Family Councils: Is it time for a family meeting? Yes, for most firms

What does a son, daughter, cousin or in-law think about the business owned by a family member?

As Platinum Group’s Steve Coleman writes, “Whether or not they are involved daily in that business, a family business does affect the entire family. Yet many business owners of privately held companies do not usually consider the thoughts of other family members — until it’s too late.

That’s when “downstream decisions” made about succession, ownership, bonuses, profit sharing, and hiring family members can create bad feelings and years of undesired consequences. Bringing multi-generations together to make family business decisions more straightforward, less painful and much less traumatic is possible through a structured and facilitated approach called a family council.”

Click here to read Steve’s article and consider some family council guidelines.