary support you'll need to have proof that you can make the concept work.

Your Initial Financial Expectations Will be Way Off

You could have an economics degree and have the finest financial analysts going over your projected earnings, but you won't know how much you'll earn until you actually start your business and start earning money.  Financial forecasts are a lot like regular weather forecasts.  Experts look at the data they have and make predictions on what they think will happen, and the majority of the time unexpected factors affect their predictions.  You can't predict world events, changing social norms, or upcoming economic shifts.  Focus on growing your business naturally before you start setting 7 figure revenue goals.

Success Today Doesn't Guarantee Success Tomorrow

There is no such thing as a perfect business that's always profitable; companies go through high and low periods as often as the wind changes.  If you falsely believe that you'll always be the top company in your industry you're almost guaranteed to fail somewhere down the line.  A good business owner is always looking for ways to improve their business and they make it a point to stay on top of industry trends.  The faster you realize that your success isn't guaranteed, the better off your business will be.