Some Roles Are Hard to Leave at Home

I’ve worked with a lot of family-owned businesses over the years, and one thing that makes them different is how much history people bring to work with them.

When you’re part of a family business, you’re not only working with the person who runs Sales or Operations. You may be working with your dad, your sister, or someone you’ve known your entire life. Or you may be on the outside of that circle, working on a team with a set of siblings or a parent and their child. That can make a disagreement at work feel different than it would with any other leadership team.

And it can get especially complicated during IDS®. You may start out trying to solve a business issue and find that there’s a lot more tied to it than what’s sitting on the Issues List.
 

When you work in a family business, you need to be able to recognize when personal issues and family dynamics are impacting the company. Certified EOS Implementer® and Family Business Advisor Debra Chantry-Taylor recently wrote about what happens when family roles start affecting IDS.

Focus Points
“Inside the business meeting, the Seat must matter more than the family role.”
- Debra Chantry-Taylor

Why IDS Is Harder for Family Businesses

Debra explains that family businesses operate across three groups: the family, the owners, and the operating business. And it’s not uncommon for some people to have a role in all three.

That’s why she recommends getting clear about the role you’re speaking from when an issue gets difficult. Are you speaking as a family member, an owner, or the person accountable for a Seat?

From there, you can decide where the issue needs to be addressed.

A business issue belongs in the business meeting. An ownership issue may need to go to the board. A family issue may need a separate discussion with the right family members.

Moving an issue to another forum doesn’t mean you ignore it. Debra recommends being specific about who will address it, where they’ll address it, and when the outcome will come back to the team.

Maz Prompt of the Week

Ask: Show me the Issues that look like solutions instead of problems.

Inside Ninety

I might be biased as an Implementer, but I’m a big believer in coming to your Level 10 Meeting® ready to work.

When your Scorecard, Rocks, To-Dos, Headlines, issues, and Segue are up to date, your team can spend less time catching up and more time working through the issues that need to be solved.

The Ninety team put together a short video on the six things to update before your next meeting in Ninety.