So, you have a small business and you are looking to hire some new employees. A family member asks you for a job, do you consider hiring him or her? Surely, hiring family members has to have its pros and cons. Tom Lindstrom, author of The Home Business Archive, touches on this topic in his blog article titled “Mixing Family With Business - A Bad Idea?“.
I myself don’t think the answer should be a definite no. I think you should look at him or her as a prospective employee and not as a family member. Take an unbiased look at their qualifications and how their personality will mesh with you and the company.
One benefit of hiring a family member is that you’ve had a personal relationship with this person for years. I think this gives you a distinct advantage over hiring a complete stranger. How many of you have or have had experiences hiring family members? Would you recommend it to others?
I think that they can make good emplyees as long as they are hired because they are qualified to do the job. Hiring someone because of association puts both parties in a difficult situation.
I’ve seen it work both ways. The key is to hire based on their job qualifications and make it clear up front that they will be held to standards that are higher than the rest of the employees.
One business had several family members as employees. They were all hired based on their credentials and skills, not their relationship to the owner. They were all held to standards that exceeded the typical employee. It worked well and the company is thriving.
Another company hired the family members because…they were family. The company became the family’s employment agency. None were the best at their job and it showed. When there was a problem it was hard to correct the behavior. How do you fire your cousin? Can you imagine the next family reunion? It also led to dissatisfaction by non-family employees. Why don’t I get the same treatment? Why can he get away with a three day weekend? What future do I have in the company since I’m not family?
I couldn’t agree more. You really need to be sure they can and will do the job. Also, use your gut instinct. If you don’t feel right about it, it probably won’t work out. Don’t feel obligated to give a family member a job just because they are family.
If you want the hiring process to be a success, you better do some introspection first. Do I want to potentially harm a relationship with a relative? How would the other co-workers look at the situation? Could it been seen as nepotism? (It is called “brother-in-law” politics in Swedish.)
To hire someone simply because they are family and not consider their skills when doing so could be detrimental to your company. If they don’t have a good work ethic to begin with, how will employment with you change that? If they are qualified, skilled employees - I think it can really be very beneficial. However, if they don’t answer the telephones like they should and sit around eating crackers all day. . .no reason to keep them around simply because they’re family. Besides, anyone who would take advantage of a family member like that doesn’t deserve the position anyway.
I tend toward wanting to hire family members because I feel I can trust them. They’re more likely to care about the business, too.
I think Martin’s comments were very insightful. It is important to think about how it could affect the relationship between you and the family member, and also how it could effect morale. The way other employees will feel is definitely something to take into consideration. You can offset the suspicions of special treatment by being very fair and open but at some point, no matter what you do, you’ll probably be accused of playing favorites.
Ben,
Thanks for your feedback on my comment. I worked for a family owned company for many years, and I saw evidence of nepotism. But on the other hand, Anita has a good point that you could have a basic trust level if you start working with family members. In the case of the company I worked for, sometime I saw that the family members didn’t think long-range and they were caught up with family matters instead of the business. But as a closing note, I am must say that I was glad to work at a family owned company. It had a nice atmosphere, short decision lines, and some kind of nice feeling over the work place.
Is it common in America with family members and relatives working together?
Martin,
To answer your question (and I’m certainly no expert here) but in my opinion, it IS common for family members to work with one another in America. Many years ago, I worked for a small family owned and operated business and there were 4 employees out of 9 that were family. Some years after that, I again had another experience with a family owned and operated business - the founding members were father and son. So in my opinion and based on my personal experiences - this is commonplace here in the U.S. And as a side note, working for small family owned companies were some of the best employment experiences I’ve ever had. The atmosphere is a tight nit group and there is a general concern for one another within the group.
Chris,
Thanks for sharing your experiences. I would be happy to work with / for a family owned business in America. My long-range plan is to return to the land of opportunity - the United States of America.
I will celebrate Independence Day with fellow members of Vasa Order of America. It is a Swedish - American friendship society.
Best Premises,
Martin Lindeskog - American in Spirit.
P.S. Did you check out Elliott Wave theory?
It is common in the small business arena for family members to work together and you most you probably know, this is how a good amount of small businesses get started.
I currently have family members as employees and I think as long as you set the stage in the begining and let them know its business and not personal, things have a better chance of working out. But even more critical is treating them equal to all other employees.