Many outside advisers pay too little attention to the entrepreneur's wife. There is a 75 percent probability that Mrs. Entrepreneur will outlive her husband by an average of 10 years. Even without legal control of the business, she may exert a powerful emotional influence on her husband's successors. Sometimes she functions as the "Chief Emotional Officer" of the enterprise; the generations may communicate through her. It is vital that she be included in the plans for business succession. To risk her dissatisfaction is to risk the death of the business.
Secret Estate Planning
Most parents conceal estate plans from their children. So do most family business parents. Disclosure of parents' future plans for the family business may be couched in such bromides as, "Some day this will be all yours."
The worst case scenario follows the entrepreneur's death without prior planning for succession to the company. For some time afterwards the business may wallow in disarray and disorganization until a strong personality emerges from the younger generation. The ensuing struggle to recapture the founder's power can provoke battles for control that spell death for the business.
Given the inevitability of the founder's withdrawal, the business family has only two viable alternatives — either to sell the business, or create a mechanism in which family consensus can be achieved. Failing this, the bitterness, rivalry and conflict that follow the founder's death will devour the family's best intentions.
Rival Brothers
Sibling rivalry is rampant in family businesses. It is quite common for sons to compete for their father's approval. It is also common for fathers to separate rival sons in the business, either by geography or by function. It is difficult for one sibling to report to another sibling. Family values militate against favoring one child over another. The choice of one child to lead the others in the next generation can be excruciating for the older generation. This is why so many parents simply don't make the choice.
Ohio National is not affiliated with, nor does it endorse or sponsor, any particular prospecting, marketing or selling system.