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This publication may be freely redistributed if copied in its entirety.
In This Issue...
1. Our Managing Director Announces -
2. Business first family...Family first business
[see Don's Managing Director letter]
3. Legacy through Leadership
LP21. Ensuring Ethical Decision-making
4. Around the Family Business Experts web sites
1. Our Managing Director Announces -
What if you were to survey family-owned businesses as to what is the major stumbling block they have in the day-to-day running of their business?
I am not talking major strategies like advisory boards or family business retreats - just in the routine day-to-day problems of being a family in business together.
For those of you who know it's "communications" - well, move to the head of the class!
In my nearly 40 years working as a family business consultant, many of the big issues and most of the small issues and frustrations I have worked to resolve were the result of poor communications between and amongst family members.
In the past few weeks, our web master David Jones has reworked the communication section of our web site. We invite you to take a look. You'll see many of the different facets of "communication" opportunities in the family business.
Business Communication
In our role as succession managers, one of the problems we see as a major impediment to the successful transition from one generation to the next is the lack of infrastructure - a lack of formalization of the management tools for the business.
One of the first steps in the process for developing infrastructure in the family business is to create an employee handbook.
An employee handbook is the compilation of the company policies and practices - but it also can be used to inform employees about the culture of the family and how that drives the culture of the business.
Another major benefit is that an employee handbook can be a very effective deterrent to employee/ex-employee legal action against the company - and we all know too well how expensive that can be.
While many family business owners know how important an employee handbook can be, it can easily become a back-burner issue - always more important fires to fight.
Of course, an employee handbook is the absolute backbone of communication within the business.
We continue with the Leadership Practices series, since these practices are the foundation for the processes that must be in place in order to achieve success.
Reminder: We've developed a couple of quick diagnostic assessments to help you. They are both fr*ee [at least for a while] and we try to deliver 48 hour turnaround of our analysis. Try them!
The Holonomic Top Down Assessment asks you about a combination of the 12 Main Enabling Processes that an effective organization has to have operating in order to achieve the 6 Desired Organizational Characteristics of effective organizations. Where your assessment indicates one or more of these are not working in your organization, we'll feed back suggestions as to the underlying Leadership Practices that might not be working.
Take our fr*ee Holonomic Top Down Assessment to see what underlying practices might be at fault and causing problem symptoms in your family business .
Diagnosing from the other direction - Bottom-Up - we ask you to identify which of 29 Leadership Practices aren't present or working. From that, we point you to Enabling Processes and thus Desired Characteristics that probably aren't functioning.
Take our fr*ee assessment on the 29 Leadership Practices to see how they affect your family business.
Whether to contribute, challenge (or hopefully even praise) our newsletter, I encourage you to contact me directly Don, or our editor David.
Enjoy, and here's wishing you, your family, your clients... much success and a relaxing and memorable Memorial Day!
Don Schwerzler, Managing Director
Family Business Experts
2. Business first family...Family first business:
See Don's Managing Director letter.
Our Tips and Recommendations
Get your Game in time for Thanksgiving family gathering
Families love the FamilyLore Game!
Unique and customized for every family. Interactive
board game celebrates family history.
Family stories & events shared & remembered.
FamilyLore Game
Employee Handbook
Easy to read, use and update
Not written in legalese
Protection if sued; compliant in every State
Answers employee benefit questions
Special Announcement!
If you are one of the many Project KickStart users
Project KickStart and Understanding Family Business
Have a Thanksgiving Treat for you! 
Plan and Organize Thanksgiving Dinner in
this special PKS project template.
Download here.
3. Legacy through Leadership
There are 29 Leadership Practices [LP] that are really the foundation upon which 12 holonomic or enabling processes[HP] are built, and which, in turn, produce 6 desired organizational characteristics [DOC]. We'll look at each in this section.
LP21. Ensuring Ethical Decision-making
Ensuring ethical decision-making encourages Associates to do the right thing in their decision-making. This important leadership process discourages Associates from engaging in behavior that is legal but unethical. It encourages them to adhere to ethical standards. And -- most importantly - it rewards them for being ethical.
Take our fr*ee assessment on the 29 Leadership Practices...
4. Around the Family Business Experts web sites
Search the entire content site
in two different ways
1. A search engine powered by ATOMZ has indexed all the pages on the site and will link you to those relating to any search term you enter.
2. A 'Table of contents' listing that will link you directly to any page / article you select. Use the Site Map Navigation Button from any major page on the site.
Business communication is always an important function that family businesses need to manage with a clear vision and strategy.
Business Communication
Your employee handbook is the very core of managing human resources. Some of the contents will be familiar, but we're sure you'll find some surprises that you hadn't thought of covering.
Employee Handbook
Our human resource forms section shows you individual forms and packages of forms - everything you'll need for a complete HR department.
Human Resource Forms
Free human resources forms to get you started setting up your complete human resources function.
Free Human Resources Forms
Don't forget to subscribe to our Family Business Experts RSS Feed. It keeps you totally updated [NEW and UPDATED] of site changes and saves you time by delivering some of our "Golden Oldies" that need to be looked at again.
If you have previously subscribed - Thanks! But please use the orange XML/RSS button below again - our feed link has changed.
Don't forget that you can complete our Family Business Profile Questionnaire form to have your family business or client profiled.
Background information, testimonials to our service and understanding, and answers to FAQ's [Frequently Asked Questions]. Family Business Experts
There are many articles accessible from this page on the left side navigation bar.
Read the review of The Practitioner's Guide for Organizing an Organization and click on its ASK THE EXPERT link to contact Dr. Byrne who is an experienced user of the diagnostic tools.
Take our fr*ee assessment on the 29 Leadership Practices to see how they affect your family business.
Take our fr*ee Holonomic Top Down Assessment to see what underlying practices might be at fault and causing problem symptoms in your family business .
And remember about our convenient new online billing with 100% assurance! Another step in our process of starting online business.
Secure online payment
© 2000-2005. Family Business Institute, Inc.
1213 Laurel Cliff Drive, Smyrna GA 30082
voice 770-952-4085 fax 770-432-6660
Contact Don Schwerzler
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